COURSE OUTLINE

UNIT LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this course the learner should be able to:

1. Explain the meaning of the word “communication”

2. Distinguish between the different forms of communication
3. Describe the different elements in the process of communication
4. Demonstrate knowledge of basic concepts and approaches to communication
5. Apply written/oral work in designated academic forms
6. Prepare and deliver effective presentations
7. Apply communication skills to everyday life

SESSION 1: INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION

1.1. Introduction
1.2. Learning Outcomes
1.3. The meaning of Communication
1.4. The Importance of Communication
1.5. Process of Communication
1.5.1. Elements of Communication
1.6. Models of Communication
1.7. Summary
1.8. Review Activity
1.9. References/Further Reading

SESSION 2: VERBAL COMMUNICATION

2.1. Introduction
2.2. Learning Outcomes
2.3. Categories of Communication
2.4. Verbal Communication
2.5. Types of Verbal Communication
2.6. Summary
2.7. Review Activity
2.8. References/Further Reading

SESSION 3: NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

3.1. Introduction
3.2. Learning Outcomes
3.3. Non-verbal Communication
3.4. Types of Non-verbal Communication
3.6. Summary
3.7. Review Activity
3.8. References/ Further Reading

SESSION 4: BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

4.1. Introduction
4.2. Learning Outcomes
4.3. Factors affecting communication
4.4. Barriers to effective Communication.
4.5. Overcoming Barriers to Communication
4.6: Basic Communication Skills
4.7. Summary
4.8. Self-Assessment
4.9. References/Further Reading

SESSION 5: LISTENING AND NOTE-TAKING SKILLS

5.1 Introduction
5.2. Learning Outcomes
5.3. Listening as skill
5.4. Types of Listening
5.5. Stages of Listening
5.5. Quiz
5.6. Listening as an Effective Communication skill
5.8. Listening Styles
5.9. Note-taking
5.10. Summary
5.11. Self-Assessment
5.12. References/ Further Reading

SESSION 6: READING SKILLS

6.1 Introduction
6.2 Learning Outcomes
6.3 Meaning and Nature of Reading
6.4 Types of Reading
6.5 Objectives of Reading
6.6 Factors affecting Reading Skills
6.7 Components of Reading
6.8 Improving Retention
6.9 Summary
6.10 References/Further Reading

SESSION 7: WRITING: BASIC WRITING SKILLS

7.1. Introduction
7.2. Learning Outcomes
7.3. Methods of Writing
7.3.1. Identifying Your Subject
7.3.2. Gathering Information
7.3.3. Purpose
7.3.4. Knowing Your Reader
7.4. Beginning to Write
7.4.1. Writing the Thesis Statement
7.4.2. Writing a Paragraph
7.4.3. Introductions and Conclusions
7.5. Organizing your Writing
7.5.1. Forms of Discourse
7.6. The Writing Process
7.7. Grammar: Gerunds
7.8. Summary
7.9. Review Activity
7.10. 1.9 References and Further Reading

SESSION 8: TECHNICAL WRITING SKILLS

8.1. Introduction
8.2. Learning Outcomes
8.3. Essay Writing
8.4. Types of Writing
8.4.1. Reports
8.4.2. Letters
8.4.3. CVs and Résumé
8.5. Summary
8.6. Review Activity
8.7.6 References/Further Reading

SESSION 9: SCIENTIFIC WRITING SKILLS

9.1. Introduction
9.2. Learning Outcomes
9.3. Writing from Research
9.3.1. The Purpose of research
9.3.2. The Research proposal
9.3.3. Data/information Gathering Techniques
9.4. Writing a Research Paper
9.4.1. Creating a Rough Draft
9.4.2. Developing the Final Draft
9.4.3. Writing the Final Draft
9.5. Documentation and Formatting
9.5.1. Formatting Research paper
9.5.2. Citing and referencing Styles
9.5.3. Creating the reference Section
9.5.4. Using APA Documentation and Formatting
9.6. Summary
9.7. Referencing/Further Reading

SESSION 10: PRESENTATION SKILLS

10.1. Introduction
10.2. Learning Outcomes
10.3. Preparation
10.4. Structure
10.5. Timing
10.6. Delivery
10.6.1. Full script versus notes
10.6.2. Form of language
10.6.3. Environment
10.6.4. Visuals
10.6.5. Verbal and non-verbal
10.6.6. Dealing with the Audience
10.7. Handling nerves
10.8. Rehearsal
10.9. Feedback
10.10. Summary
10.11. Review Activities
10.12. References/Further readings
SESSION ELEVEN: CURRICULUM VITAE/RESUME WRITING

11.1 Introduction
11.2 Lecture Outcomes
11.3 Definitions
11.3.1 Curriculum Vitae
 11.3.2 The Resume
11.4 Differences between Bio-Data, CV and Resume
11.5 Writing your Curriculum Vitae
11.6 Steps to follow when Writing CV
11.7 Writing an Effective Resume
11.8 The Format
11.9 The Dos and Don’ts of the Resume
11.10 Some Tips
11.11 Summary
11.12 Review Questions
11.13 References and Further Reading

SESSION TWELVE: THE INTERNET

12.1 Introduction
12.2 Lecture Outcomes
12.3 What is the Internet?
12.4 Internet as an aspect of Communication
12.5 A Brief History of the Internet
12.6 Basic Internet Services
12.6.1 Electronic Mail (E-mail)
12.6.2 File Transfer
12.6.3 Internet Relay Chat(IRC)
12.6.4 Mailing List
12.6.5 Joining a Listserv
12.6.6 Usenet Newsgroups
12.6.7 World wide WEB
12.6.8 Hypertext Links
12.7 Search Engines
12.8 Metasearch Engines
12.9 Status of Web Sources
12.10 Web Searching
 12.10.1 Surfing the Web
12.11 Web Address – a URL
12.11.1. Elements of a URL
12.12 Summary
12.13 Review Activity
12.14 References/Further Reading
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE UNIT
The contents have been spread over 12 sessions. Each session is equivalent to one
lecture of three hours. The main focus of this course is on communication skills. These
skills comprise the four major language skills you need to master for effective
communication, namely, reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
Course Description
Session 1
In this session I give you an overview of this course, I also discuss the meaning of
communication; elements of communication, why do we need effective
Communication.
Session 2
Session two sets you on a journey to discover barriers that hinder Communication. As
we lay out these barriers, we shall also look at strategies to overcome them. What I
want you to be aware of is that many times our messages fail to reach our target
audiences because we have barriers and obstacles, which in effect prevent effective
communication.
Session 3
I want to believe that at this point we are familiar with the operative principles of
communication, its effectiveness, and the various concepts associated with
overcoming what we identified as barriers to communication. I am going to introduce
you to Non-Verbal Communication with special emphasis on the importance of Body
Language in communication. I intend to highlight the soft skills relevant for
performing well in professional activities like group discussion and interviews.
Session 4
Having identified barriers that obstruct effective communication in our last session, I
want to introduce to you the first skill of Communication we call Listening Skills. I
will take you on a journey to establish detailed answers to these questions: Why do
you need listening skills? How can you enhance your listening skills? How can you
become a better listener? Which strategies can you use to become an active listener?
Do we have barriers to listening? If we do what are they and how can you overcome
them?
Session 5
For you to make your communication smooth and flawless, you need to look into
various practical aspects like grammar, spelling, pronunciation, and punctuation. .
Under Writing Skills, we shall engage in reinforcing the grammatical structures
critical to communication. The errors that will come under the practical aspects of
communication are kept under one umbrella term Common Errors.
Session 6
Having reinforced the grammatical structures critical to communication in our
previous session, I focus on Written Communication. I will help you to enhance
formally structured effective official writing. Basics of official correspondence--
principles of writing general and official correspondence. Here Letter Writing, with
special emphasis on Job Application Letter, is dealt with. Note-taking is an important
aspect of academic studying. I will also take you through the skill of note-taking.
Session 7
Here I will focus on Technical Writing Emphasizing Report Writing and Essay
Writing. I will highlight the difference between literary style and technical style. The
next two sessions are quite important in a professional sense. Reflective writing is
another important skill you need to develop for some of the activities on this course,
and for your learning journal. I will assist you to distinguish between academic
writing and reflective writing.
Session 8
In this session I plan to take you through another important communication skill
known as Reading Skills. Indeed, reading is going to be an essential component in
your learning at university. This is not only because reading is a principal means of
obtaining information, expanding your knowledge and understanding of your
subjects but also because a large proportion of your time of study will be spent
working with written sources of information and because you have to cover a great
deal of material in a short amount of time.
Session 9
My focus will be on Group Discussion. We shall attempt to answer the following
questions: Why do you need group discussions? How can you make a good
participant in group discussion? How to judge group discussion participants? How to
consider the non-verbal aspects of group discussion?
Session 10
Interview Skills, will be the theme of my lectures in this session. Beginning with a
discussion on how to prepare for an interview, the session systematically covers all
the skills needed for giving a successful performance at an interview.
Session 11
This session focuses on Oral Presentation. This includes professional presentation
skills and general skills related to public speaking. It addresses important questions
such as: “How to overcome stage-fright” and “How to deliver a confident
presentation.”
Session 12
This session deals with what is contemporary and necessary, that is, Netiquette—the
manner and method of expressing oneself on line. I also look at the subject of Cross-
Cultural Communication or Inter-Cultural Communication. This focuses on
communication across-cultures or communication between two cultures. Kenya is a
multi-cultural country, and, in a globalized scenario, there is no country that has a
single culture. In this context, interaction with people of another country, or for that
matter, with citizens of the world, calls for an informed knowledge of various cultural
aspects embedded in the process of communication.

After this brief description of the course, I hope you are able to get a bird’s eye view
of it. All said and done, the sole aim of the course is to make you a very effective
communicator. In fact, all of us are equipped with basic communication skills. If you
do not have any basic sense of communication, you would not be interested in going
through this material! Since you already possess some basic knowledge of
communication, you are further interested in enhancing your communication skills.
Yet, the principal question remains: Will you be an effective communicator? If you
want to be an effective communicator, what should you do? And this is the basic
question that I raise in this lecture, and I am going to give you answers through
various ways and methods. Sometimes, I am not going to give direct answers. On such
occasions, I want you to think over some of the issues that I am talking about and
come to your own conclusions on the issues.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course unit, the student should be able to:
1. Develop strong communication skills that will enhance efficiency in academics and
other functional areas of life;
2. Demonstrate knowledge of basic concepts and approaches of communication theory;
3. Develop both short term and long-term plans for enhancing communication in
reading, speaking, writing and listening;
4. Apply oral or written work in designated academic form
5. Develop strong interpersonal skills that will help one to get along with others.

MODE OF STUDY

This course will adopt a blended learning format which essentially consists of online
learning modules where a portion of the lecture and reading material will be
presented through videos (and or web conferences), text, and other interactive
programming formats.

COURSE ASSESSMENT
Continuous Assessments 30%

Examination 70%

Total 100%
REFERENCE MATERIALS

Recommended Texts
1. Gregory, H. & Gamble, M. (2009). Communication Works. McGraw Hill.
NewYork.
2. McKay, M., Davis, M. & Fanning, P. (2009). Messages: The Communication
Skills Book. 3rd Edition. New Harbinger Publications. Oakland.
3. Krishna, M. and Meera, B. (2009). Developing communication skills. Nairobi:
Macmillan

Recommended Journals
1. The Journal of Communication and Religion
2. European Journal of communication
3. International Journal of Communication
Supplementary Texts
1. Davies, J. (2001). Communication Skills: A guide for Engineering and applied
sciences students. 2nd Edition. Prentice Hall. London.
2. Gamble, T. K. & Gamble, M. (2007). Communication Works. 10th Edition.
McGraw Hill. NewYork
3. Mohan, K. & Barnerji M. (2000). Developing Communication Skills. MacMillan
Publishers. New Delhi.

Supplementary Journals
1. European Journal of Social Sciences
2. E-journal of Co-operative Communication skills
3. The American Journal of Pharmaceutical education: Communication skills
4. The International Journal of Social Work Education