Name: Grade Level:

Section: Date:

WORKSHEET NO. 1

TITLE: THE FUNCTIONS, NATURE AND PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

Most Essential Learning Competency:

Explains the functions, nature and process of communication
Code: EN11/12OC-Ia-2
Sub-Competency
• Describes the nature of communication
• Categorizes the functions of communication
• Gives examples of the functions of communication
• Outlines the process involved communication

DISCUSSION

Introduction

The role of communication plays a very vital part in our everyday lives. As we
have a primal need to share thoughts, impart information, persuade others in our
beliefs, and show our love and affection, it is truly hard to have a day pass without
communicating.
To define it, communication is the process of expressing and exchanging
information, thoughts, ideas, and feelings. It involves a series of actions that lead to a
particular result such as the passing on a message and exchange of message among
others. It is essential in whatever you do or intend to pursue.
*What other communication
These are some examples of communication situations: situations do
1. A teacher imparting lessons to his/ her students you observe?
2. A coach motivating his team *Why do you consider each a
3. A parent giving some words of wisdom to his son communication
4. A salesperson giving a pitch to potential clients. situation?

Wood (2004) further described communication as a systematic process in which

individuals interact with and through symbols to create and interpret meanings.

LESSON 1: THE NATURE OF COMMUNICATION

Communication
The term communication is derived from the Latin communicare meaning "to share,
divide out; communicate, impart, inform; join, unite, participate in". It literally means "to
make common". It is also related to the word communis meaning "common, public,
general".
Human communication is said to be:
1. Purposive – It serves and effect a useful function and is done consciously by the
participants. It takes place with an intention to achieve some outcome.

2. A process- It is a series of related actions between people that transfers meaning

from one to the other.

3. Dynamic – It is not static. It is not fixed but always changing. As it deals with
change in behavior, it changes constantly.

4. Continuous- It has no beginning and no end. We consider communication as a

product of a previous communication event that proceeds to another
communication situation.

5. Irreversible - You can't really take back something once it has been said. The
effect must inevitably remain. A Russian proverb says, "Once a word goes out of
your mouth, you can never swallow it again."

6. Contextual - It does not happen in isolation. There is:

a. Psychological context, which is who you are and what you bring to the
interaction. Your needs, desires, values, personality, etc., all form the
psychological context. ("You" here refers to both participants in the interaction.)
b. Relational context, which concerns your reactions to the other person--the "mix."
c. Situational context deals with the psycho-social "where" you are communicating.
An interaction that takes place in a classroom will be very different from one that
takes place in a bar.
d. Environmental context deals with the physical "where" you are communicating.
Furniture, location, noise level, temperature, season, time of day, all are
examples of factors in the environmental context.
e. Cultural context includes all the learned behaviors and rules that affect the
interaction. If you come from a culture (foreign or within your own country) where
it is considered rude to make long, direct eye contact, you will out of politeness
avoid eye contact. If the other person comes from a culture where long, direct
eye contact signals trustworthiness, then we have in the cultural context a basis
for misunderstanding.

ACTIVITY 1

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE NATURE OF COMMUNICATION (1)

Directions: Draw a if the statement is TRUE about communication and

an if the statement is FALSE.
_________1. The term communication refers to both verbal and non-verbal
symbols.
_________2. Communication is the ability to share thoughts and experiences in
a meaningful way while taking in, processing and responding to the person you
are talking with.
_________3. In your group, each student comes from a different culture. This is
an example of “situational context”.
_________4. We can describe communication as dynamic if it constantly evolves
depending on the context and participants.
_________5. What a person say or communicate has no effect to other people.
_________6. A person generally communicates in the same way to all people.
_________7. If you started a conversation and the other participant did not
agree with what you said, it is still considered as communication.
_________8. Communication is a process made up of several sub-processes.
_________9. Human communication is grounded in cooperative and shared
intentions.
_________10. Communication is fundamental to the existence and survival of
humans.

ACTIVITY 2

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE NATURE OF COMMUNICATION (2)

Directions: Given the words that you can see in the shape. Create a 2-
stanza with 4 lines poem about what you have learned about
communication. Refer to the rubric below for scoring.

Poem Writing Rubric

Criteria Score
4 3 2 1
Focused on Entire poem Most of the Some of the No attempt
assigned is related to poem is poem is has been
topic the topic related to related to the made to
topic topic relate the
poem to the
topic
 Creativity Contains Contains Contains few Contains
many creative acceptable creative little evidence
details amount of details of creativity
creative
details
Imagery Many vivid, Some vivid, The writer No picture in
descriptive descriptive didn’t supply mind has
words are words are much details been created
used used

DISCUSSION

LESSON 2: THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is made up of several components: (a) speaker/sender, (b)

listener/receiver, (c) message, (d) medium, (e) channel, (f) feedback, (g) content. And
(h) noise. The process of communication is best understood if you know how these
various components come into play in the stages of any communication situation.

Stage 1: Sending the message

Messag
Sender Medium Channel
e
a. Speaker/sender- is the source of the message that is encoded into symbols that
are verbal (with words) and/or nonverbal (without words.)
b. Message- is any information or anything the speaker/sender wants to
communicate by using a medium.
c. Medium- is the form in which the speaker/sender conveys the message, which
may probably be speech, conversation, letter, email, blog, newspaper, book, and
the like, through a channel.
d. Channel- is the mode, method, or means of sending or expressing the message,
which may perhaps be through any of the five senses-sight, hearing, touch,
smell, taste (Padilla et.al., 2011).

Stage 2: Receiving the message

Receiver Feedback Context Noise

a. Listener/receiver- gets the message in the medium desired through the chosen
channel. And decodes the message.
b. Feedback- is the receiver’s response, verbally or nonverbally- silence included to
the message sent. It is affected by one’s frame of reference, which is the sum of
a person’s knowledge, experience, goals, values, and attitudes.
 c. Context- is the situation or environment in which communication takes place,
which includes time, place, event, as well as sender’s and receiver’s feelings,
perceptions, beliefs, attitudes, and relationships.
d. Noise, also called interference or distraction- is anything that impedes or gets
in the way of accurately sending, receiving, and interpreting the message,
whether it be internal- from the sender or receiver, or external-from the
environment (Lucas, 2000).

Types of Noise:
1. Physical Noise- environment
Examples: unbearable weather, loud music
2. Psychological Noise- emotional or mental state
Examples: depression, anger, suspicious
3. Physiological noise “bodily condition”
Examples: hunger, stomach ache
4. Semantic noise- meaning of words
Examples: foreign language, limited vocabulary

ACTIVITY 3

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION (1)

Directions: Identify the type of noise (physical, psychological, physiological, semantic)

described in each number.

Noise Type

1. Headache

2. Noise from a busy construction site

3. Missing someone

4. Disliking the speaker

5. Noise from moving vehicles

6. Speaker’s ambiguous words

7. Excited to do something else

8. Grumbling of the stomach

9. Poor ventilation in the venue

10. Talking among seatmates

 11. Lack of interest

12. Unclear pronunciation of words

ACTIVITY 4

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION (2)

Directions: Using all the elements of communication, make a diagram to show

how you understand their relation to each other. You may use your own icon
or symbol to depict each element. Refer to the rubric below for scoring.

Diagram Making Rubric

Criteria Score
4 3 2 1
Accuracy of 90% of the 70% of the 50% of the Less than
Content content content content 50% of the
included in included in included in content
the diagram the diagram the diagram included in
is correct is correct is correct the diagram
is correct
poem to the
topic
 Graphics- Graphics are Graphics areGraphics are Graphics lack
effectiveness of excellent adequate somewhat effectiveness
and relevance quality effective and relevance
Labels All important Almost all Many Labels are
items are important important not clear
labeled items are items are
labeled labeled
Appearance Very Appealing in Somewhat Not appealing
appealing in terms of appealing in in terms of
terms of design, layout terms of design, layout
design, layout and neatness design, layout and neatness
and neatness and neatness
Spelling and No spelling or Few spelling Some spelling Many spelling
Grammar grammatical or or or
errors grammatical grammatical grammatical
errors errors errors

DISCUSSION

LESSON 3: THE FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION

Introduction

Function refers to the particular purpose for which a thing is used, something
exists, or a person is fitted to meet his or somebody else’s needs or desires.

Communication is designed to serve five basic functions:

1. To provide information
2. To motivate
3. To regulate or control
4. To provide emotional expression
5. To effect social interaction

A. To provide information
 This is the most basic function of communication.
 Communication provides data and information for effective completion of tasks,
solution of problems, and elimination of uncertainty.
The three flows of information are:
1. Downward flow, from the superiors or elders to the subordinates in the form of
directives or updates.
2. Upward flow, from the subordinates or family members to the superiors or
elders in the form of feedback and reports or suggestions.
3. Horizontal flow, (peer to peer), from worker to worker, husband to wife and vice
versa, sibling to sibling, or manager to manager in the form of data and reports
(Lombardo, 2015).

B. To motivate
 Motivation is the energy that influences a person’s behavior in different ways in
his pursuit of his goal or objective.
  Communication fosters motivation. If we know what, why, and how things should
be done, we gain self-confidence and encouragement to accomplish our tasks.
 Communication helps us reinforce desired behavior, rectify any undesirable
action, and motivate others as well.
Example:
1. The priest or the leader of a religious organization preaches to his parish to
motivate them to live a Christian way of life.
2. The teacher updates his students on their school performance to encourage
them to do better.
3. The coach boosts his prayers’ morale by building their self-esteem through pep
talks and team-building sessions.

C. To regulate or control
 To control or regulate is to exercise restraint or direction formally or informally.
 The expression of needs and what is a way to regulate the behavior of another
person to obtain something or get something done (Murphy, 2014).
 The control and regulation function of communication is more observable in
formal organizations than informal ones, (Kamat, 2011).
Examples:
1. School rules and policies on attendance, grading, dress codes are prescribed.
2. Employees are urged to follow authority hierarchies and some formal guidelines.
3. The public is enjoined to follow the laws of the country.
4. Believers are encouraged to take to heart the precepts of the bible, and the
Roman Catholics are obliged to follow the Ten Commandments.

D. To provide emotional expression

 Communication makes possible the release or unloading of emotions, resulting in
catharsis.
 Communicating your emotions verbally or nonverbally will alleviate your anxiety
and help you get out of your emotional blocking.
 Emotional appeal, on the other hand, is used in persuading people to change
their mind or behavior.

E. To effect social interaction

 Communication allows us to act and react to the behavior of people around us.
By revealing our thoughts and feelings, we elicit reactions from others.

 Goffman categorizes social interaction into five:

1. Exchange – is a social process whereby social behavior is exchanged for a
reward, which may be material or nonmaterial.
2. Competition – is a process by which two or more people interact and fight for
a goal that only one can win.
3. Cooperation – is a social process in which people work together to realize
their common goals.
4. Conflict – refers to strong disagreement between people, groups, and so on,
which may result in often angry argument.
5. Coercion – is a process of getting something or making someone do
something by using threats.
ACTIVITY 5

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE FUNCTION OF COMMUNICATION (1)

Directions: Read the direction for each number.

1. Identify the function of the following communication activities.

A. The teacher informs the students of the results of their midterm examination.
_____________________________________________________________________
_
B. A student council member distributes handouts and explains to students their
events and activities for the whole semester.
_____________________________________________________________________
_
C. On the first day of classes, the adviser reminds the students about the policies of
the university.
_____________________________________________________________________
_
D. Mary confides in her best friend her problems at home.
_____________________________________________________________________
_
E. The leader of a group of students shares her thoughts and aspirations with her
close friends.
_____________________________________________________________________
_

2. Identify who controls the conversation or communication in the following

situations.
A. Doctor and patient in a clinic or hospital
_____________________________________________________________________
_
B. Boss and employee in an office
_____________________________________________________________________
_
C. Driver and passenger inside a public utility vehicle
_____________________________________________________________________
_
D. Mother and child at home
_____________________________________________________________________
_
E. Leader of an activist group and his audience in a rally
_____________________________________________________________________
_

3. Explain how the following can motivate you.

A. Your favorite actor, actress, or TV personality
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
B. Preachers
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
C. Life coaches
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
D. Financial advisers
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
E. Marriage counselors
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
F. Guidance counselors
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
G. Your greatest competitor
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
H. Your best friend
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___
I. Your parent
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___

ACTIVITY 6

NAME OF ACTIVITY: THE FUNCTION OF COMMUNICATION (2)

 Directions: Clip an advertisement, a comic strip, an e-mail, and a news
article. What are the functions of communication on each clipping? Explain
why you relate the clipping to that function. Refer to the rubric below for
scoring.

Clipping and Essay Rubric

Criteria Score
4 3 2 1
Work has Exceeds Meets Minimally Does not
complete criterion criterion meets meet criterion
entries criterion
Demonstrates Exceeds Meets Minimally Does not
understanding criterion criterion meets meet criterion
of content criterion
Makes Exceeds Meets Minimally Does not
appropriate criterion criterion meets meet criterion
connections to criterion
topic
Entries are Exceeds Meets Minimally Does not
organized criterion criterion meets meet criterion
criterion

LET’S REFLECT!

Summarize what you have learned in this module, using the chart below:
What I KNOW What I WONDERED What I LEARNED
Prepared by:

LEAH MARIE S. ARENILLO

Teacher II
Oriental Mindoro National High School