LESSON 1: FORMS OF COMMUNICATION

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
1. identify the various communication modes and how they help in expressing one’s
communicative intent;
2. show the importance of face-to-face, audio, virtual, text-based and other forms of
communication particularly in targeting different types of audience in local and global settings;
3. distinguish the difference between and among communication modes and;
4. use these communication modes appropriately depending on the context of
communication situation.

How do you think has communication mode

changed or improved over time?

What Is Communication Mode?

Communication mode refers to the channel through which one expresses his/her
communicative intent.

COMMUNICATION MODES

It is a medium through which one conveys his/her thoughts. Views or feelings be

communicated through face to face interaction, video, or audio. The mode made also be text-
based.

Face- to -face interaction is the most common of all these modes. It is an informal or
casual conversation between two or more people. People engage in social conversations to
establish relationships or maintain them. It is one of the gaining new acquaintances or friends.
How to speak, what to speak, when to speak and to whom
one is speaking are all important considerations in building relationships
 How do you initiate conversation? Faced with a group of new people who you do not
know in a social gathering, you should begin a conversation. One advantage of face-to-face
interaction is that aside from directly hearing the message being conveyed, you are able to note
visual cues through facial expressions, gestures, movements or even objects or realia from the
person/s you are communicating with.

Dau Voire suggest “be brave enough to start a conversation that matters”. This simply
means that even if people surrounding you in social event are strangers to you, you need to be
confident enough to meet new faces to initiate an interesting conversation. In social gathering
like wedding, for instance you do not dwell on topics that are never ending in nature. You do not
discuss politics and religion as these are sensitive that may impinge on one’s beliefs and
practices.

Margaret J. Whetley : “states social change begins with a conversation”

Simple conversation blossom into a deeper contact. Eventually you and your profound friend
may find yourselves enjoying each other’s company, sharing the same interests, and deciding to
work on some significant projects. Later on, all these will result in changes the yield profound
social consequences.

As Diana Wheatley aptly puts it:

“Meaning is made in conversation,

Reality is created in communication,
And knowledge is generated through social interaction…
Language is the vehicle through which we create our understanding
of the world”

Another mode of communication is video. Web cameras are used so that two or more
people who cannot interact face-to-face can communicate. This could be a very effective mode
of communication especially during for people separated by distance.
This mode of communication is made possible through the use of electronic applications that
allow video calls like, Skype, Viber, WhatsApp, Apple Face Time, Facebook Messenger and
among others. In more formal settings, people can also engage in video conferencing. This is a
convenient communication mode for people who want to reach out to each other despite
distance, a disadvantage is the time zone difference between countries.

The third mode of communication is audio. Audio means transmitted sounds. Thus, this
mode of communication, only transmit voice of the speaker is heard. Ordinarily, someone’s
voice is heard through the telephone or answering machine when the other party is not able to
answer a call. In skype, when a person is not online, a voice message or voice mail can be sent.
The downside of this mode is not being able to see the body language or cues of the person
you are talking to.

The fourth and last mode of communication is text-based communication such as email,
text messaging and instant messaging. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram offer text-based interaction. It has a wider reach and can disseminate information to a
bigger audience quickly. These 3 modes are all virtual in nature. Those engaged in
communication are able to hear and see each other in real time
simulating the actual physical setting.