Pines City Colleges

GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 

First Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022

Course Number: Com 101

Course Title: Purposive Communication 

Modular Learning Guide # 1

Topic: Course Overview,  Introduction, Communication Process 

Expected Time of Completion: 3 hours 
A. Learning Outcomes 
The students are able to describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in
various and multi-cultural contexts.
B. Learning Content 
Course Description: 
Purposive Communication is about writing, speaking, and presenting to different audiences and for
various purposes. (CMO 20 S 2013)
Purposive Communication is a three-unit course that develops students’ communicative competence and
enhances their cultural and intercultural awareness through multimodal tasks that provide them opportunities
for communicating effectively and appropriately to a multicultural audience in a local or global context. It
equips students with tools for critical evaluation of a variety of texts and focuses on the power of language
and the impact of images to emphasize the importance of conveying messages responsibly. The knowledge,
skills, and insights that students gain from this course may be used in their other academic endeavours, their
chosen disciplines, and their future careers as they compose and produce relevant oral, written, audio-visual
and/or web-based output for various purposes.
Course Rationale: 
This course is offered to prepare students to communicate more effectively through any mode (oral,
written, audio-visual, and online) notwithstanding all the differences that exist among humans most especially
because people are already part of a global community. Moreover, this course aims to empower students to
converse successfully in both local and global contexts specifically within the academe and later on within their
own respective profession/discipline. 
This course is offered to all students of the respective colleges.
Intended Learning Outcomes For The Entire Course: 
1. describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in various and
multi-cultural contexts
2. explain how cultural and global issues affect communication and appreciate the impact of communication
on society and the world 
3. determine culturally appropriate terms, expressions, and images and adopt cultural and intercultural
awareness and sensitivity in communicating ideas
4. evaluate multimodal texts critically to enhance receptive ( listening, reading, viewing) skills; convey ideas
through oral, audio-visual, and /or web-based presentations for different target audiences in local and
global settings using appropriate registers and ; adopt awareness of audience and context in presenting
ideas 
5. convey ideas through oral, audio-visual, and /or web-based presentations for different target audiences in
local and global settings using appropriate registers; create clear, coherent, and effective communication
materials; present ideas persuasively using appropriate language registers, tone, facial expressions,   and
gestures; and adopt cultural and intercultural awareness and sensitivity in communicating ideas
 6. create clear, coherent, and effective communication materials; present ideas persuasively using
appropriate language registers, tone, facial expressions,  and gestures; and adopt awareness of audience
and context in communicating ideas
7. write and present academic papers using appropriate tone, style, conventions, and reference styles; adopt
awareness of audience and context in presenting ideas; and convey ideas through oral, audio-visual,
and/or web-based presentations for different target audiences in local and global settings using
appropriate registers
Pre-introductory Questions:   (Note:Just answer these questions on your own. No need to pass your answers for these
two questions.)
1. What English courses have you had in junior and senior high school? 
2. What specific competencies have you had from your previous English   
classes? 

Communication Processes

Communication – a process of exchanging verbal and/or non-verbal information between two or more people who can
either be the speaker or the receiver of messages 
 is used to meet the purpose of a person (to actuate, to inform/educate, to persuade, to entertain, to instruct, to
inspire/invoke, to impress) 
 can be intended or unintended 
 intended communication – refers to planning what and how you communicate your ideas to other people 
 unintended communication – happens when you unintentionally send non-verbal messages to people you are
communicating with, or when you suddenly make negative remarks out of frustration or anger 
 can be in the form of written, verbal, non-verbal, and visuals
 written communication – text or words encoded and transmitted through memos, letters, reports, on-line chat,
short message service (SMS), e-mail, journals and other written documents 
 verbal communication – an exchange of information through face-to-face, audio and/or video call or
conferencing, lectures, meetings, radio, and television
 non-verbal communication – involves the use of the following to convey or emphasize a message of information
a. voice – this includes tone, speech rate, pitch, pauses and volume
b. body language- this includes facial expressions, gestures, postures, and eye contact
c. personal space or distance- this refers to an area of space and distance that a person from a different
culture, personality, age, sex, and status adopts and puts for another person 
d. personal appearance – this refers to how a person presents himself/herself to a particular situation
whether formal or informal 
 visuals – involve the use of images, graphs, charts, logos, and maps

PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION 

The process of communication is complex because it is difficult to pinpoint where or with whom a particular
communication circumstance begins or ends. The best way to illustrate this is through a model. Several communication
models have been created to show what exactly happens when two or more people engage in the process. Although some
models are simple (see Aristotle’s Communication Model & Laswell’s Communication Model) while others are more
detailed (see Shannon-Weaver’s Communication Model & Berlo’s Communication Model), all of them have become
helpful in providing a visual representation of the specific concepts and steps within the process.

The Communication Process

(source: Effective Communication Skills, 2010)
 1. Source – speaker /sender of the message 
 acts as encoder
 His/Her attitude towards the audience or the subject as well as his/her knowledge about the topic on
hand counts along with the social system that he/she is in which includes values, beliefs and practices,
and culture. 
 knows exactly the information to be communicated, why the information has to be communicated,
and what result might be expected from communicating it 
 must figure out beforehand the type of audience 
2. Message- information or ideas from the source 
 includes content, elements such as language used and gestures employed; treatment or the manner by
which it is transmitted, and structure which refers to the arrangement of parts or flow of the message 
 without it, there is no reason for communicating
 Its details should be very clear before it is communicated. 
 It should be in a format intelligible to its intended audience. 
3. Encoding – the process of transferring the message 
 process of converting ideas or thoughts  into verbal and/or nonverbal symbols that can be understood
by the receiver of the message 
4. Channel – means to deliver a message
 refers to the different senses: tactile, auditory, gustatory, olfactory, visual
 methods: face-to-face (verbal or gestures), telephone call (mobile or landline), video conference,
written (text message, email, snail mail, memorandum, report,  etc), online applications (Facetime,
SnapChat, KakaoTalk, WeChat, etc) 
5. Decoding – process of interpreting an encoded message 
 engaged by the person with whom someone is communicating
 stage where the audience tries to process mentally the message to be able to reply accordingly
6. Receiver – the recipient/s of the message who gets to decode it as well 
 Just like the sender, he/she should have good communication skills.
7. Feedback – reactions or responses of the receiver to the message 
 It completes the communication process; if the desired result is achieved, the communication is
successful.
8. Context – the situation  in which communication takes place 
 It includes; the environment (location, time, temperature), the relationship between the
communicators, the respective cultural backgrounds and past experiences of the communicators, the
topic/subject of the communication. 
(see Interpersonal Communication is Contextual on Module 2) 
9. Barrier  - the factors which may affect the communication process
 examples; culture, noise,  language use, noise, past experiences, status
 other barriers to communication: words used, context, history, individual factors, environment, and
information

Read the following situations below on how barriers in communication can happen.

How can words  be a barrier? 

They might:
• be able to be interpreted in several ways
• be specialized or technical
• be used only in certain places 
• be offensive
• be negative.
Rob is the manager of a small building company. He was showing Chad, his apprentice, how to use one of the
new drills. Rob wanted to impress the youngster, so he used all the technical terms and told him in as much detail as he
could. Chad listened quietly throughout the explanation.
 At the end of his explanation, Rob asked Chad to show him what he’d learned by giving the drill a try on a piece
of timber. Rob was surprised and disappointed when his apprentice did not use the drill properly and damaged the timber.

How can history be a barrier? 

When Jess started her first part-time job she was full of enthusiasm. She had lots of ideas about how things could
be improved and often shared them with her co-workers. After a few weeks, her manager called her aside and told her to
stop telling everyone about her brilliant ideas because he didn’t like them.
Jess is now a few years older, has more experience and still has lots of great ideas, but she’s now very hesitant to
share her ideas with workmates.

How can  individual factors be a barrier?

What might you do to improve the chance of effectively communicating something important to someone in
consideration of the following individual factors: 
1. someone who struggles to understand English?
2. a person with a hearing impairment?
3. someone who is much older and more experienced than you?

How can environment be a barrier?

Gemma works for an estimating company. When other staff are out on site and she is in the office by herself, she
likes to put her headphones on and listen to music while she works. One day she did this, and only realised the phone was
ringing after it had been going for quite a while. She hurriedly pulled her headphones off one ear and answered the phone.
It was a client changing some details to an urgent quote request. Gemma quickly wrote down what she heard, hung up and
put the note on the supervisor’s desk. 
A few days, later the supervisor called Gemma into her office and asked about the phone call she’d taken. It
turned out that, not only had Gemma made mistakes in what she had written down, resulting in the quote being done
incorrectly, but the client had been able to hear the music from Gemma’s headphones down the phone and wasn’t too
impressed.

How can information be a barrier?

John was loading up the truck late one afternoon, ready for an early start the next morning. He placed everything
into the truck from the list his manager had written, except for some of the timber. He was having a bit of trouble with that
because some of the required sizes were missing from the list. It was getting late and he really wanted to head home, so he
took a guess at what the most likely timber sizes were that they would need and put those into the truck.
On site the next day, guess what happened?
 You got it – some of the timber they needed were the wrong size. The whole team lost two hours of work while John
went back to the yard to get the right-sized timber.

In summary...
 Words 
Choose words that will communicate effectively. Avoid jargon or overly complicated explanations.
 Context 
Make sure the person you’re communicating with is in a good space, and not too busy, distracted or upset. Choose a time
and place where your message is most likely to be well received.
 History 
Try to know a bit about the people you are with and what they’ve done in the past and take this into account when you
communicate with them. If someone doesn’t ever say anything at meetings there might be a very good reason.
  Individual factors 
Get to know how the people you are with operate and take this into account when you communicate with them. Knowing
that someone is shy, for example, can stop you from making the mistake of thinking that they’re unfriendly or avoiding
you.
 Environment
Make sure communication takes place in an appropriate environment, that is, one where everyone has a good chance of
clearly seeing or hearing the message or conversation.
 Information  
Include just the right amount of information to clearly communicate whatever needs to be known, not too much or too
little.

C. Learning Activity 

Selection Type and Short Answer Questions (25 points) 

Make sure you are logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account. 
If you have understood already your learning content then you may proceed to the first learning activity posted or
assigned in your Google Classroom as Learning Activity 1. 
Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers. 
Do not forget also to mark your activity as done. 

NOTE: Answer briefly the questions posted on your Google Classroom as learning activity 1. Use only one to
three paragraphs in answering short answer questions. 
Answers are not searchable on Google. They are on your learning content so read very well first your learning
content. 
 
D. Resources
https://ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Purposive-Communication.pdf
https://www.academia.edu/4433805/MTD_Training_Effective_Communication_Skills
https://www.communicationtheory.org/aristotle%E2%80%99s-communication-model/
https://www.toolshero.com/communication-skills/lasswell-communication-model/
https://www.communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/
https://www.communicationtheory.org/berlos-smcr-model-of-communication/

Sender :  The originator of message or the information source selects desire message
Encoder : The transmitter which converts the message into signals
Note: The sender’s messages converted into signals like waves or Binary data which is compactable to transmit
the messages through cables or satellites. For example: In telephone the voice is converted into wave signals
and it transmits through cables
Decoder : The reception place of the signal which converts signals into message. A reverse process of encode
Note : The receiver converts those binary data or waves into message which is comfortable and
understandable for receiver. Otherwise receiver can’t receive the exact message and it will affect the effective
communication between sender and receiver
Receiver : The destination of the message from sender
Note : Based on the decoded message the receiver gives their feed back to sender. If the message distracted by
noise it will affect the communication flow between sender and receiver
Noise:  The messages are transferred from encoder to decoder through channel. During this process the
messages may distracted or affected by physical noise like horn sounds, thunder and crowd noise or encoded
signals may distract in the channel during the transmission process which affect the communication flow or the
receiver may not receive the correct message
Note : The model is clearly deals with external noises only which affect the messages or signals from external
sources. For example: If there is any problems occur in network which directly affect the mobile phone
communication or distract the messages
Practical Example of  Shannon-Weaver model of communication :
Thomson made call to his assistant “come here I want to see you”.  During his call, noise appeared
(transmission error) and his assistant received “I want” only. Again Assistant asked Thomson (feedback) “what
do you want Thomson”.

E. Assessment 
 Selection Type and Short answer Questions (30 points) 
Make sure you are still logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account. 
If you are done already with your learning activity then you may proceed to your first assessment posted
or assigned in your Google Classroom as Assessment 1. 
Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers. 
Do not forget also to mark your activity as done. 

NOTE: Answer briefly the questions posted on your Google Classroom as Assessment 1. Use only one
or three paragraphs in answering short answer questions. Again, the answers are on your learning
content and not searchable on Google. 

F. References
Padilla, M.M., Dagdag, L.A., & Roxas, F.R. (2018). Communicate & connect! Purposive communication (pp.
3-4). Philippines: Mutya 
https://www.dtwd.wa.gov.au/sites/default/files/teachingproducts/BC1952_CCBY.PDF

Prepared by: Noted by: 

Cherry Cawis Engr. Cecilia L. Cabanilla 

Department Head 

Pines City Colleges

GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 
First Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022

Course Number: Com 101

Course Title: Purposive Communication 

Modular Learning Guide # 2

Topic: Principles of Communication 

Expected Time of Completion: 3 hours 
A. Learning Outcomes 
The students are able to describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in
various and multi-cultural contexts.
B. Learning Content 
          You can thrive, whether writing or speaking, if you understand several foundations of successful communication.
Communication is a complex process so for it to be effective in both oral and written, you should be able to apply the
following principles: 
1. Determine your purpose. 
          Every speech or essay should have a specific purpose, an exact statement of what you want your audience
to understand, do, or believe. In other words, why are you writing or speaking? Do you want to entertain your
 audience, to inform them of something you feel should be known or understood better, or to persuade audience
members to change their viewpoint on how they feel about a certain issue? 
          Your purpose could be a combination of entertaining, informing, and persuading but while you may have
more than one purpose, there is still a more dominant objective or reason why you communicate. 
2. Know your audience.
          Equally important to your purpose is an awareness of your audience.  Knowledge of your purpose and
audience go hand in hand. It is your audience you will teach, or instruct, or entertain thus, they will dictate the
speaking or writing style you are going to employ. Consider the age, educational background, profession, culture,
and other salient features of your listeners or readers. 
3. Identify your topic. 
          You communicate essentially because you want to share something. In speaking situations, speakers are
invited because they have something to share. This also applies to writing. You write because you wish that other
people learn something from you. 
4. Expect objections. 
          Truth is relative and each to his/her opinion so never expect that all your audience will wholeheartedly
accept your message. There can be some disagreements in between.
          Part of knowing your topic is your anticipation of questions and objections and your preparedness to
address it especially nowadays when people are free to post their dislikes and objections on social media. 
         Once you receive comments from the listeners/readers, work on them. Take kindly to criticisms. In the long
run, constructive criticisms will prove beneficial to you as you learn to address them. 
          With bashers, simply ignore them. If not, reply to them kindly. Show that you have more finesse and class
and never stoop down to their level. 
5. Adjust your writing or speech to the context of the situation. 
         The environment in which your speech or writing is to be delivered determines the kind of .

Principles of effective oral communication:

1. Be clear with your purpose
2. Be complete with the message you deliver
3. Be concise. Brevity is the soul of the wit. 
4. Be natural with your delivery 
5. Be specific and timely with your feedback

Principles of effective written communication (The 7 C’s): 

1. Be clear
2. Be concise 
3. Be concrete 
4. Be correct 
5. Be coherent 
6. Be complete
7. Be courteous 

Communication principles based on the real-life functioning of interpersonal communication (King, 2000): 
1. Interpersonal communication is inescapable.
It is not possible for humans not to communicate. Even the very attempt of not wanting to communicate
communicates something. Your poker face as you listen to somebody also means a lot. You communicate
through  both words and behavior, and as long as you are alive, you can still behave; hence, you can
communicate. You always communicate and receive communication from others not only through words but also
through voice tone, gesture, posture, body movement, facial expression, clothes worn, and so on. Because of this
fact, since people are not mind readers, you are often judged through your behaviour, not your intention or
purpose. 
2. Interpersonal communication is irreversible. 
How often have you said words in anger and wished you could take them all back? Once you have uttered
something, you can never take it back, and its effect remains. Anyone who says that apologies can heal the hurt
caused by offensive remarks is lying. Words are powerful; they can either heal or harm others. This principle of
communication is best expressed in Russian proverb which says, “Once a word goes out of your mouth, you can
never swallow it again.” 
 3. International communication is complicated 
Whenever you communicate with anyone, you simultaneously interpret both his verbal and nonverbal
language, and that is often both confounding and demanding. For one thing, words alone complicate things. A
word does not 
Have just one meaning, it is usually not used in the same way, and no two people use the same word exactly.
Added to this complexity, nonverbal symbols are vaguer than words since they are interpreted in many ways.
They are primarily relational besides being both culture- and gender-bound. To make matters much more difficult,
no form of communication is simple because whenever you communicate, there are actually at least six “people”
involved: 
a. the person you think you are 
b. the person you think the other person is 
c. the person you think the other person thinks you are 
d. the person you think the other person thinks he is 
e. the person the other person thinks you think you are
f. the person the other person thinks you think he is  
4. International communication is contextual
Communication is affected by several factors. It does not happen in isolation. There are many things that
need to be considered, such as the ones given below. 
a. psychological context 
*who you are either as a sender or as the receiver
*what you as sender or receiver bring to the interaction: 
your needs
your desires
your values
your beliefs
your personality etc. 
b. relational context 
*your reactions to the person based on relationships 
as boss
as colleague
as friend
as sibling
as parent etc. 
c. situational context 
* deals with psycho-social “where” you are communicating 
* An interaction that takes place in a classroom, which is quite formal, will be different from one
that takes place in a bar, which is very informal where communicators do not need to  be guarded in
their speech. 
d.  environmental context 
* deals with physical “where” you are communicating
* objects in the room and their arrangement, location, noise level, temperature, season, time of
day  etc. 
e. cultural context 
* It involves all the learned behaviors and rules that affect the interaction. For instance, body
movement, facial expression, gesture, distance, and eye contact vary in different cultures. 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.

Elements of Effective Communication (Shortel, 1991)

1. An effective communicator must have the desire to communicate.
2. An effective communicator must have an understanding of how others learn.
3. The receiver of the message should be cued as to the purpose of the message.
4. The content, importance, and complexity of the message should be considered in determining the manner in which the
message is communicated.
5. The credibility of the sender affects how the message will be received.
6. The time frame associated with the content of the message needs to be considered in choosing the manner in which the
message is communicated.

C. Learning Activities 
True or False Questions (15 points) 
Make sure you are logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account. 
If you have understood already your learning content then you may proceed to the second learning activity posted
or assigned in your Google Classroom. 
Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers. 
Do not forget also to mark your activity as done. 
 
D. Resources (none applicable) 

E. Assessment 
Multiple Choice Questions(20 points) 
Make sure you are logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account. 
If you are finished already with your learning activity then you may proceed to the assessment posted or assigned
in your Google Classroom. 
Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers. 
Do not forget also to mark your activity as done. 

F. References
King, D. (2000). Four principles of interpersonal communication. Retrioeved from
http://www.pstcc.edu/facstaff/dking/interpr.htm
Madrunio, M.R. & Martin, I.P., (2018) Purposive communication: Using English in multilingual contexts (pp. 39-42).
Quezon City: C&E Publishing, Inc. 
Padilla, M.M., Dagdag, L.A., & Roxas, F.R. (2018). Communicate & connect! Purposive communication (pp. 6-8).
Philippines: Mutya 

Prepared by: Noted by: 

Cherry Cawis Engr. Cecilia L. Cabanilla 

                 Department Head 

Silence is a very powerful form of communication

Pines City Colleges

GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

First Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022

Course Number: Com 101

Course Title: Purposive Communication

Modular Learning Guide # 3

Topic: Ethics in Communication

Expected Time of Completion: 2 hours

A. Learning Outcomes

The students are able to describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-

verbal communication in various and multi-cultural contexts.

B. Learning Content

Effective communicators observe ethics. This means that they deal with values,

righteousness, and behavior appropriate for human communication particularly in a multicultural

situation.

Observing a code of ethics is essential as it determines the kind of behavior that is

proper and desirable over one that is displeasing and offensive. A code of ethics sets the

standards to be observed by a person or a company that will create a good reputation or a

positive image not only for an individual but also for the organization. It will, therefore, pave the

way for the attainment of the desired results leading to the success of an individual or the entire

company.

Johnston (1999) pointed out ten ethics in communication that you should bear in mind to

avoid being labelled “unethical”.

1. Mutuality

Pay attention to the needs of others as well as yours.

2. Individual dignity

Do not cause another person embarrassment or a loss of dignity.

Uphold integrity. Be truthful with your opinion and be accurate with your

judgment.

3. Accuracy

Ensure that others have accurate information. Tell them everything they have a

right and need to know, not just what is true.

4. Access to information
Promote access to information. Give others an opportunity to express what they

feel and think about the message being communicated.

Never bolster the impact of your communication by preventing people from

communicating with one another or by hindering access to the supporting

information.

5. Accountability

Develop your sense of accountability. Acknowledge responsibility for all your

actions, good or bad.

Be responsible for the consequences of your words and the way you have

communicated it.

6. Audience

As audience or receiver of the information, you also have ethical responsibilities.

A good rule of thumb is the “200% rule” where both the sender and the receiver

have full or 100% responsibility to ensure that the message is understood and

that ethics are followed. This is a 100/100 rule, not a 50/50 rule.

7. Relative truth

Be open-minded.

As either sender or receiver of information, remember that your own point of view

may not be shared by others and that your conclusions are relative to your

perspective, so allow others to respectfully disagree or see it differently.

Listen and process the views of other people, and learn how to reconcile their

opinions with your own.

8. Ends vs. means

Be sure that the end goal of your communication and the means of getting to that

end are both ethical although no rule can be applied without reservation to any

situation.

Generally however, be careful of what and how you say your words depending

on the type of people you are communicating with.

9. Use of power
In situations where you have more power than others (e.g. a teacher with a

student, a boss with a subordinate, a parent with a child), you also have more

responsibility for the outcome and the least that you can do is uphold integrity. Be

truthful with your opinion and be accurate with your judgement.

10. Rights vs. responsibilities

Balance your rights against your responsibilities even if you live in a wonderful

society where your rights are protected by law; not everything you have a right to

do is ethical.

First and foremost, respect diversity of perspective and privacy. Show

compassion and consideration with the beliefs, status, affiliations, and privacy of

others.

C. Learning Activities

True or False Questions (22 points)

Make sure you are still logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account.

If you are done already with your Learning Activity 3 then you may proceed to

your first assessment posted or assigned in your Google Classroom as

Assessment 3.

Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers.

Do not forget also to mark your activity as done.

D. Resources (none)

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-unethical-behavior-workplace-10092.html

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-ethical-behavior-business-meetings-21680.html

E. Assessment

Identification & Multiple Choice Questions (18 points)

Make sure you are still logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account.

Identify which of Johnstons’s ten ethics is best violated in the following illustrations of

unethical behaviours.

Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers.

Do not forget also to mark your activity as done.

F. References

Chase, R.S., Shamo,W. (2014). Elements of effective communication, USA:Plain and Precious

Padilla, M.M., Dagdag, L.A., & Roxas, F.R. (2018). Communicate & connect! Purposive
communication (pp. 10). Philippines: Mutya

Prepared by: Noted by:

Cherry Cawis Engr. Cecilia L. Cabanilla

Department Head

Pines City Colleges

GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

First Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022

Course Number: Com 101

Course Title: Purposive Communication

Modular Learning Guide # 4

Topic: Communication and Globalization

Expected Time of Completion: 3 hours

A. Learning Outcomes

The students are able to explain how cultural and global issues affect communication

and appreciate the impact of communication on society and the world.

B. Learning Content

GLOBALIZATION AND GLOBAL VILLAGE

The term “globalization” is very complex to define because different scholars and

institutions view it differently. Nonetheless, the basic concept of globalization is the expansion

and integration of the cultural, political, economic, and technological domains of countries

(Gamble & Gamble, 2013). This reflects that the world is borderless, and countries are

interconnected and interdependent.

You can now travel across the world anytime and when you are in a foreign country, you

can withdraw the money of that country form any of its ATM as long as you have an
international debit card. This is an example of globalization defined by Nowacyzk (2017) as the

process of bringing people together and making them interact and exchange ideas across

traditional borders. “The world, driven largely by advances in technology, has become

inextricably interconnected across distances and other boundaries” (Downing, 2007).

With the advent of globalization associated with advanced technologies and systems

across regions, the flow of information and communication has become smoother, faster, and

easier. Plus, business transactions and partnerships among local and international institutions

have become more efficient. One best example is the use of electronic mail or social networking

sites.

Because of globalization, Marshal McLuhan’s prediction in his book The Gutenberg

Galaxy of a global village – one world interconnected by an electronic nervous system (media) –

has become a reality.

Consequently, the context of globalization requires effective communication skills from

students and workers to cope with the demands and challenges brought about by this

phenomenon. This includes communicating effectively with people of different background, age,

culture, gender, beliefs, orientations, preferences, and status.

THE FLIGHT FROM CONVERSATION

Sherry Turkle, April 2012, The New York Times

WE live in a technological universe in which we are always communicating. And yet we

have sacrificed conversation for mere connection.

At home, families sit together, texting and reading e-mail. At work executives text during

board meetings. We text (and shop and go on Facebook) during classes and when we’re on

dates. My students tell me about an important new skill: it involves maintaining eye contact with

someone while you text someone else; it’s hard, but it can be done.

Over the past 15 years, I’ve studied technologies of mobile connection and talked to

hundreds of people of all ages and circumstances about their plugged-in lives. I’ve learned that

the little devices most of us carry around are so powerful that they change not only what we do,

but also who we are. We’ve become accustomed to a new way of being “alone together.”

Technology-enabled, we are able to be with one another, and also elsewhere, connected to

wherever we want to be. We want to customize our lives. We want to move in and out of where

we are because the thing we value most is control over where we focus our attention. We have

gotten used to the idea of being in a tribe of one, loyal to our own party.
2

Our colleagues want to go to that board meeting but pay attention only to what interests

them. To some this seems like a good idea, but we can end up hiding from one another, even

as we are constantly connected to one another.

A businessman laments that he no longer has colleagues at work. He doesn’t stop by to

talk; he doesn’t call. He says that he doesn’t want to interrupt them. He says they’re “too busy

on their e-mail.” But then he pauses and corrects himself. “I’m not telling the truth. I’m the one

who doesn’t want to be interrupted. I think I should. But I’d rather just do things on my

BlackBerry.” A 16-year-old boy who relies on texting for almost everything says almost

wistfully, “Someday, someday, but certainly not now, I’d like to learn how to have a

conversation.”

In today’s workplace, young people who have grown up fearing conversation show up

on the job wearing earphones. Walking through a college library or the campus of a high-tech

start-up, one sees the same thing: we are together, but each of us is in our own bubble,

furiously connected to keyboards and tiny touch screens. A senior partner at a Boston law firm

describes a scene in his office. Young associates lay out their suite of technologies: laptops,

iPods and multiple phones. And then they put their earphones on. “Big ones. Like pilots. They

turn their desks into cockpits.” With the young lawyers in their cockpits, the office is quiet, a

quiet that does not ask to be broken.

In the silence of connection, people are comforted by being in touch with a lot of people

— carefully kept at bay. We can’t get enough of one another if we can use technology to keep

one another at distances we can control: not too close, not too far, just right. I think of it as a

Goldilocks effect. Texting and e-mail and posting let us present the self we want to be. This

means we can edit. And if we wish to, we can delete. Or retouch: the voice, the flesh, the face,

the body. Not too much, not too little — just right. Human relationships are rich; they’re messy

and demanding. We have learned the habit of cleaning them up with technology. And the move

from conversation to connection is part of this. But it’s a process in which we shortchange

ourselves. Worse, it seems that over time we stop caring, we forget that there is a difference.

We are tempted to think that our little “sips” of online connection add up to a big gulp of

real conversation. But they don’t. E-mail, Twitter, Facebook, all of these have their places — in

politics, commerce, romance and friendship. But no matter how valuable, they do not substitute
for conversation. Connecting in sips may work for gathering discrete bits of information or

for saying, “I am thinking about you.” Or even for saying, “I love you.” But connecting in sips

doesn’t work as well when it comes to understanding and knowing one another. In conversation

we tend to one another. (The word itself is kinetic; it’s derived from words that mean to move,

together.) We can attend to tone and nuance. In conversation, we are called upon to see things

from another’s point of view.

Face-to-face conversation unfolds slowly. It teaches patience. When we communicate

on our digital devices, we learn different habits. As we ramp up the volume and velocity of

online connections, we start to expect faster answers. To get these, we ask one another simpler

questions; we dumb down our communications, even on the most important matters. It is as

though we have all put ourselves on cable news. Shakespeare might have said, “We are

consumed with that which we were nourished by.”

And we use conversation with others to learn to converse with ourselves. So our flight

from conversation can mean diminished chances to learn skills of self-reflection. These days,

social media continually asks us what’s “on our mind,” but we have little motivation to say

something truly self-reflective. Self-reflection in conversation requires trust. It’s hard to do

anything with 3,000 Facebook friends except connect.

As we get used to being shortchanged on conversation and to getting by with less, we

seem almost willing to dispense with people altogether. Serious people muse about the future of

computer programs as psychiatrists. A high school sophomore confides to me that he wishes he

could talk to an artificial intelligence program instead of his dad about dating; he says the A.I.

would have so much more in its database. Indeed, many people tell me they hope that as Siri,

the digital assistant on Apple’s iPhone, becomes more advanced, “she” will be more and more

like a best friend — one who will listen when others won’t.

During the years I have spent researching people and their relationships with

technology, I have often heard the sentiment “No one is listening to me.” I believe this feeling

helps explain why it is so appealing to have a Facebook page or a Twitter feed — each provides

so many automatic listeners. And it helps explain why — against all reason — so many of us

are willing to talk to machines that seem to care about us. Researchers around the world are

busy inventing sociable robots, designed to be companions to the elderly, to children, to all of

us.
3

One of the most haunting experiences during my research came when I brought one of

these robots, designed in the shape of a baby seal, to an elder-care facility, and an older

woman began to talk to it about the loss of her child. The robot seemed to be looking into her

eyes. It seemed to be following the conversation. The woman was comforted.

And so many people found this amazing. Like the sophomore who wants advice about

dating from artificial intelligence and those who look forward to computer psychiatry, this

enthusiasm speaks to how much we have confused conversation with connection and

collectively seem to have embraced a new kind of delusion that accepts the simulation of

compassion as sufficient unto the day. And why would we want to talk about love and loss with

a machine that has no experience of the arc of human life? Have we so lost confidence that we

will be there for one another?

WE expect more from technology and less from one another and seem increasingly

drawn to technologies that provide the illusion of companionship without the demands of

relationship. Always-on/always-on-you ide three powerful fantasies: that we will

always be heard; that we can put our attention wherever we want it to be; and that we never

have to be alone. Indeed our new devices have turned being alone into a problem that can be

solved.

When people are alone, even for a few moments, they fidget and reach for a device.

Here connection works like a symptom, not a cure, and our constant, reflexive impulse to

connect shapes a new way of being.

Think of it as “I share, therefore I am.” We use technology to define ourselves by sharing

our thoughts and feelings as we’re having them. We used to think, “I have a feeling; I want to

make a call.” Now our impulse is, “I want to have a feeling; I need to send a text.”

So, in order to feel more, and to feel more like ourselves, we connect. But in our rush to

connect, we flee from solitude, our ability to be separate and gather ourselves. Lacking the

capacity for solitude, we turn to other people but don’t experience them as they are. It is as

though we use them, need them as spare parts to support our increasingly fragile selves.

We think constant connection will make us feel less lonely. The opposite is true. If we

are unable to be alone, we are far more likely to be lonely. If we don’t teach our children to be

alone, they will know only how to be lonely.

I am a partisan for conversation. To make room for it, I see some first, deliberate steps.
At home, we can create sacred spaces: the kitchen, the dining room. We can make our cars

“device-free zones.” We can demonstrate the value of conversation to our children. And we can

do the same thing at work. There we are so busy communicating that we often don’t have time

to talk to one another about what really matters. Employees asked for casual Fridays; perhaps

managers should introduce conversational Thursdays. Most of all, we need to remember — in

between texts and e-mails and Facebook posts — to listen to one another, even to the boring

bits, because it is often in unedited moments, moments in which we hesitate and stutter and go

silent, that we reveal ourselves to one another.

I spend the summers at a cottage on Cape Cod, and for decades I walked the same

dunes that Thoreau once walked. Not too long ago, people walked with their heads up, looking

at the water, the sky, the sand and at one another, talking. Now they often walk with their heads

down, typing. Even when they are with friends, partners, children, everyone is on their own

devices.

So I say, look up, look at one another, and let’s start the conversation.

Sherry Turkle is a psychologist and professor at M.I.T. and the author of “Alone Together: Why We Expect More

From Technology and Less From Each Other.”

C. Learning Activities

Identification Questions (20 points)

Make sure you are logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account.

If you have understood already your learning content then you may proceed to

the 4 th learning activity posted or assigned in your Google Classroom.

Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers.

Do not forget also to mark your activity as done.

Note: Encode your answers in SMALL letters.

D. Resources

Turkle, S. (2012). The flight from conversation. Sunday Review. Online at

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/opinion/sunday/the-flight-from-

conversation.html (Accessed July 25, 2020)

E. Assessment

Multiple Choice Questions (20 points)

Make sure you are logged in to your pcc.edu.ph account.

If you have understood already your learning content then you may proceed to

the 4 th learning activity posted or assigned in your Google Classroom.

Do not forget to submit or turn-in your answers.

Do not forget also to mark your activity as done.

F. References

Barrot, J.S., & Sipacio, P.J.F. (2018). Purposive communication in the 21 st century, (p. 23). Quezon City:

C&E Publishing, Inc.

Downing, D. (2007). Globalization and the flat world. Online at

https://spu.edu/depts/uc/response/autumn2k7/features/globalization-in-a-flat-world.asp (Accessed

July 25, 2020)

Gamble, T., & Gamble, M. (2013). Communication works (11 th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill.

Nowaczyk, J. (2017) Globalization and cultural change. Online at https://study.com/academy/lesson/cultural-