SECTION I
BASIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR TEACHING THE INTRODUCTORY COURSE IN
COMMUNICATION
An introductory course in communication provides a rich and dynamic laboratory for students to
develop knowledge, motivation, and skill in communication. The communication discipline has
potential to touch students in a variety of ways. Effective interpersonal, group, and public
communication skills are necessary for a number of personal, professional, and civic endeavors.
First, the study of communication contributes to the development of the whole person through
exploring the self and its relation to others. Second, learning about communication assists
students in all of their educational experiences by allowing them to apply skills in other areas.
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
Teaching the introductory course in communication offers opportunities and challenges in equal
measure. The opportunities arise from the course content and the satisfaction of seeing students
grow personally and enhance their effectiveness. The challenges also involve the course content
Opportunities of the Basic Course in Communication
There are many special opportunities present in this course. Among these are opportunities to
enlarge students’ understanding of the role of communication in everyday lives, develop their
competence in specific communication skills, increase their respect for social diversity, and
foster their ethical judgment and critical thinking skills.
Enlarging Understanding. An obvious, yet nonetheless important, highlight of teaching the
basic course in communication is the chance to introduce students to a fascinating area of
study and of life. Since the time of the Ancient Greek Academy, the questions of how
citizens ought to and do communicate in public as well as in relationships have occupied a
central focus. In our own technological times, these issues are no less important. Particularly
Skill Development. A second opportunity that this course affords is the opportunity to
improve students’ practical communication skills. The textbook and this guide provide a
wealth of concrete activities that help students develop and refine their competence in
communicating in a range of contexts including interpersonal relationships, small groups,
and public speaking situations. Additionally, the eighth edition of the text and guide include a
section on digital media within every chapter, plus a separate chapter on media literacy skills.
Respect for Social Diversity. A third and very important opportunity supported by
Communication in Our Lives is the potential to expand students’ awareness and appreciation
of social diversity, which enhances their abilities to interact in a global environment. Woven
throughout the text are discussions of the complex relationships between communication and
gender, race, class, sexual orientation, and other aspects of personal identity. A primary
theme of the text is that diversity is integral to human communication and society, not
something we tack on as an afterthought. The exercises in Section IV of this guide further
Highlighting social diversity expands students’ awareness of the range of ways in which
people communicate; form relationships; and interact in personal, social, professional, and
public contexts. This should enrich their appreciation of people who differ from them and
strengthen their practical abilities and responsibilities to listen more mindfully, think more
comprehensively and critically, and speak more inclusively and sensitively in their daily lives
as citizen-communicators. Equally important, studying people who differ from themselves
Ethical Judgment and Critical Thinking Skills. Finally, the basic course in communication
provides students the opportunity to reflect critically and empathically on their
communication, the communication of diverse others, and the artful, inventive ways that
symbols and behaviors can be shaped to maximize productive social interactions. Drawing
on many elementary ways from the ancient concerns, the basic course provides an ethical and
effective rhetorical education for citizens of Western societies. Additionally, students will
have opportunities to develop communication competencies including the abilities to locate,
Challenges of the Basic Course in Communication
Along with the opportunities involved in teaching the basic course in communication, there are
distinct challenges. Among these are egocentric perspectives, the difficulty of struggling with
personally troublesome issues, ethnocentrism, communication apprehension, and the timely
development of communication skills.
Egocentric Perspectives. A perennial problem in teaching is some students’ resistance to
information that isn’t consistent with their personal experiences. For example, several
students in any class Julia teaches take issue with the finding that parents generally
communicate differently with sons and daughters. “My parents didn’t,” they assert, as a basis
for dismissing the generalization. Similarly, students whose romantic relationships have
followed trajectories different from the general model of relational evolution sometimes
An effective way to respond to students who rely too heavily on their personal experience to
understand social life is to accept their experience as a starting point for further discussion.
Thus, you might tell a student whose personal experiences don’t match generalization about
gender that it’s important to understand how she or he is unique as an individual and how
people in general are. This opens the door for exploring why that person’s experience of
gender differs from broad cultural norms. Usually, other students in the class will volunteer
Difficult Issues. The basic course in communication necessarily involves issues that are
difficult and often personally painful to students. Because Communication in Our Lives
seriously and consistently addresses social diversity and related inequities and prejudices,
students will be confronted with unpleasant facts about Western society. Some want to
believe that America is a classless society and that racism and other forms of active
discrimination are historical relics. Students are uncomfortable when confronted with
information that dispels the myth of a classless, nonracist, meritorious society. They are even
more surprised and perhaps uncomfortable when teachers encourage them to reflect on the
ways in which race, class, sexual orientation, and gender have shaped their identities,
communication styles, and the (sometimes less than well-reasoned) judgments they make
about people who are different in some (mysterious) way. The discomfort students (and
teachers!) experience in dealing with these topics is natural and unavoidable. If honestly
A slightly different challenge arises when students resist thinking and talking about groups of
which they disapprove. For example, students in the class may have differing opinions
regarding sexual preferences, race, and class. These differing opinions are opportunities for
This means that instructors must skillfully manage situations that require them to insist that a
topic or group not be banned from class consideration. Instructors should treat resisting
students with respect in order to be consistent with the value of honoring diversity and to
keep the classroom climate open. The teacher can model the communication skills the course
emphasizes: openness, nonjudgmental interaction, respect for differences, and willingness to
continue the conversation. However, you are also charged as an instructor of communication
to open, not limit, civic discussion, and you can often appeal to resistant students on these
professional grounds. You can also appeal to course guidelines for effective listening,
A third content-related tension in the course surrounds topics that are personally painful to
some students. If your class mirrors national demographic trends, approximately 20% to 25%
of women students will have been raped or will have suffered attempted rape; as many as 1
in 3 of your female students may currently have or have had an eating disorder; a good
portion of your students will have inflicted or suffered physical, emotional, and/or sexual
experienced unrequited love, betrayals by friends, and other ordinary, but nonetheless
disturbing, interpersonal casualties.
Communication in Our Lives does not dodge these difficult topics, but addresses them as
real, if unfortunate, aspects of modern life for many people. It is impossible to write about
interpersonal and social communication in this era without recognizing that it has a dark side,
as well as a joyous one. Teachers should realize that it is more constructive to acknowledge
and deal with difficult issues than to ignore them. Students are usually willing to face
You may also want to invite students to talk with you individually about difficult topics in
the course. For many students, conferences in your office will be welcome. Giving your
email address opens another avenue of communication for students who are shy or
uncomfortable talking in person about painful or troubling issues.
Ethnocentrism. A common challenge in teaching this course (and many others) is teaching
students to be aware of ethnocentric perspectives and to resist ethnocentrism in their own
thoughts and actions. Ethnocentrism is a viewpoint that assumes one’s own culture is normal,
right, and the appropriate universal standard for judgment. Ethnocentrism may be conscious;
for instance, a student may be aware that norms for eye contact vary among cultures, yet
Ethnocentrism fuels divisions among people of different races, genders, classes, ages,
abilities, sexual orientations, and so forth. In an era marked by increasing diversity, teachers
have a responsibility to help students become aware of ethnocentric thinking in themselves
and others and to learn to recognize and appreciate varied and reasonable ways of living,
acting, and believing. In fact, the ability to develop this awareness might be one of the most
“critical” of all our skills in the twenty-first century as technology increases our social and
There are several ways to fortify the text’s attention to diversity in your class. First, it is
important to emphasize diversity in lectures and discussions. Nonverbal behaviors,
perception, listening, friendship, team communication, public speaking, and other topics may
be taught in ways that represent the views, values, and communication practices of a people
A particularly important way to heighten awareness of ethnocentrism is to point out
ethnocentric biases that surface in classroom discussions. Even students who genuinely want
to respect diversity often unconsciously employ ethnocentric standards. In some classes
students often discuss race as if it applies to people of color, but not to Caucasians. When this
occurs, you might remind them that Caucasians, too, have race. Similarly, male-generic
language and male standards of behavior periodically emerge in discussions, and these can
also be pointed out to students.
Teachers should be especially alert to more subtle forms of ethnocentrism so that these can
be highlighted for students. For example, during a class discussion in Julia’s course about
what dress communicates, her students centered on the ways people stylize identities with the
clothes they wear. It became obvious during the discussion that students were assuming
everyone could buy clothes to project the personal image they desired. Julia pointed out that
this assumption reflects a middle- and upper-class perspective, and less economically
Attention to ethnocentric standards enriches discussion of the variety of topics in the basic
course: trust (Which race can afford to be trusting and why?), self (How do socially
constructed categories of race, class, and so forth, affect self-concept and self-esteem?),
family interaction (Is a family only nuclear or extended to include aunts, cousins, and so
forth?), verbal communication styles (Is “woofin’” obnoxious bragging or a form of verbal
play?), public speaking (Does the call-response pattern used by many African Americans
interrupt or enrich public speaking?), and critical thinking (What makes a public argument
persuasive? What makes it strong or weak? How can we evaluate real-life arguments and
evidence from diverse groups in public discourse?).
Finally, both diversity and ethnocentric standards of judgment are emphasized by the
exercises included in Section IV of this resource book. There you’ll find a variety of
activities that can enlarge students’ awareness of social diversity and of ethnocentric
standards and practices. These activities also serve to enhance students’ critical thinking
skills—especially when combined with the study of reasoning fallacies.
Development of Communication Skills. One of the greatest challenges in the basic course
can be a pragmatic one: how to provide students with the knowledge and motivation that
must underlie the effective practice of communication while cultivating improved
communication skills. The effective practice of communication requires an understanding of
communication concepts, principles, and theories. Effective practice also involves the
motivation to engage in ethical, critical, and well-deliberated communication. The challenge
in the introductory course is to deliver such knowledge and motivation and still have the time
to work on skill development. Many colleges and universities have added the responsibility
of the basic communication course to deliver public speaking competence according to an
institutional standard.
Throughout the text, Sharpen Your Skill exercises ask students to apply the knowledge they
CREATING AN EFFECTIVE CLASSROOM CLIMATE
Effective teaching requires more than competence in the content area of a course. Because that
content exists within a context, teachers must create a learning environment that supports the
content and goals of their courses. The climate, or overall mood, of a classroom sets the tone for
what will happen in a course. Classroom climate affects what is said (and not said), what is
learned (and not learned), and how students feel about themselves and communication.
Crafting a supportive climate and vibrant community in the classroom is particularly crucial to
student comfort and success with public speaking. Experience has shown that when students feel
their egos are safe, their ideas are worth considering, and their instructor and peers will respond
with respect and interest to their efforts at the podium, they are more likely to invest energy and
enthusiasm into their presentations. This makes sense because when we can forego the energy
Openness
An open classroom climate is one in which students feel it is safe to be honest, and where they
feel their ideas, feelings, and questions are valued. They feel free to take the risk of disclosing
moderately personal information and to talk candidly about issues in their lives. This openness is
encouraged by openness on the part of the instructor.
The instructor sets the tone for openness by how she or he acts in the first meeting of the class
and in all subsequent meetings. Creating a sense of openness begins on the first day of class
when the instructor introduces the course and himself or herself. Instructors who reveal personal
fosters an open climate where students feel comfortable taking risks, making mistakes, and
learning from experience.
Openness is further established by how instructors respond to students’ comments. When
students express ideas, opinions, or feelings, the instructor should respond with interest.
Encouraging a student to elaborate on a comment, offering your own experiences in response,
and referring back to the comment during the class session are ways to communicate that
Involvement
A second quality of effective learning environments is involvement. Involvement exists when
students are personally engaged with material and each other and when that engagement
translates into constructive participation in the class. Students who feel personally involved and
engaged in a course will participate actively in classroom discussions and will learn course
material.
As with openness, involvement is developed from the first meeting of a course. The initial
session should set a tone that invites students to become directly and personally engaged with the
material and each other. During the opening discussion with a new class, we both make a point
of asking individual students what they think about issues and/or current events that pertain to
the course. Prior to the first meeting, you may want to identify two or three topics that may help
to initiate the discussion. Some examples of topics you might want to consider are:
• Do labels really matter—does it make any difference whether we say Blacks or African
Americans?
• Are Americans too individualistic and competitive?
• Is verbal or nonverbal communication more important in friendships?
• Are effective leaders born or made?
• How does digital communication differ from face-to-face interaction?
• What is “free speech”?
• What does it mean to have a “voice” in your community or society?
Engaging students in conversation about issues takes some effort. Most students don’t expect to
speak up, particularly on the first day of class. Thus, they may feel awkward at first. This is
natural. Students will transcend their initial unease if you encourage them to speak up and if you
take their responses seriously. When a student replies to a question you pose, it is important to
respond personally to that student. You may wish to remark on the quality of the comment or to
offer your own perceptions on the topic.
Involvement means more than having students respond to their instructor. An involved class is
one in which students respond to each other as well. Thus, it’s important that you encourage
students to talk with each other, as well as with you. One way to do this is to ask a second
student to comment on what the first one says: “What do you think about Erin’s idea?” “Have
you had the same experience as Erin?” Continue posing questions and engaging students in
dialogue with you and each other until you sense that they feel comfortable being actively
involved.
In addition, personal involvement is facilitated by many of the activities and reflection exercises
discussed in Section IV of this resource book. One particularly effective way to heighten
students’ personal involvement with course material is by assigning the Communication
Or, if you would rather not incorporate an ongoing journal assignment, you can still increase
involvement in class discussions, particularly with students who are shy or hesitant, by asking
them to write about issues and their ideas and feelings, before asking them to share these with the
rest of the class. These Response Papers can be done as an overnight homework assignment, or
completed during the first few minutes of a class meeting. By asking students to reflect on and
Respect is a third vital quality of an effective learning climate for basic courses in
communication. Both openness and involvement prosper in a climate of respect; neither is likely
when respect doesn’t exist. To be open about their thoughts and feelings, students must feel that
what they say will be respected.
One method is to devote time in the first class meeting to discussing the importance of respecting
diversity. During the initial class session, explain that in this course, students will respect diverse
ideas, experiences, values, and communication styles. Also, the printed syllabus should note that
all comments deserve and will receive respectful hearings. In discussing this with students,
assure them there is no pressure for them to agree with everything others say. Instead, the course
The instructor must model an attitude and climate of respect. To do this, it’s appropriate to show
curiosity and interest when students state points of view that expand or challenge material
presented in the text and in class discussions. Instructors may also assume the role of devil’s
advocate to voice perspectives that don’t surface in class discussion. Respect for differences is
also modeled by how teachers respond to students who challenge them and their ideas. If you
respond defensively to a student who disagrees with your point of view, the class will realize that
One way to do this is to incorporate your education, experience, and expertise by responding to
fallacious or ethnocentric student opinions with respect and good-natured curiosity. Like the
Socratic Method, responding to students with respect means essentially communicating to
understand and modeling effective paraphrase and questioning in listening and responding to
them. Once a student feels listened to, heard, and understood (and accepted) by you, you can
Finally, you will need to monitor communication in your class to make sure that respect for
diversity is sustained. It is inevitable that at some point in the term students will deliberately or
accidentally violate the course policy of respecting diversity. If a climate of respectfulness has
been established, infractions are usually subtle. Nonetheless, they offer important teaching
opportunities in which you can heighten students’ awareness of exclusionary communication
practices. For example, a student might inadvertently use a male-generic term, which excludes
Sense of Community
A final quality of a vibrant classroom climate is a sense of community. This exists when
members of the class see themselves as a group or community that is collectively engaged in
learning, exploring, and enriching their understandings of communication and human activity.
You may consider four methods of enhancing the sense of community in a class:
Knowing Each Other. The minimum condition for a sense of community to exist is that
members of the community know one another. Thus, it’s desirable to have class members
learn each other’s names. A get-acquainted activity, or icebreaker, during the opening classes
helps students learn names and encourages a personal atmosphere in the class. Section IV of
Involvement. A sense of community is also fostered by direct involvement among members
of the class. Students have learned to respond to teachers and to ask teachers questions.
However, they often don’t engage one another without prompting by the instructor. As noted
previously, you can encourage students to talk directly with each other. Ask several students
Sharing Responsibility for Course Design. A third way to heighten a sense of community
in your classroom is by allowing students to participate in designing portions of the course.
Your experience and judgment will lead you to make a number of decisions about what to
cover and how much time to devote to various topics. Yet, you can still allow students some
involvement in sculpting the course. For example, you might reserve two or more days at the
end of the term for topics of special interest to students. When Julia Wood, our textbook
author, has done this, students have asked her to prepare material on dual-career marriages,
You can also invite students to submit possible test items, some of which you then include on
their tests. This is also a great example of involving students in assessment and is a way to
further involve them in the course material and the classroom community. Make sure that if
you invite students to propose test items, you should plan to include a number of their
suggested items on your quizzes and exams. Not to do so is to disrespect their contributions.