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Kari Rasmussen
Unit title: Message Making and Meaning
Age group: high school
Prefatory Statement
Problems in interpersonal communication are represented in many
situations. Students will profit from learning the principles and
skills of interpersonal communication. Whether in a family, work
environment, a friendship, or a romantic relationship, the principles of
interpersonal communication will prove to be powerful tools for problem
solving. So important have interpersonal skills become that the U.S.
Department of Labor, in its report “What Work Requires of Schools” - based on interviews with managers, employers, and workers who described
the skills needed to function effectively at their jobs - - identified
interpersonal skills as one of five skills essential for a nation and an
individual to be economically competitive in the world marketplace (New
York Times, July 3, 1991, p. A17). In addition to becoming effective
communicators, this unit should improve student skills, helping them be
collaborative workers, complex thinkers, community contributors, and
quality producers.
Class Specification
This unit is designed with senior high students in mind. I feel one
may explore the issues more in-depth with older students who are more
capable of analytical and critical thinking. High school students also
generally have higher self esteem, so to feel more comfortable analyzing
their own communicative behavior. There is great variety in the
activities integrated into this unit, so to engage every student in the
material. Teachers can tailor the unit to the needs of the students by
being careful of a diversified, even, and comfortable mix of students in
small group activities. Using current materials which are applicable to
students’ lives to demonstrate concepts in interpersonal communication
is also important in this lesson, and will change with the times.
Significant Assumptions
Students are best able to comprehend themes from a number of
sources incorporating a common theme.
Students are capable of interpreting a situation from various
viewpoints.
The material to be covered can be connected with students’ lives.
Most teacher resources are available to the teacher. Example exercises
are given as models.
Desired Outcomes
Completion of Minnesota High School Graduation Standards Subpart 5 of
Learning Area Two - Write and Speak in the English Language:
Interpersonal Communication. A student shall demonstrate understanding
of interpersonal communication strategies, the components of the
interpersonal communication process, and how various factors affect
patterns of communication, interaction, and problem solving in group
settings by:
A. using appropriate English language conventions and communication
skills in varied interpersonal situations;
B. demonstrating effective speaking skills, effective listening skills,
appropriate feedback, problem-solving techniques, effective group
skills, and communication strategies in a variety of simulated or
authentic situations; and
C. using skills of conciliation, mediation, or negotiation to improve
communication.
Possible Whole-Class Activities
- Student / teacher reading (aloud and individually) and discussion of
text.
- Student / teacher reading of supplemental in - class reading
selections.
- Viewing of films (noted in special notes in performance package).
- Discuss effective and non-effective interpersonal communication.
- Read aloud play scripts or film scripts.
Possible Small-Group Activities
- Discuss similarities among several examples of people interacting.
- Discuss differences between examples of interpersonal communication.
- Discuss themes common to non-effective communication.
- Have students act out a scenario, written themselves or given, and
respond.
- Respond to others’ communication strategies within group.
Possible Individual Activities
- Write regularly in journals.
- Prepare to share certain aspects of journal with others.
- Participate in class activities.
- Individual roles assigned or chosen themselves in small groups or
“teams,” based on the different skills of the members or depending on
the class activity. The primary roles are typically:
- Leader: will represent your team in meetings with teacher and
facilitate discussions and activities within the team.
- Recorder: keeps notes, when required, on team’s task.
- Reporter: shares the results of team’s discussion with the rest of
the class.
- Checker: makes sure that all members of the team understand the
task. When the team has a question about procedures, this person asks
other teams or teacher for assistance.
- Librarian: in charge of contents of folder; make sure materials are
distributed and collected from it, contents are kept organized, records
are kept on team’s activities, progress, and participation in class.
Note to students on Team folders:
Each team will have a team folder. Your folder will be on your team’s
table at the start of class. You must turn it in to me on the front
desk at the end of class each day. This will be used for:
- Handouts e.g. reading materials, directions for in-class activities
- Your team to turn in team class work to me
- Keep a record of your team’s activities, progress, and participation
in class
Week 1:
Focus: How the Body Communicates
Objective: increase students’ capacity to send and receive nonverbal
communication. Groups of three or five students are selected based on
greatest diversity possible through Understanding Students exercise and
sociometric study.
Purposes:
To develop skills in data collection to help you get to know your
students and understand their individual needs, interests and abilities.
To appreciate the importance of using this information (about students)
in planning and teaching.
Section 1: Sociometric Study
Sociometry is the quantitative and qualitative diagnosis and
interpretation of classroom climate through peer friendship patterns.
1. Conduct a Sociometric survey. Type out the following questions for
students to answer, and make copies for each student in the class you
survey.
a. What is your name (First and last name).
Name two students (give their first and last name) in this class who:
b. you would like to work with if you were doing a class project
c. you would most like to sit next to at lunch
d. you do not like to sit next to at lunch
2. Analyze the results of the sociometric study by doing the following:
a. Create three sociograms, one showing academic relationships, one
showing positive social relationships, and one showing negative social
relationships. When drawing your sociograms, it is helpful to use
different symbols to show boys and girls (e.g. circle for girls, squares
for boys); show mutual choice arrows in a different color; highlight /
color in stars and isolates.
b. Summarize what you learn from each sociaogram about specific
relationships among students and about individuals in the class. In
your discussio, identify cliques, two-way choices, which students seem
to be stars (most popular), isolates (not chosen by anyone), and most
rejected (identified most as person people do not want to sit with).
Reflect on the relationship between these results and student self
esteem, and reflect on notable similarities and idfferences among the
different sociograms.
Example: The following web site shows how a sociogram can be used to
analyze relationships within families.
[Source: Suler, J. (Jan. 1996). The Psychology of Cyberspace. World
Wide Web, http://www1.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/psycyber.html]
Section 2: Student Questionnaire
- Develop a handout with 4 - 5 questions you would like to ask the
students to help you get to know them better (e.g. hobbies, a question
that indicates their preferred learning styles, open-ended question).
Consider questions that would provide you with infomation that could
help you in teaching these students.
- Administer the questionnaire to the class (give each student a copy).
- Analyze the results of the questionnaire: summarizing student
responses, noting common themes that emaerge and identifying anyunique
responses that you consider improtant.
Section 3: Student Observation
-Draw a seating chart of the class, creating a box for each student.
Make each box large enough for writing in short observations about the
individual.
- Observe the students over the first week of class, looking to see what
you can learn about the students by watching and listening to them.
Record your observations of individal students in the box provided for
them, and also record overall observations on a separate sheet.
Examples of behaviors to note:
a. Student learning styles and multiple intelligences (look to see
which students pay attention and seem more involved during which kinds
of class activities)
b. Student interests (listen to comments they make and responses they
give to questions)
c. How students relate to others and are treated by peers
d. Any other noteworthy characteristics that may be significant in
helping you understand each student as an individual.
- Summarize what you learn in your observations about individuals in the
class and about specific relationships among students.
Overall Summary and Analysis
- Discuss your overalll findings from the 3 studies, reflecting
especially on findings that seemed to show up in each study.
**** Determine how you as a teacher will use these results to guide
instructional and classroom management decisions in teaching this unit.
Day 1: Self Test is taken as an anticipatory set and general overview
of unit.
Self - Test: What Do You Believe About Interpersonal Communication?
Instructions: Respond to each of the following statements with a T if
you believe the statement is usually true or an F if you believe the
statement is usually false.
______ 1. Good interpersonal communicators are born, not made.
______ 2. The more you communicate, the better your communication will
be.
______ 3. Unlike speaking or writing, effective listening really cannot
be taught.
______ 4. Opening lines such as “Hello, how are you?” or “Fine weather
today” serve no useful interpersonal purpose.
______ 5. The best way to deal with intercultural communication is in
the same way you deal with intracultural communication.
______ 6. When verbal and nonverbal messages contradict each other,
people believe the verbal message.
_______ 7. Complete openness should be the goal of any meaningful
interpersonal relationship.
________ 8. When there is a conflict, your aim should be to win.
________ 9. Effective interpersonal communicators do not rely on “power
tactics.”
________ 10. Fear of speaking is detrimental and must be eliminated.
Thinking Critically About Interpersonal Communication Beliefs
All ten statements are false. As you go through this unit, you’ll
discover not only why these statements are false but some problems that
can arise when you act as if these misconceptions are true.
Purposes of Interpersonal Communication
Ask students why they engage in interpersonal communication, i.e.
communication that takes place between two people who have a
relationship between them. Possible answers may be: to learn, to
relate, to influence, to play, to help. Write these on the board and
explain that interpersonal communication serves many purposes.
Quotes to Lead Individual Journal Exercises:
- “Whether clear or garbled, tumultuous or silent, deliberate or fatally
inadvertent, communication is the ground of meeting and the foundation
of community. It is, in short, the essential human connection.” Ashley Montagu
- “What you are speaks so loudly, I cannot hear what you say.” - Ralph
Waldo Emerson
- “One of the best ways to persuade others is with your ears - by
listening to them.” - Dean Rusk
Day 2: Whole Class Activity
Make a list of gestures, body movements, facial expressions, sounds, and
other nonverbal signals. Then make a column for what these signals
might signify - there may be close to ten different meanings for each
item listen. Then discuss how these signals make them feel. The
feelings will likely be as varied as the number of students in the
class. Discuss making involuntary sounds (sighs, groans, giggles) or
taking a deep breath. Talk about laughing. A laugh may indicate humor,
embarrassment, anxiety, or fear. The person who laughs doesn’t always
know what it means because it is sometimes involuntary.
Day 3:
1. Small Group Actvity: FAMILY TALK
The principles of interpersonal communication that we have been
studying and discussing should prove useful in analyzing any
communication interaction. To help you understand these principles and
give you some practice in applying them, here is a representation of a
family dinner. Carefully study the interaction of the family members
and identify each of the principles of communication illustrated.
Dinner with Margaret and Fred
Cast of Characters:
Margaret: mother, housewife, junior high school history teacher; 41
years old
Fred: father, gas station attendant; 46 years old
Diane: daughter, college sophomore and receptionist in art gallery; 20
years old
Stephen: son, high school junior; 16 years old
Margaret is in the kitchen finishing the preparation of dinner-lamb
chops, Fred’s favorite, though she does not care much for them. Diane
is going through some CDs. Stephen is reading one of his textbooks.
Fred comes in from work and throws his jacket over the couch; it falls
to the floor.
FRED [bored but angry, looking at Stephen]: What did you do with the
car last night? It stunk like rotten eggs. And you left all your
school papers all over the backseat.
STEPHEN [as if expecting the angry remarks]: What did I do now?
FRED: You stunk up the car with your pot or whatever you kids smoke,
and you left the car looking a mess. Can’t you hear?
STEPHEN [says nothing; goes back to looking at his book but without
really reading]
MARGARET: Al right everybody, dinner’s ready. Come on. Wash up and
sit down.
[At dinner]
DIANE: Mom, I’m going to go to the movies Friday night with some
friends from school.
MARGARET: Okay.
FRED: Like hell you’re going. No more going out with that group.
MARGARET: Fred, they’re nice people. Why shouldn’t she go?
FRED: Because I said so, okay? Finished. Closed.
DIANE [mumbling]: I’m 20 years old and he’s giving me problems.
[Turning to Fred] You make me feel like a kid, like some stupid little
kid.
FRED: Get married. Then you can tell your husband what to do.
DIANE: I wish I could.
STEPHEN: But nobody’ll ask her.
MARGARET: Why should she get married? She’s got a good life - good
job, nice friends, good home. She’s still young. Listen, I was talking
with Elizabeth and Cara this morning and they both feel they’ve just
wasted their lives. They raised a family and what have they got? They
got nothing. [To Diane] And don’t think sex is so great either; it
isn’t, believe me.
FRED: Well, they’re idiots.
MARGARET [snidely]: They’re idiots? Yeah, I guess they are.
DIANE: Joanne’s getting married.
MARGARET: Who’s Joanne?
STEPHEN: That creature who lives with that guy Michael.
FRED: Watch your mouth, Stephen. Don’t be disrespectful to your mother
or I’ll teach you how to act right.
MARGARET: Well, how do you like dinner?
[Prolonged silence]
DIANE: Do you think I should be in the wedding party if Joanne asks
me? I think she will; we always said we’d be in each other’s wedding.
MARGARET: Sure, why not. It’ll be nice.
FRED: I’m not going to no wedding, no matter who’s in it.
STEPHEN: Me neither.
DIANE: I hope you’ll both feel that way when I get married.
STEPHEN: By then I’ll be too old to remember I got a sister.
MARGARET: How’s school?
STEPHEN: I hate it. It’s so boring. It’s just test after test and
classes are getting bigger and bigger. Nobody knows anybody hardly. I
really feel like nobody knows I’m alive.
FRED: Get yourself a woman and you won’t feel lonely, instead of
hanging out with those potheads.
DIANE [looking to Margaret, giving a sigh as if to say, “Here we go
again”]
MARGARET [to Diane, in whisper]: I know.
DIANE: Mom? Do you think I’m getting fat?
STEPHEN: Yes.
FRED: Just don’t get fat in the stomach or you’ll get thrown out of
here.
MARGARET: No, I don’t notice it.
DIANE: Well, I just thought I might be.
STEPHEN [pushing his plate away]: I’m finished; I’m going out.
FRED: Sit down and finish you supper. You think I work all day for you
to throw food away? You wanna smoke your dope?
STEPHEN: No. I just wanna get away from you - forever.
MARGARET: You mean we both work all day; it’s just that I earn a lot
more than you do.
FRED: No, I mean I work and you baby-sit.
MARGARET: Teaching junior high school history isn’t babysitting.
FRED: Well, what is it then? You don’t teach them anything.
MARGARET [to Diane]: You see? You’re better off single. I should’ve
stayed single. Instead...Oh, well. I was young and stupid. It was my
own fault for getting involved with a loser. Just don’t you make the
same mistake.
FRED: Go ahead. Leave the table. Leave the house. Who cares what you
do?
Thinking Critically About Family Talk
Here are some questions to guide you through the analysis of this family
dialogue. As you read through the dialogue and answer the questions, be
as specific as possible. Try to illustrate the principles with specific
elements of dialogue.
1. Interpersonal communication is transactional; communication is a
transactional process, since no element is independent of any other
element.
a. How is the process nature of interpersonal communication
illustrated in this interaction? For example, why is it impossible to
identify specific beginnings and endings for any of the varied
interactions? Are there instances in which individual characters try to
deny the process nature of interactions?
b. In what ways are the messages of the different characters
interdependent?
2. Interpersonal communication is a process of adjustment.
a. Can any of the failures to communicate be traced to the lack of
adjustment? Throughout the interaction, how do the characters adjust to
one another?
b. What suggestions would you offer this family for increasing their
abilities to adjust to one another?
3. Interpersonal communication involves both content and relationship
messages.
a. Are any problems caused by the failure to recognize the distinction
between the content and relationship levels of communication (what the
characters are talking about and to whom they’re talking)?
b. How do each of the characters deal with the self-definitions of the
other characters? For example, how does Fred deal with the
self-definition of Margaret?
4. Interpersonal communication is inevitable.
a. In what ways do the characters communicate simply by their physical
presence or by the role they occupy in the family?
b. Do the characters communicate significant messages, even though
they may attempt not to communicate?
5. Interpersonal communication is irreversible (and unrepeatable).
a. Are any messages communicated that you think the characters would
have (at a later date) wished they had not communicated? Why do you
think so?
b. Do any of the characters attempt to reverse the communication
process - that is, to “uncommunicate”? Do any try to repeat?
2. Homework Journal assignment
Reflect on the following nonverbal aspects of communication:
Choose items from the list and write a detailed description of
yourself. Then look at the selection of items you choose. What do your
choices tell you about yourself?
Physical characteristics: height, weight, gender, skin color, size of
nose, color of eyes
Body structure: build, bone size, posture (erect, bent), chest
position, shoulders, arms, legs
Facial expressions: mouth (smiles, grimaces, muscle movements); nose
(nostrils flared / pinched); eyes (contact, avoidance, pupil
dilation); forehead or jaw (tense / relaxed)
Walk: distinctions (stride, pace, strut)
Touch: hand shake (grip, hold), back slapping, punching, pulling,
holding, caressing
Gestures: using hands, arms, head, legs, body
Voice: pitch, tone, rhythm, stress, volume, expression (angry, humble,
sad, happy)
Appearance: dress, grooming, scent
Environmental factors: living space, working space, colors, arrangement
of furniture
Time / Space: atmosphere, personal space / distance, territory, seating
arrangement
Social influences: class, church, business, family context, large
group, small group, one to one, privacy
Cultural differences: distancing, odors, privacy / space
Physical condition: tired, in pain, energetic, healthy
Emotions: fear, anxiety, trust, defensiveness, joy
Day 4:
Set up your own research experiments. Notice how people use their
eyes. See if you can hold eye contact with others as you pass them on
the street. Notice what people do with their eyes and bodies in an
elevator, while standing in line, while shopping in a store. Write
about your findings. Create your own experiments on any of the items
listed here.
1. Winking
2. Blinking
3. Tapping feet
4. Drumming fingers
5. Scratching hair or face
6. Shaking foot or leg
7. Pulling or playing with hair
8. Licking or biting lips
9. Shaking head
10. Chewing hands or pencil
11. Tapping teeth
12. Sticking out tongue
13. Tapping pen or pencil
14. Staring
15. Shaking fist or finger
16. Cracking knuckles
17. Clicking pen
18. Frowning
19. Snapping fingers
20. Rubbing nose
21. Avoiding eye contact
22. Others
Day 5: Small Group Exercise: OPENING AND CLOSING A CONVERSATION
This exercise provides experience in the difficult but essential process
of opening and closing a conversation and should help make these often
difficult acts a bit easier. Working in pairs, open and close each of
the following conversations.
Opening Conversations
1. On the first day of class, you and another student are the first to
come into the classroom and are seated in the room alone.
2. You are a guest at a friend’s party. You are one of the first
guests to arrive and are now there with several other people to whom you
have only been introduced. Your friend, the host, is busy with other
matters.
3. You have just started a new job in a large office where you are one
of several computer operators. It seems as if most of the other people
know each other.
4. You are in the college cafeteria eating alone. You see another
student who is also eating alone and whom you have seen in your English
literature class. You’re not sure if this person has noticed you in
class.
Closing Conversations
1. You and a friend have been talking on the phone for the last hour
but not much new is being said. You have a great deal of work to get to
and would like to close the conversation. Your friend just doesn’t seem
to hear your subtle clues.
2. You are at a party and are anxious to meet a person with whom you
have exchanged eye contact for the last ten minutes. The problem is
that a friendly and talkative former classmate of yours is demanding all
your attention. You don’t want to insult the instructor but at the same
time want to make contact with this other person.
3. You have had a conference with a teacher and have learned what you
needed to know. This teacher, however, doesn’t seem to know how to end
the conversation, seems very ill at ease, and just continues to go over
what has already been said. You have to get to play practice and so
need to close the conversation.
4. You are at a party and notice a person you would like to get to
know. You initiate the conversation but after a few minutes realize
that his person is not the kind of person with whom you would care to
spend any more time. you want to close this conversation as soon as
possible.
Thinking Critically About Opening and Closing Conversations
After the openings and closings for these situations have been proposed,
in small groups of six or eight or with the class as a whole, discuss
the openings and closings you experienced and your responses to them.
What general approaches seem favored? What general approaches seem
frowned upon? Can you distinguish between openings that prepare the way
for a satisfying versus an unsatisfying conversation? What purposes
should an opening serve? What purposes should a closing serve?
Week 2:
Focus: How feelings Communicate
Objective: Integrate students’ feelings into the whole system of
communicating
Quotes to Lead Individual Journal Exercises:
- “I’m sure you overreact to my overreaction. But if you’d cool your
reactions, I wouldn’t overreact in the first place.” - Dr. Foster Cline
- “You have the right to get angry, but you do not have the right or the
license to attack another person or their character traits.” - Haim
Ginott
- “The reality of the other person is not in what he reveals to you, but
in what he cannot reveal to you. Therefore, if you would understand
him, listen not to what he says but rather to what he does not say.” Kahlil Gibran
- “I wish that you would take the time to try and understand why I think
the way I think, and why I feel the way I feel.” - David Augsburger
Small Group Exercises:
1. I’D PREFER TO BE
This exercise should enable members of the class to get to know one
another better and at the same time get to know themselves better. The
questions should encourage each individual to increase awareness of some
facet(s) of his or her thoughts or behaviors. The “I’d Prefer to Be”
game is played in a group of four to six people.
A. Each person individually rank-orders each of the 12 clusters of
preferences presented using 1 for the most-preferred and 3 for the least
preferred choice.
B. The players then consider each of the 12 categories in turn, with
each member giving his or her rank order.
C. Members may refuse to reveal their rankings for any category by
saying, “I pass.” The group is not permitted to question the reasons
for any member’s passing.
D. When a member has revealed his or her rankings for a category, group
members may ask questions relevant to that category. These questions
may be asked after any individual member’s account or may be reserved
until all members have given their rankings for a particular category.
1. ________________ intelligent
________________ wealthy
________________ physically attractive
2. ________________ movie star
________________ senator
________________ successful businessperson
3. ________________ blind
________________ deaf
________________ mute
4. ________________ on a date
________________ reading a book
________________ watching television
5. ________________ loved
________________ feared
________________ respected
6. ________________ alone
________________ with a group of people
________________ with one person
7. ________________ brave
________________ reliable
________________ insightful
8. ________________ bisexual
________________ heterosexual
________________ homosexual
9. ________________ the loved
________________ the lover
________________ the good friend
10. ________________ introvert
________________ extrovert
________________ ambivert
11. ________________ a tree
________________ a rock
________________ a flower
12. ________________ a leader
________________ a follower
________________ a loner
Thinking Critically About Preferences
1. What are the reasons for the individual choices? Note that the
reasons for the least-preferred choice may often be as important or even
more important than the reasons for the most-preferred choice.
2. What do the choices reveal about the individual? Why would it be
dangerous to categorize people or draw conclusions about people on the
basis of these choices?
3. What is the degree of similarity of the group as a whole? Do the
members show relatively similar choices or wide differences? What does
this mean in terms of the members’ ability to communicate with one
another?
4. Do the members accept/reject the choices of other members? Are some
members disturbed by the choices other members make? If so, why? Are
some apathetic? Why? Did hearing the choices of one or more members
make you want to get to know them better?
5. Did any of the choices make you aware of personal preferences you
were not aware of before?
2. MESSAGES FROM CARDS AND SONGS
This exercise aims to (1) familiarize you with some of the popular
conceptions and sentiments concerning interpersonal relationships, and
(2) introduce a wide variety of concepts important in the study of
interpersonal relationships.
Bring to class a greeting card or song and show how it expresses a
sentiment that is significant for understanding interpersonal
communication and interpersonal relationships. (Sentiments in greeting
cards and songs are communicated through a number of different
channels. Therefore, consider the sentiments communicated through the
verbal message but also through the illustrations, the colors, the
card’s physical form, the type of print, the song’s tempo, the music’s
volume, and so on. This list is not exhaustive.)
Suggestions for Songs
“The Story” by Ani DiFranco from self-titled cd
i would have returned your greeting
if it weren’t for the way you were looking at me
this street is not a market
and i am not a commodity
don’t you find it sad that we can’t even say hello
because your’re a man and i’m a woman
and the sun is getting low
there are some places that i can’t go
as a woman i can’t go there
and as a person i don’t care
i don’t go for the hey baby what’s your name
and i’d like to go alone
thank you just the same
i am up again against the skin of my guitar
in the window of my life
looking out through the bars
i am sounding out the silence
avoiding all the words
i’m afraid i’ve said too much
i’m afraid who has heard me
my father, he told me the story
and it was true for his time
but now the story is different
maybe i should tell him mine
all the girls line up here
all the boys on the other side
i see your ranks are advancing
i see mine are left behind
i am up again against the skin of my guitar
in the window of my life
looking out through the bars
i am sounding out the silence
avoiding all the words
i’m afraid i can never say enough
i’m afraid no one has heard me
despite all the balls that i’ve been thrown
and forced to drop
on the social totem pole i’m preciously
close to the top
they put you in your place
and they tell you to behave
but no one can be free until we’re all one even
grade
and i would have returned your greeting
if it weren’t for the way you were looking at me
“Another Day” (The loft) from the musical RENT
ROGER
Who do you think you are?
Barging in on me and my guitar
Little Girl - Hey
The door is that way
You better go you know
The fire’s out anyway
Take your powder - take your candle
Your sweet whisper
I just can’t handle
Well take your hair in the moonlight
Your brown eyes - goodbye, goodnight
I should tell you I should tell you
I should tell you I should - no!
Another time - Another place
Our temperature would climb
There’d be a long embrace
We’d do anothe dance
It’d be another play
Looking for romance?
Come back another day
Another day
MIMI
The heart may freeze or it can burn
The pain will ease if I can learn
There is no future
There is no past
I live this moment as my last
There’s only us
There’s only this
Forget regret
Or life is yours to miss
No other road
No other way
No day but today
ROGER
Excuse me, if I’m off track
But if you’re so wise
Then tell me - Why do you need smack?
Take your needle
Take your fancy prayer
And don’t forget
Get the moonlight out of your hair
Lond ago - you might’ve lit up my heart
But the fire’s dead - ain’t never ever gonna start
Another time - another place
The words would only rhyme
We’d be in outer space
It’d be another song
We’d sing another way
You wanna prove me wrong?
Come back another day
Another day
MIMI
There’s only yes
Only tonight
We must let go
To know what’s right
No other course
No other way
No day but today
“Joking” by Indigo Girls Rites of Passage
you said the world was magic i was wide-eyed and laughing we were
dancing up to the bright side forget about your ego forget about your
pride and you will never have to compromise but you were only joking we
talked about our mothers kissed the wounds of our fathers i could’ve
been your sister i would’ve been your brother you kissed me like i was a
soldier heading for war i’m a dying man but i don’t know what for but
you were only joking you were only joking brother gravel and glass on
the bottom of my feet i bruised my heels on the swollen street we were
girls in bars we were boys on the town bumping like a pinball off a
careless crowd you said good friends are hard to come by i laughed and
bought you a beer ‘cause it’s too corny to cry well sentiment given and
sentiment lost you shook it off with a smirk and a toss and you were
only joking you were only joking brother
“The Hurt” by Cat Stevens from Footsteps in the Dark
You say you want to seek the truth, but it’s hard to find
No one to help you, your friends don’t have the time
So you ride around in your car, switch on the radio
You want to relate to something you once read in a book
What kind of a way to try to take a look
Until I got hurt I was looking, I was on my way
Until I got hurt, until I got hurt, darling I painted by face grey
Until I got hurt, ‘till I got hurt, why didn’t I
I didn’t think of this until I got hurt
‘Till I got hurt, baby, I didn’t know what love is
You say you want to learn to laugh ‘cause music makes you cry
But the tears you shed are only in your eye
So you turn to any phoney mouth with a tale to tell
But he’s just a hoaxer don’t you know, selling peace and religion
Between his jokes and his karma chewing gum
Until I got hurt, I was looking, I was the same as you
Until I got hurt, until I got hurt, I did not know what to do
Young son, don’t let me down, young son
I’m trusting you to keep on, never turn away now
Hold on, never let go, now hold on
Turn your heart to the bright sun
Love will come your way
Cos ‘till you make that final show
You’ll never know what love you’ve been missing
Missing
You say you want to seek the truth but you work alone
No one to help you and nobody to push you on
So you sit at home drinking your wine, television on
You wait for a miracle, ‘cause you say one day one’ll come along
(But wishful thinking, boy) any minute now, you might be gone
I’d like to help you brother but that would be wrong
Until I got hurt, I was looking, I was on my way
Until I got hurt, until I got hurt, darling I didn’t know which way
Until I got hurt, ‘till I got hurt, why didn’t I
I didn’t think of this until I got hurt
‘Till I got hurt baby, I didn’t know what love is
Until I got hurt, oh I didn’t know what love is
Thinking Critically About Messages from Cards and Songs
In thinking about the card or song you selected and in listening to
those presented by others, consider:
1. What concepts or theory does the card or song make use of that can
assist us in understanding interpersonal relationships?
2. Does the card or song illustrate a popular problem in interpersonal
relationships?
3. Does the card or song illustrate a useful strategy for relationship
development, maintenance, repair, or dissolution?
4. Does the card or song suggest a useful question (or hypothesis for
scientific study) that should be study of interpersonal relationships?
5. Does the card or song support or contradict a currently accepted
theory in interpersonal relationships?
Week 3:
Focus: How Language Communicates
Objective: Increase students’ awareness of the effect of words, labels,
judgments - on both speaker and listener - so as to lead to better
communication with self and others.
Quotes to Lead Individual Journal Exercises:
- “Communication, the art of talking with each other, saying it clearly,
listening to what the other says and making sure that we’re hearing
accurately, is by all indication the skill most essential for creating
and maintaining meaningful, loving relationships.” - Leo Buscaglia
(Loving Each Other, 1984)
- “It takes two to make communication.” - Irving Lee
- “We have been given two ears but a single mouth, in order that we may
hear more and talk less.” - Zeno of Citium
- “It hurts to feel small; it helps so to feel big; words to others do
either of these.” - David Goodman
Small Group Exercises:
1. RELATIONAL REPAIR FROM ADVICE COLUMNISTS
Select a specific question asking for relational advice from an advice
column in a newspaper or magazine. Bring this column to class and be
prepared to discuss it.
Thinking Critically About Relationship Advice
After all advice letters and responses have been read, consider the
following questions:
1. Is the advice generally good? Bad? Is there any evidence to
support the usefulness or validity of the answer given?
2. Advice columnists usually use a “relationship rules approach” when
giving advice. This approach argues that relationships are held
together by adherence to mutually agreed upon rules and are broken when
important rules are violated. What relational rule is the advice
columnist using in answering this question? To what other situations
might this relational rule apply? That is, what other applications
might you find for this specific rule?
3. What are the limitations of this rule? That is, in what situations
would this rule be inappropriate? Can you identify any potential
difficulties that the advice offered by the columnist might create?
What additional advice do you feel should have accompanied the
columnist’s response?
2. SPEAKING POSITIVELY
This exercise is performed by the entire class. One person is “it” and
takes a seat in the front of the room or in the center of a circle.
Going around in a circle or from left to right, each person says
something positive about the person who is “it.”
For this exercise, only volunteers should be used. Students may be
encouraged but should not be forced to participate. It is best done
when the students know each other fairly well.
People must tell the truth; that is, they are not allowed to say
anything about a person that they do not believe. At the same time,
however, all statements must be positive. Only positive words are
allowed during this exercise. People may, however, “pass” and say
nothing. No one may ask why something was said or why something was not
said. The positive words may refer to the person’s looks, behavior,
intelligence, clothes, mannerisms, and so on. One may also say
something like, “I don’t know you very well, but you seem friendly” or
“You seem honest,” or whatever. These statements, too, must be believed
to be true.
After everyone has said something, another person becomes “it.”
Thinking Critically About Speaking Positively
After all volunteers have been “it,” consider the following questions:
1. Describe your feelings when thinking about becoming “it.” If you
volunteered, how did you feel while people were speaking positively
about you?
2. What comments were the most significant to you?
3. How do you feel now that the exercise is over? Did it make you feel
better? Why do you suppose it had the effect it did?
4. What implications may be drawn from this exercise for application to
everyday living? Will this exercise change your behavior in any way?
Week 4:
Focus: How the Mind Communicates
Objective: Explore different ways we think. Look at the ways we
generalize and stereotype. Talk about justifying or rationalizing what
we say or do. Explore effects of beliefs, expectations, and
disappointments on ourselves and others.
Quotes to Lead Individual Journal Exercises:
- “We have developed communication systems to permit man on earth to
talk with man on the moon. Yet, mother often cannot talk with daughter,
father to son, black to white, labor with management, or democracy with
communism.” - Hadley Read
- “I know you believe you understand what you think I said. But I am
not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.” Anonymous
- “Our frame of reference is the filter through which we integrate,
evaluate, and interpret new persons, events and ideas.” - John Powell
- “I can never tell you what you said, but only what I heard. I will
have to rephrase what you have said, and check it out with you to make
sure that what left your mind and heart arrived in my mind and heart
intact and without distortion.” - John Powell
Small Group Exercises: EXPERIENCING SELF-DISCLOSURE
This experience (derived from Egan, 1970) is an extremely powerful one
for demonstrating topics normally kept secret, the reasons for secrecy,
and the willingness to be supportive. The procedure is simple: On an
index card write a statement of information that is currently in your
hidden self. Do not put names on these cards; the statements are to be
dealt with anonymously. These cards will be collected and read aloud to
the entire group.
Thinking Critically About Self-Disclosure
After hearing the statements on the cards, consider:
1. Can you classify the statements into categories - for example,
sexual problems, attitudes toward family, self doubts, and so forth?
2. Why do you suppose this type of information is kept hidden? What
advantages might hiding this information have? What disadvantages?
3. How would you react to people who disclosed such statements to you?
For example, what difference, if any, would it make in your
relationship?
4. What type of person is likely to have a large hidden self and a
small open self? A large open self and a small hidden self?
5. Would you open self be larger than that of other group members?
Smaller? The same size? Would your hidden self be larger? Smaller?
The same size?
2. LISTENING FOR MESSAGE DISTORTIONS
In this exercise (based on Haney, 1981) we listen to message
interferences, especially omissions, additions, and distortions. The
exercise involves serial communication and is similar to the old game of
telephone. Six volunteers are selected, five of whom leave the room.
The volunteer who is still in the classroom is read a verbal message and
instructed to repeat the message - as accurately and as completely as
possible - to the second person. (It is helpful if class members have a
copy of the verbal message so they can more completely identify the
various distortions.) The second person likewise repeats the message to
the third person. The process is continued until the sixth person
repeats the message to the class.
Here is a message that will prove useful in this exercise:
Every once in a while at George Washington Community College, the lions
standing guard at the new Women’s Political Center were sprayed with
sexist graffiti. Whenever this happened, it cost the Center more than
$3000 to have them cleaned. The students from the Women’s Center were
promised by the president that if anyone was caught writing graffiti
anywhere on campus, but especially on these lions, they would be
expelled without any hope of ever returning.
Thinking Critically About Message Distortions
After the exercise is completed, consider:
1. What kinds of information were omitted? At what point in the chain
of communication are such omissions introduced? Do the omissions follow
any pattern? That is, what kinds of information seem more likely to be
omitted?
2. What kinds of information are added? When? Can patterns be
identified here, or are the additions totally random?
3. What kinds of information are distorted? When? Can the types of
distortions be classified in any way? Are the distortions in the
direction of increased simplicity? Increased complexity? Can you
identify the reasons for the distortions?
10-minute film clip of Death of a Salesman will be shown each day.
Students respond individually in journals, then discussion on film is
opened up.
Week 5:
Focus: How Our Actions Communicate
Objective: Explore the roles we’ve learned to act out, and some
automatic response we make in our daily living. Then write about ways
to change our behavior.
Quotes to Lead Individual Journal Exercises:
- “Some people talk to a person, at a person, or with a person. Which
one do you do?” - Anonymous
- “What is the quickest test to find out if you can communicate? The
quickest test, a simple smile, is often also the beginning.” - Leonard
Andrews
- “Beginning with the verbal initiation of hello, language nourishes or
starves whatever grows between two people.” - S. Miller
Small Group Exercises:
1. GENDER AND COMMUNICATION (derived from DeVito text)
This exercise is designed to increase your awareness of matters that may
prevent meaningful interpersonal communication between the sexes. It is
also designed to encourage meaningful dialogue among class members about
sex differences.
The women and men are separated, with one group going into another
classroom. Each group’s task is to write on the board all the things
that they dislike having the other sex think, believe, do, or say about
them in general and that prevent meaningful interpersonal communication
from taking place. After this is done, the groups should change rooms
so the men can discuss what the women have written and the women discuss
what the men have written. After satisfactory discussion, the groups
should get together in the original room.
Thinking Critically About Gender Differences
Discussion might center on the following questions:
1. Were there any surprises?
2. Were there any disagreements; that is, did members of one sex write
anything that members of the other sex argued they do not believe,
think, do, or say?
3. How do you suppose the ideas about the other sex got started?
4. Is there any reliable evidence in support of the beliefs of the men
about the women or the women about the men?
5. In what specific ways do these beliefs, thoughts, actions, and
statements prevent meaningful interpersonal communication?
2. RELATIONSHIPS ON TV (derived from DeVito text)
This exercise is designed to enable you to gain some insight and
experience in the difficult task of analyzing relationship
communication. The class should be separated into several small groups,
each of which should select a different television program that centers
on a romantic, friendship, or family relationship. Each member should
watch the assigned television show and then discuss it with the other
group members in terms of the principles discussed in this unit. After
the groups discuss their show (for about 15 minutes), a member from each
group should then report their insights to the entire class.
Thinking Critically About Television Relationships
In preparing your group report and in listening to the reports of other
groups, consider the following:
1. Who constitutes the “relationship”? Who are the members of the
relationship? What are their major roles within the relationship?
2. What factors seem to hold this relationship together? Can you
identify specific elements of plot or dialogue that demonstrate these
factors?
3. What type of communication pattern best describes this particular
relationship? Can you identify specific elements of dialogue that led
to your conclusions? Do the communication patterns cause any
difficulties?
4. What conflict strategies are used most often by the central
characters? Are those strategies effective?
5. If the characters on this television show wished to improve their
communication, what suggestions would you make?
6. Assume that a Martian has come to earth and has no information other
than gained from this television series. Can you identify five
conclusions that this Martian would make about earth relationships and
their interpersonal communication patterns?
10-minute film clip of Death of a Salesman will be shown each day.
Students respond individually in journals, then discussion on film is
opened up.
Teacher Resources
Beach, Richard and James Marshall. Teaching Literature in the Secondary
School. Orlando: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1991.
Carr, Jacquelyn B. Communicating with Myself: A Journal. Dubuque,
Iowa: Wm. C. Brown Publishers, 1979.
Death of a Salesman. Dir. Volker Schlondorff. Produced by Robert F.
Collesberry. With Dustin Hoffman. A Roxbury and Punch Production.
Carl Lorimar Home Video: 1986. (135 min.)
Devito, Joseph A. Messages: Building Interpersonal Communication
Skills. 3rd ed. New York: Harper Collins, 1996.
Gere, Anne Ruggles, et al. Language and Reflection: An Integrated
Approach to Teaching English. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:
PrenticeHall, 1992.
Harrison, Delyn Dendy. Some Things Are Better Said in Black and White.
Fort Worth, Texas: Branch Smith, Inc., 1978.
Johnson, David W, and Frank P. Johnson. Joining Together: Group Theory
and Group Skills. 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice
Hall, 1982.
Maxwell, Rhoda J. and Mary Jordan Meiser. Teaching English in Middle
and Secondary Schools. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice
Hall, 1997.
Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Viking Penguin, a Division of
Penguin Books USA, Inc., 1949, renewed 1977.
Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning Graduation
Standards / Performance Packages website: http://children.state.mn.us
Verderber, Rudolph F. and Kathleen S. Verderber. Inter-Act: Using
Interpersonal Communication Skills. 6th ed. Belmont, California:
Wadsworth, 1992.
Walker, Velma and Lynn Brokaw. Becoming Aware: A Look at Human
Relations and Personal Adjustment. 5th ed. Dubuque, Iowa:
Kendall/Hunt, 1992.
Performance Package
Minnesota Profile of Learning
Content Standard: Write and Speak
Level: high school
Title of Package/Activity: Message Making and Meaning
(adapted from Benchmards of Interpersonal Communication October 1997)
Summary Statement of Content Standard:
Demonstrate effective English language communication skills in personal,
family, community, and/or work situations.
_____________________________________________
Description of Student Performances:
Task 1: Analyze communication, interaction, and problem-solving
strategies in a play - Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, and make
recommendations for improvement.
Task 2: Keep a reflective journal of own interpersonal communication
situations, integrating class quotes, discussions and lessons.
Task 3: Participate in a group and respond to exercises given,
demonstrating effective listening and speaking skills.
FINAL ACHIEVEMENT: Use the following scoring criteria when evaluating
student performance.
Scoring Criteria
4 - Performance on this standard achieves and exceeds expectations of
high standard work.
3- Performance on this standard meets the expectations of high standard
work.
2 - Work on this standard has been completed, but all or part of the
student's performance is below
high standard level.
1 - Work on this standard has been completed, but performance is
substantially below high standard level
No package score is recorded until ALL parts of the package have been
complete
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 1
Message Making and Meaning
Content Standard: Write and Speak: Interpersonal Communication
Level: High School
Specific Statement(s) from the Standard:
What students should know:
1. Understand communication styles and the components of the
communication process
2. Understand how various factors (e.g., time and place, personal
background) affect patterns of communication, interaction, and
problem-solving in group settings
What students should do:
2. Analyze communication strategies in simulated or authentic
situations
In addition:
1. Students must not be required to disclose sensitive and/or private
information in interpersonal communication situations.
Product(s):
Written analysis of characters in film and/ or script Death of a
Salesman by Arthur Miller
Task Description:
Overview: You have previously studied various components of verbal and
non-verbal communication as well as communication styles and strategies.
Steps:
1. Your teacher will have your class view 10 minutes of the film Death
of a Salesman each day for two weeks. As you watch the film, take notes
on the behaviors of the characters--what they say and what they do, the
process they use to solve problems (or make decisions), and the manner
in which they interact with others.
Examples of lead-in questions:
What is the situation, emotional involvement, nature of relationship,
and level of intimacy?
How did the character listen to the feelings and intentions of other(s)
and vice versa?
What kinds of words or phrases were used? Tone? Development of
ideas? Use of humor?
What non-verbal communication elements were used?
(volume, articulation, pace, pausing and silence, body orientation and
posture, gestures, use of space, eye contact, facial expression)
Did they match their verbal and non-verbal strategies to send clear
messages?
Did they demonstrate an openness to compromise?
Special Notes:
A good Interpersonal Communication text is helpful while conducting this
unit for preparation and reference. See Teacher Resources.
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 1
(Title of Package)
FEEDBACK CHECKLIST FOR TASK 1
The purpose of the checklist is to provide feedback to the student about
his/her work relative to the content standard. Have the standard
available for reference.
Y=Yes
N=Needs Improvement
Student Communication and Interaction Teacher
______ Description of the characters’ communication/interaction with
each ______
other addresses the entire film segment.
______
Description of the characters’ communication/interaction
with others
______
includes specific examples and details about the following:
- factors that affect their interpersonal communication
- statements of own thoughts, feelings, and intentions
- listening to others’ thoughts, feelings and intentions
- choices among verbal communication elements
- choices among non-verbal communication elements
- congruence of their verbal and non-verbal communication
- openness to compromise / dialogue.
______ Recommendations for how the characters could improve their
______
communication / interaction are based on principles of effective
communication / interaction.
Problem - solving (or Decision - making)
______ Description of the characters dealing with problems / decisions
______
addresses the entire film.
------------ Description of the characters dealing with problems /
decisions ------------includes specific examples and details about strategies and a process
for problem - solving (decision - making).
------------ Recommendations for how the characters could improve
their ------------problem-solving / decision - making are based on principles of
effective problem - solving / decision - making.
Overall Comments (information about student progress, quality of work,
next steps for teacher and student, needed adjustments in the teaching
and learning processes, and problems to be addressed):
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 2
Message Making and Meaning
Content Standard: Write and Speak: Interpersonal Communication
Level: High School
Specific Statement(s) from the Standard:
What students should know: How they interact in their own interpersonal
situations.
What students should do: Keep a reflective journal of own interpersonal
communication situations, integrating class discussions and lessons.
Product(s):
A journal.
Task Description:
You will respond to the quotes given weekly through a journal. Your
goal is to become more conscious of your inner thoughts, emotional
responses, and experiences, particularly those dealing with
interpersonal communication, verbal and nonverbal.
Special Notes:
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 2
(Title of Package)
FEEDBACK CHECKLIST FOR TASK 2
The purpose of the checklist is to provide feedback to the student about
his/her work relative to the content standard. Have the standard
available for reference.
Y=Yes
N=Needs Improvement
Student
Teacher
______
identified. ______
Interpersonal Communicative behavior is
______ Journal reflects connections to class activities and
discussions. ______
______ Journal responds to quotes given in class. ______
______ Journal reflects progress made through unit on own ______
interpersonal communication skills.
Overall Comments (information about student progress, quality of the
work, next steps for teacher and student, needed adjustments in the
teaching and learning processes, and problems to be addressed):
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 3
Message Making and Meaning
Content Standard:Write and Speak: Interpersonal Communication Level:
High School
Specific Statement(s) from the Standard:
What students should do:
1. Apply verbal and non-verbal communication strategies in a variety
of simulated or authentic situations:
a. demonstrate effective speaking skills
b. demonstrate effective listening skills
c. deliver appropriate feedback
d. use problem-solving techniques
e. demonstrate effective group skills (e.g., consensus building,
conflict resolution, group maintenance)
In addition:
1. Students must not be required to disclose sensitive and/or private
information in interpersonal communication situations
Product(s):
- Completed group activities
- Reflection Log
Task Description:
Overview: You have previously:
- studied the components of verbal and non-verbal communication as well
as communication styles and strategies
-observed people you know, as well as strangers, communicating with each
other -- and you have reflected on what you observed
- practiced communication techniques in scenarios, simulations, and/or
role plays
- analyzed communication strategies in simulated or authentic situations
- interacted with others in one-to-one and small group situations
- engaged in problem-solving experiences, and
- participated in dialogues and arrived at a mutual understanding of
diverse viewpoints.
In this task, you are to demonstrate that you can apply what you have
learned and practiced about interpersonal communication by working in a
group setting during an extended period of time.
First, you will write down your own interpersonal communication goals.
Then, with the other members of your group, you will decide how to
organize and conduct your group sessions. You will complete the group
exercises together.
The process you engage in as an active participant in your group is the
focus of you r performance assessment. An on-going and key piece of
the process is your writing down your reflections on your experiences
throughout the entire period of group work.
Steps:
1. Before you and your classmates for groups, complete a
self-assessment:
A. Write in you Reflection Log (see #3 below for complete requirements)
the strength(s) or talent(s) you will bring to a group.
B. Also, write down in your log an interpersonal communication area or
skill (or more than one) that you wish to develop furthur, for example:
- perform various group roles, such as leader or facilitator, recorder,
observer, timekeeper, encourager, “outside-the-box” thinker (“cutting
edge” member)
- ensure that every group member gets his/her point of view considered
and gets what he/she needs from the group
- ensure that every group member contributes to the group with ideas
suggestions, and effort
- ensure that the group’s work load is fairly distributed and deal with
members who “don’t pull their weight” or who take too much control
- develop a work plan for the group, prioritize tasks, and, when
necessary, adjust the plan
- ensure that the group examines assumptions and opinions, and avoids
“group think”: ensure that should the group come to a faulty decision,
a member can stop or change the decision
- ensure that the goup focuses on the project throughout the group’s
work time
- another goal.
2. Throughout the group exercises, you are going to be thinking
individually about the group’s process -- and will be writing down your
reflections regularly in your Reflection Log (see #3 below). Also, your
group should regularly schedule time for each member to ask for
constructive feedback from and deliver appropriate feedback to the other
members of you r group. With the other members of your group, you
should regularly reflect on the group’s work -- and come to a shared
meeting about the group’s process. Write down in your log what new
insights or discoveries you come to because of dialogue among group
members.
Your teacher will regularly observe your group work sessions to assess
your individual contributions to the group’ s productivity. The
observations will occur throughout the work time the teacher gives the
class for this group project.
3. Throughout the entire project, you are to maintain a Reflection
Log. In your log, you will write down your thoughts and feelings about
interactions with the other members of your group, roles that other
group members assume, and factors that affect the productivity of the
group.
In this task, you are being asked to demonstrate what you know -- but
you also have the opportunity to learn more by doing -- by applying what
you have previously learned. A powerful learning method is reflection
on the process of learning itself. The Reflection Log is where you will
record your thoughts (and your second thoughts), feelings, reactions,
intentions, and actions throughout this entire project. The Reflection
Log is a record of your “inner conversation” as you work with/in your
group on your project.
Here are some ground rules for your log:
A. Honestly and appropriately state your own thoughts and feelings -express (“speak for”) yourself.
B. When you write about others, describe behaviors and do not “dump” on
others or engage in name calling. Be respectful rather than
judgmental.
C. To ensure confidentiality, you could use numbers or letters instead
of the names of your classmates.
D. Do not use this log as a place to record intimate thoughts and
feelings you do not intend to be shared with your teacher.
E. Date each entry, and make an entry in your log every day.
Among the items you should reflect on are:
* Beginnings of group work:
- the strengths or talents you bring to a group
- your “growing edge” -- that is, the skill or trait you most want to
develop; the interpersonal communication goal you most want to achieve.
- your first impressions of working with you r group members
- your role in how your group decided to organize and conduct work
sessions
*Throughout group work:
- your role in developing your group’s work plan
- your role in developing your group’s evaluation methods
- how well your group was able to engage in dialogue for understanding
- how well your group used feedback from you
- how well you used feedback from your group
- how well you dealt with problems, obstacles, conflicts
- your feelings -- and how you acted because of your feelings -- and
what you would do differently the next time you are in a similar
situation.
* Throughout group work:
- your role in developing your group’s work plan
- your role in developing your group’s evaluation methods
- how well your group used the group’s work time
- how well your group was able to engage in dialogue for understanding
- how well your group used feedback from you
- how well you used feedback from your group
- how well you dealt with problems, obstacles, conflicts
- your feelings -- and how you acted because of your feelings -- and
what you would do differently the next time you are in a similar
situation.
* Ending group work:
- the surprises, challenges, disappointments, and rewards you
encountered in working in your group
- your best and worst experiences of working in your group
- how well you achieved your goal in working in your group
- what new insights or discoveries you came to because of dialogue
among group members
- what you learned through participation in the group project
- what you still need to learn
Your teacher will read your Reflection Log for assessment.
Special Notes:
Videotaping Student Work
As frequently as possible, group work sessions should be videotaped and
shown to students. After viewing the videotapes, students should be
coached in analyzing, and offering constructive feedback about, the use
of communication skills -- both by themselves and by their classmates.
Self - Disclosure
The Interpersonal Communication Standard notes, “Students must not be
required to disclose sensitive and / or private information in
interpersonal communication situations.” This applies both to group work
sessions and to the Reflection Log.
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 3
Message Making and Meaning
FEEDBACK CHECKLIST FOR TASK 3
The purpose of the checklist is to provide feedback to the student about
his/her work relative to the content standard. Have the standard
available for reference.
Y=Yes
N=Needs Improvement
Student
Teacher
Group Work Sessions
The student’s interpersonal communication contributes to the group’s
productivity in these areas:
______ Dialogue for understanding is effectively accomplished.
______
______ An appropriate decision-making (or problem-solving) procedure is
______
used to achieve agreements.
______ Feedback is delivered appropriately and received with
attention. ______
______ Focus on the group’s tasks is sustained throughout the group’s
work time. ______
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 3
Message Making and Meaning
Student
Teacher
Reflection Log
_______ Entries are a record of involvements throughout the project
rather than _______
a one-time final summary.
_______ Reflections are statements of own thoughts, feelings, and
intentions. _______
_______ Reflections on the group’s interaction focus on factors that
affect the _______
group’s performance.
_______ Reflections on the group’s dialogue process are clear and
supported _______
by specific examples.
_______ Reflections on the group’s decision-making (or problem-solving)
_______
process are clear and supported by specific examples.
_______ Reflections on roles performed in the group are clear and
supported _______
by specific examples.
_______ Reflections on how the group used feedback are clear and
supported _______
by specific examples.
_______ Reflections on what worked well and what neeed to be changed
are _______
clear and supported by specific examples.
_______ Reflections on what was learned and what remains to be learned
are _______
clear and supported by specific examples.
Overall Comments (information about student progress, quality of the
work, next steps for teacher and student, needed adjustments in the
teaching and learning processes, and problems to be addressed):
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 4
(Title of Package)
Content Standard:___________________________
Level:___________
Specific Statement(s) from the Standard:
What students should know:
What students should do:
Product(s):
Task Description:
Special Notes:
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE TASK 4
(Title of Package)
FEEDBACK CHECKLIST FOR TASK 4
The purpose of the checklist is to provide feedback to the student about
his/her work relative to the content standard. Have the standard
available for reference.
Y=Yes
N=Needs Improvement
Student
Teacher
______
______
______
______
______
______
______
______
Overall Comments (information about student progress, quality of the
work, next steps for teacher and student, needed adjustments in the
teaching and learning processes, and problems to be addressed):