Effective Listening Class

Design a short PowerPoint presentation to facilitate a newly redesigned lesson plan. Utilize checklist and previous class template to construct new lesson plan.

Lesson Plan
Administration Information
Course
Basic Leader Course (BLC)
Clearance Access
Security Level: Unclassified
Requirements: There are no clearance or access requirements for the
lesson.
Foreign Disclosure
Restrictions
FD1 – This training product has been reviewed by the training developers in
coordination with the USASMA S-2 Fort Bliss Texas foreign disclosure
officer. This training product can be used to instruct international military
learners from all approved countries without restrictions.
Safety
Brief emergency exit/evacuation procedures including wires/cords, floor
outlets, ramp/step, confined workspace, electronics, and beverages in the
classroom.
Risk Assessment
Level
Low
Environmental
Considerations
It is the responsibility of all Soldiers and DA Civilians to protect the
environment from damage.
Admin-1
This Page Intentionally Left Blank
Admin-2
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Lesson Author: Mr. R. L. Philpott Jr.
Department Author: MSG K. L. Kendrick
Date Updated: 26 March 2018
1. SCOPE:
At the end of this three-hour learning event, you will develop an awareness of the process and role of
listening in oral communication. In addition, you will develop skills related to analyzing and
improving informative, critical, and empathetic listening skills.
2. LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
TLO: This lesson supports the BLC TLO 400-BLC, Convey clear thoughts, tasks, and purpose to
leadership and subordinates through multiple communication mediums.
ELO:
Action: Use the components of the listening process for improved communication.
Condition: As a learner, attending the BLC, using a direct level leadership perspective in new
environments, given references, practical exercises and classroom discussions.
Standard: The learner will identify the difference between hearing and listening, discover the
receiving, attending, understanding, responding, and remembering elements of the listening process,
and define the three types of listening skills within a 40-minute practical exercise.
Learning Domain: Affective
Level of Learning: Receiving
Characteristics of the Future Operational Environment:
Increased velocity and momentum of human interaction and events
Linking Warfighting Challenges to Required Capabilities:
Improve Solider, Leader, and Team Performance
3. ISSUE MATERIAL:
a. Advance Issue: Advance Sheet
b. During class:
(1) Listening Behavior Assessment
(2) Handouts 1 & 2
4. ASSIGNED LEARNER REQUIREMENTS:
a. Read:
(1) Listening Effectively, April 1996, pp 30 thru 32 (3 pages, 7.5 minutes)
b. Classroom Discussion:
Selected learners should prepare for roleplay activity.
5. FACILITATOR ADDITIONAL READING MATERIAL: None
LP-1
6. TRAINING AIDS, REFERENCES, AND RESOURCES:
a. B102 Effective Listening:
(1) Appendix A, Slides
(2) Appendix B, Test(s) and Test Solution (s) – None
(3) Appendix C, Practical Exercise(s) and Solution(s)
(a) Effective Listening
(4) Appendix D, Learner Handouts:
(a) B102 Advance Sheet
(b) Handout 1
(c) Handout 2
(d) Listening Behavior Assessment
(5) Appendix E, Lesson Training Outline (TDC Generated, if needed) – None
(6) Appendix F, Facilitator Materials:
(a) Assessment Plan
(b) Double Talk Sheet
b. Videos: None
7. CONDUCT OF LESSON:
a. Lesson Timeline (3 hours):
First Hour:
05 minutes: Concrete Experience
10 minutes: Publish & Process
35 minutes: Generalize New Information
10 minutes: Break
Second Hour:
50 minutes: Generalize New Information
10 minutes: Break
Third Hour:
10 minutes: Develop
40 minutes: Apply
10 minutes: Break
b. Concrete Experience (5 minutes):
Slide 1, Concrete Experience: Listening Behavior Assessment
Facilitator Note: Conduct the exercise.
1. Hand out the Listening Behavior
Assessment, Appendix D page H-4.
2. Give learners about five minutes to
complete the assessment.
3. Tell learners to add up their points and put
them in the score box.
c. Publish and Process (10 minutes):
Review the assessment results.
LP-2
Facilitator Note: By a show of hands, ask the learners where they fall in the categories below.
Great: 100-90
Very Good: 89-80
Good: 79-70
Fair: 69-60
Poor: Below 60
Q: Are you surprised with the score you received?
A: Varies
Have learners explain and provide examples from areas they pick out from the assessment.
d. Generalize New Information (85 minutes):
Slide 2, Effective Listening
Facilitator Note: Introduce the subject.
Slide 3, Scope
Facilitator Note: Have learners read the scope.
Slide 4, Enabling Learning Objective
Facilitator Note: Have learners read the enabling
learning objective.
LP-3
Slide 5, The Communication Process
Facilitator Note: Have learners discuss the
communication process.
The basic communication process includes a sender, a receiver, and a message. The simple process of
communication is the ability to encode and decode information and messages.
Encoding involves transferring the message you want to communicate into a form that can be correctly
decoded at the other end. Decoding is the skill used to understand the message.
Listening is key in this simplified, but often times, complicated process.
Q: How do you feel when your boss or significant other is not listening to you?
A: This is a subjective question, but you may hear, an individual being frustrated, annoyed, or
devalued.
As we learned in our discussion on critical thinking skills, listening is key to understanding a person’s
message by creating shared understanding.
To understand better the listening process, let us begin by distinguishing between hearing and listening.
Slide 6; Are You Hearing or Listening to Me?
Facilitator Note: Have learners compare hearing
and listening.
Hearing occurs when your ears pick up sound waves transmitted by a speaker or some other source.
Hearing requires a source of sound and an ear capable of perceiving it. It does not require the conscious
decoding of information. Each day, you hear many sounds—background music in an elevator, the hum of
the computer, cars passing by outside—sounds you may not even be aware of unless someone draws your
attention to them.
Listening, on the other hand, involves making sense out of what is transmitted. Listening involves not
only hearing; it involves attending to and considering what is heard. As you listen, you receive sounds
and you consciously and actively decode them.
Effective listening is an active process and active listening involves exerting energy and responding
appropriately in order to hear, comprehend, evaluate and remember the message.
LP-4
Facilitator Note: Before moving on, let us play the telephone game. I am going to give a phrase to one
person, and they will whisper it to their neighbor and so on and so forth. The last person in the chain will
tell the class what the message is. Let us see how well everyone listens.
RULES: Each learner can only whisper the phrase once. You can use any of the phrases below or create
your own.
1. A pink pig and a pesky donkey flew a kite at night
2. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog and says hello to the cat
Facilitator Note: When the learners are finished, write the phrase in a location the whole class can see.
This way the learners can compare what the original phrase was versus what was received and repeated.
Q: How difficult was it to listen and be able to say exactly what was said to you?
A: Answers will vary. Let the learners have fun with this game.
Let us look at the actual process of listening. Knowing the process in itself can help you become a more
effective listener.
Slide 7, Process of Listening
Facilitator Note: Have learners discuss the
process of listening.
Listening is the most common form of communication. According to Dr. John Kline, the author of
Listening Effectively, studies have shown that we spend 70 percent of our waking hours using some
form of communication.
Q: In military units, what can happen when we fail to listen to orders?
A: Various
Listening is especially important in any military unit. Success is a matter of life and death and we
routinely maintain and operate equipment valued in the millions. Though we often focus on the speaker’s
role in communication, good listening skills can often make the difference between success and failure.
Q: Looking at this slide, what is meant by “receiving”? How does it relate to the difference
between hearing and listening?
A: Receiving is physically picking up the message—it is the hearing. While the starting point in the
listening process, it is not the same as listening for understanding.
Q: What then is the second step in the listening process…attending?
A: Attending is simply paying attention to what you are hearing, what you have received.
Q: How easy is it to pay attention?
LP-5
A: Paying attention, or attending, is not easy because there are so many things vying for our
attention. All these things distract us from what we are trying to pay attention to.
**DOUBLE TALK ACTIVITY:
Group the learners in pairs. The taller of the two will be the listener; the other person will be the inner
voice (IV). (If there are an odd number of learners, have one group of three with two learners assuming
the role of the IV, one for each listener’s ears.)
Ask the IV to sit close to their partner and whisper a non-stop string of disconnected thoughts in their
partner’s ear.
Recommend the IV use topics which are highly interesting such as “I wonder what the cost of living
allowance increase will be this year?” or bothersome as in “Why do I have to report to the Sergeant
Major’s office after class?” or even intriguing (What is going to happen to SPC Murphy if he is late for
PT again?) or guilt-provoking (I should have said something when the guys were saying offensive things
about PFC Stiles). Also, suggest the IV should use first-person singular and run-on sentences in an
unending stream until the reading is complete.
Once the listeners and IVs are ready, begin reading from the “A Basic Philosophy of Communication”
(IM-2) in a monotone fashion while simultaneously asking the IVs to begin whispering. Continue
reading for about two minutes or until you get to the end of the paper. You can also take a cue from the
class—if the IVs start to run out of things to whisper it may be time to stop your presentation.
Thank the IVs for their imaginative contributions and ask them to stop whispering.
Ask a series of short-answer questions based on the content of your reading. Ask all the participants
(both listeners and IVs) if they know the answer.
Point out everyone’s listening was less than perfect. Both listeners and whisperers missed some important
points in your presentation.
Explain that the IV simulates pre-occupied self-talk.
Conduct a quick debrief to elicit the point that talking to yourself and listening to yourself reduce learning
effectiveness.
The third step in the listening process is understanding.
Q: If we have received and attended to a message, what might still prevent us from understanding
it?
A: Various
VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Barrier #1: The same words mean different things to different people. (Ask a learner for an example.)
Some examples are Coke (What flavor), Soda, Pop. Some people might say Warsh when the word is
wash such as Warshington D.C. when it is written as Washington D.C.
Barrier #2: Different words sometimes mean the same thing. (Ask a learner for an example.)
As stated above up north you might hear Pop down south you might hear soda or coke referring to the
type of flavor you want as in Coke, Pepsi, and Sprite etc.…
NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION
Barrier #1: Misinterpretation of the action. (Eye contact, gestures, etc.)
Barrier #2: Misinterpretation of non-action symbols. (Clothing, arriving late, etc.)
Barrier #3: Misinterpretation of the voice. (Inflection, volume, rate of speech, etc.)
LP-6
Slide 8, A Bird in The Hand
Facilitator Note: Have a learner read this slide
aloud.
Q: How many of you read the slide incorrectly? Why?
A: Just like our eyes may have tricked us into misreading this slide, so too sometimes we hear what
we expect to hear and not what was actually said. Obviously, understanding must take place in
order for communication to be effective.
Technically, the process of listening could end with understanding.
Q: Why then did Kline add the steps of responding and remembering to his list of steps?
A: A response on behalf of the receiver will provide feedback to the sender that the message was
understood correctly. If not, the sender can attempt to encode the message differently to get the
point across. Responding will verify that understanding actually took place.
Remembering becomes the final step since, if we cannot remember what was said, then what is the
point of listening? Remember the telephone game we played earlier? We immediately repeated
what was heard and yet we could not remember the phrase exactly.
Q: What does this mean about our memory?
A: It tells us we have different types of memory we use for different things. We have short-term
and long-term memory.
Q: What is the difference between short-term and long-term memory (besides the length)?
A: With short-term memory, information is used immediately—usually within a few seconds.
Short-term memory has a rapid forgetting rate and is very susceptible to interruption. Its capacity
is very limited and works better with simple concepts than complex ones, which is why the phrases
of the telephone game can be jumbled.
Long-term memory allows us to recall information hours, days, even years later. Many times longterm memory requires a stimulus, which “jogs” our memory. Developing good listening habits will
improve this memory over time.
As you proceed through the lessons of this course, content we have learned appears again in different
context, giving you more opportunities to apply what you are learning. This increases the chance that all
our discussions, individual, and group work will help move the content into long-term memory. When
you take your first leadership role, you will have a great deal of information built on the “shelves” of your
long-term memory.
LP-7
Slide 9, Types of Listening
Facilitator Note: Have learners discuss the types
of listening.
Q: Why does it matter that there are different listening types? How can I use this information?
A: These listening categories can be used in two different ways. First, they help us understand why
we should be listening. Second, they can be used to describe listening approaches.
Q: For example, what type of listening would you be using in a meeting called by your platoon
sergeant and why?
A: You would be using informative listening because you are listening to gather information your
platoon sergeant needs to put out.
Q: What type of listening approach would you use in this meeting?
A: Probably you would be taking notes.
Q: Now, what type of listening would you be using when your spouse is telling you what a bad day
they had and why?
A: You would be using empathetic listening to understand and help your spouse.
Q: What would happen if you used the same listening approach with your spouse you used in your
platoon sergeant’s meeting?
A: If you started taking notes while your spouse was telling you about their day, you will probably
wind up in the doghouse!
So understanding the type of listening you need to use will also help you understand the approach you
may take while listening.
Slide 10, Connecting Listening to other forms of Communication
Facilitator Note: Have learners discuss the slide.
Q: How do your listening skills affect other forms of communication?
A: Much like your short-term and long-term memory, listening can greatly affect the way you
respond to someone in both writing and speaking. As we learned in our Inner Voice exercise, your
ability to block out distractions while reading can greatly affect comprehension.
LP-8
You may know or even experience for yourself, individuals who have processing disorders or a learning
disability due to poor auditory or visual processing skills. These people definitely have weaker listening
skills and need to put forth more effort in order to receive the right messages.
Active listening is a key technique to help with the understanding, responding, and remembering a
message and promotes shared understanding. We will discuss active listening in more detail in a later
lesson.
Slide 11, Summary
Facilitator Note: Discuss the bullets on the slide
to summarize the lesson.
Slide 12, Questions?
Facilitator Note: Make sure you address all
questions the learner may have about this lesson.
e. Develop (10 minutes):
Q: From the listening behavior assessment, which area of listening do you think you need to
practice more and why?
A: Various
Q: What are some ways you can improve your listening skills?
A: Various
Before moving to apply, make sure learners have Handouts 1 & 2. Remind them they may use them to
continue developing their listening skills.
f. Apply (40 minutes):
Conduct practical exercise as listed in Appendix C.
8. Assessment: See Appendix F.
LP-9
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix A
Slides
Slide Number
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Description/ Title
Concrete Experience – Listening Behavior Assessment
Effective Listening
Scope
Enabling Learning Objective
The Communication Process
Are you Hearing or Listening to me?
Process of Listening
A Bird in the Hand
Types of Listening
Connecting Listening to other forms of Communication
Summary
Questions?
A-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix B
Test(s) and Test Solution(s)
None
B-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix C
Practical Exercises(s) and Solutions(s)
Time: 40 minutes
PRACTICAL EXERCISE(S)/SOLUTION(S) FOR LESSON 400-B102 Version 1.0 ©
Title
Lesson
Number/Title
Security
Classification
Introduction
Motivator
Terminal
Learning
Objective
Safety
Requirements
Risk Assessment
Level
Environmental
Considerations
Evaluation
Instructional Leadin
Telephone Game
B102/Effective Listening
U – Unclassified
As a leader you must survive, fight, and win on the battlefield. You will be
responsible for planning and executing combat missions. The way you
receive and issue combat orders can determine whether you and your Soldiers
survive or die. This is directly affected by how well you listen.
This practical exercise will help you evaluate your ability to listen and pass
information to others, determined by how well you listened initially.
Action:
Conditions:
Recognize the breakdown in the listening process.
As a learner, attending the BLC, using a direct level
leadership perspective in new environments, given
references, practical exercises and classroom
discussions.
Standards:
The learner will identify what steps of the listening
process are responsible for a breakdown in messages.
Brief emergency exit/evacuation procedures including wires/cords, floor
outlets, ramp/step, confined workspace, electronics, and beverages in the
classroom.
Low
IAW DOD and organization policies.
NOTE: You will conduct a self-assessment through the discussion and
questioning about this PE as a group. Did the group results improve
compared to playing the telephone game earlier in the lesson?
This PE requires you to apply the information you learned in this lesson to
correctly determine your listening ability.
C-1
Resource
Requirements
Facilitator Materials:
 Easel with paper and/or white board
 Computer and projector
 PE
 Learner Handouts
Learner Materials:
 Pencils and/or pens
 Personal notes
 Advance sheet
Special
Instructions
Procedures
None
Procedures
1. Getting Started. Learners will have to whisper a message once to the
person sitting next to them.
2. Begin the Game. The first person seated to the left or right is given the
phrase and is to whisper into the ear of the person sitting to their right
or left (whichever side of the room you start with.
3. Each learner whispers the phrase to his or her neighbor until it reaches
the last learner.
4. The Conclusion. The last learner says the phrase aloud so everyone
can hear how much it has changed from the first whisper at the
beginning of the circle or line.
5. Remind the learners to “Have Fun with This”.
6. Allow learners to determine where the break in understanding
occurred, should they desire.
7. Repeat, as time allows, with any other catchy phrases the learner may
remember from their experiences.
8. You can split each side of the room into groups, give the same phrase,
and see which group is closest to the original message.
Feedback
Requirements
Provide appropriate feedback on learner performance to enhance the transfer
of learning. Provide remedial training as needed.
C-2
SOLUTION FOR
PRACTICAL EXERCISE 400-B102 PE1
Double Talk
Here are some messages to get you started:
1. Wednesday is the hump day, but is the camel happy about it.
2. A bunch of yellow bananas launched on a blue boat.
3. If you listen to me, you should not have a problem with what you thought you heard.
4. Learning listeners hear and learn by listening to what they are hearing.
*Any others as time allots.
C-3
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix D
Learner Handouts
This appendix contains the items listed in this table—
Title
B102-Advance Sheet
Handout 1
Handout 2
Listening Behavior Assessment
Page(s)
AS-1
H-1 and H-2
H-3
H-4
D-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leader Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Advance Sheet
1. SCOPE:
At the end of this three-hour learning event, you will develop an awareness of the process and role of
listening in oral communication. In addition, you will develop skills related to analyzing and
improving informative, critical, and empathetic listening skills.
2. LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
TLO: This lesson supports the BLC TLO 400-BLC, Convey clear thoughts, tasks, and purpose to
leadership and subordinates through multiple communication mediums.
ELO:
Action: Use the components of the listening process for improved communication.
Condition: As a learner, attending the BLC, using a direct level leadership perspective in new
environments, given references, practical exercises and classroom discussions.
Standard: The learner will identify the difference between hearing and listening, discover the
receiving, attending, understanding, responding, and remembering elements of the listening process,
and define the three types of listening skills within a 40-minute practical exercise.
Learning Domain: Affective
Level of Learning: Receiving
Characteristics of the Future Operational Environment:
Increased velocity and momentum of human interaction and events
Linking Warfighting Challenges to Required Capabilities:
Improve Soldier, Leader, and Team Performance
3. ASSIGNED LEARNER REQUIREMENTS:
a. Read:
(1) Listening Effectively, April 1996, pp 30 thru 32 (3 pages, 7.5 minutes)
b. Classroom Discussion:
Selected learners should prepare for roleplay activity.
4. ASSESSMENT:
Refer to B100 advance sheet for information on all assessments.
AS-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leadership Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Handout 1
H-1
H-2
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leadership Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Handout 2
H-3
H-4
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leadership Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix E
Lesson Training Outline
None
E-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leadership Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Appendix F
Facilitator Materials
This appendix contains the items listed in this table—
Title
Assessment Plan
A Basic Philosophy of Communication
Page(s)
IM-1
IM-2
F-1
US ARMY SERGEANTS MAJOR ACADEMY
Basic Leadership Course
Lesson Plan for B102
Effective Listening
Assessment Plan
Refer to the BLC B100 advance sheet for information on all assessments.
IM-1
IM-2
Basic Leader Course (BLC)
Listening Behavior Assessment
Basic Leader Course (BLC)
B102
Effective Listening
Scope
At the end of this three-hour learning event, you will
develop an awareness of the process and role of
listening in oral communication. In addition, you will
develop skills related to analyzing and improving
informative, critical, and empathetic listening skills.
Enabling Learning Objective
Action: Use the components of the listening process to improve
communication.
Condition: As a learner, attending the BLC, using a direct level
leadership perspective in new environments, given references, practical
exercises and classroom discussions.
Standard: The learner will identify the difference between hearing and
listening, discover the receiving, attending, understanding, responding,
and remembering elements of the listening process, and define the three
types of listening skills within a 40-minute practical exercise.
Encoding
Channel
Feedback
Receiver
Sending Part
(speaking/writing)
Message
Sender
The Communication Process
Receiving Part
(listening/reading)
Decoding
Are You Hearing or Listening to Me?
Hearing
Listening
Sound waves
are received
Requires
making sense
of sounds
received
Requires a
source of
sound and an
ear to receive
Requires
decoding of
information
Requires no
decoding of
information
Involves other
senses
Process of Listening
Receiving
Attending
Understanding
Responding
Remembering
A
BIRD
IN THE
THE HAND
Types of Listening
Informative – to
collect information
from others
Critical – listen to
judge—to evaluate a
situation and make
decisions
• receiving orders over
the radio
• investigating causes
of a fatal mishap
• listening to a mission
briefing
• deciding who to
nominate for an
award
• knowing your rater’s
expectations during
counseling
• understanding the
diagnosis of your
doctor
• determining which
disciplinary action to
administer
• establishing the facts
in an altercation
Empathetic – listen
to understand and
help others
• a subordinate wants
advice on whether to
reenlist
• your spouse worries
about your next
deployment
• a coworker is unsure
how to deal with
subtle discrimination
• you want to resolve a
conflict between two
peers
Connecting Listening to other
forms of Communication
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Listening
Summary
• Identify the differences between hearing and listening
• Explore the process of listening
– Receiving, attending, understanding, responding, and remembering
elements
• Define the three types of listening skills
– Informative, critical, and empathetic
• Connecting listening to other forms of communication
– Reading, writing and speaking
ANY QUESTIONS?
CHAPTER 1:
A Basic Philosophy of Communication
Communication, Teamwork and Leadership
Communication skills are vitally important in any environment where teamwork is important.
Simply put, communication enables us to come together to accomplish things better as a group
than we can accomplish as individuals. Communication skills are particularly important for
leaders. The ability to communicate a vision and direction, to motivate and inspire others and to
persuade our superiors are all essential in bringing people together to achieve a common goal.
The military environment is unique and much of its uniqueness requires extraordinary
communication skills. We operate highly technical equipment in a lethal environment and we
are held to very high standards by the country we serve. Miscommunication can cause expensive
mistakes, embarrass our organization and in some cases cause accidents or even death. This
handbook is designed to give you tools and ideas that will help you learn to communicate better
… and to teach others as well.
The call to arms to improve our communication skills is clear. Both the Air Force and the large
culture we live in are drowning in a sea of information. Around-the-clock media coverage,
universal electronic mail (e-mail) and the overwhelming amount of data on the Internet make it
difficult for us to sift out the valuable information we need to accomplish our mission. Now,
more than ever, it’s important to communicate with clarity and focus.
The only way to become a better writer and speaker is to work at it—there are no short cuts. The
good news is that service in the Air Force will provide plenty of opportunities for you to
improve. Your communication skills will become stronger with practice, regardless of your
initial ability, and this book is designed to help you on your journey.
Principles of Effective Communication
Once you accept that communication is important, it’s important to understand what makes
communication succeed and what makes it fail. Most mistakes are caused by forgetting one of
five principles of good communication. This section addresses these core principles for strong
writing and speaking, which we’ve organized to spell out the acronym FOCUS.
FOCUS Principles

Focused: Address the issue, the whole issue, and nothing but the issue.

Organized: Systematically present your information and ideas.

Clear: Communicate with clarity and make each word count.

Understanding: Understand your audience and its expectations.

Supported: Use logic and support to make your point.
FOCUSED: Address the Issue, the Whole Issue and Nothing but the Issue
The first hallmark of good communication is that it is focused. In a staff or academic
environment, writing and speaking often attempts to answer a question provided by either a boss
or an instructor. In such situations, answer the question, the whole question and nothing but
the question. Failure to focus comes in three forms:
-1-
The Tongue and Quill
AFH 337, 27 MAY 2015
1. Answering the wrong question. This happens when we don’t understand the
assignment or what the audience really wants. Have you ever written what you thought
was an excellent paper, only to be told you answered the wrong question or you missed
the point? Have you ever asked someone a question and received a long answer that had
nothing to do with what you asked?
2. Answering only part of the question. If a problem or question has multiple parts,
sometimes we work out the easiest or most interesting part of the solution and forget the
unpleasant remainder.
3. Adding irrelevant information. Here the communicator answers the question, but
mixes in information that is interesting but unnecessary. Though the answer is complete,
it’s hard to understand—it’s like finding that needle in the haystack.
fo·cus n
1. a state or condition permitting clear perception or understanding: direction;
2. a center of activity, attraction, or attention; a point of concentration;
directed attention: emphasis.
Failure to focus can really hurt staff communication. Time and time again, our efforts crash and
burn because we don’t carefully read the words or really listen to the speaker for the real
message … for the specific question! Most executive officers will tell you that failing to answer
the question is one of the primary reasons staff packages are returned. Chapter 3 provides
suggestions on how to be clear in your purpose and avoid these problems.
ORGANIZED: Systematically Present Your Information and Ideas
Good organization means your material is presented in a logical, systematic manner. This helps
your audience understand you without reading your words over and over, trying to sort out what
you’re really trying to say.
When writing or speaking is not well organized, audiences become easily confused or impatient
and may stop reading or listening. Even if you’re providing useful, relevant information, your
audience may underestimate its value and your own credibility.
Chapter 6 is full of suggestions on how to organize well. Problems with organization are
relatively easy to fix and the payoffs are enormous. In our limited time and resource
environments, a little effort on your part will save your audience a lot of time and pain.
CLEAR: Communicate With Clarity and Make Each Word Count
This principle covers two interrelated ideas. First, to communicate clearly, we need to
understand the rules of language—how to spell and pronounce words and how to assemble and
punctuate sentences. Second, we should get to the point, not hide our ideas in a jungle of words.
People are quick to judge your credibility through your mastery of language to convey ideas.
Acceptable English is part of the job, so commit to improving any problems you may have.
Developing strong language skills is a lot like developing strong muscles—steady commitment
produces steady improvement. Always remember that progress, not perfection, is the goal.
-2-
CHAPTER 1:
A Basic Philosophy of Communication
Grammar scares most of us, but the good news is that many common mistakes can be corrected
by understanding a few rules. Start by scanning our section on editing sentences, phrases and
words. If you want to dig deeper, then check out some of the books and Internet sites that
address grammar and writing—contact your local librarian or our References section for some
suggestions.
Using language correctly is only half of the battle, though—many Air Force writers and speakers
cripple themselves with bureaucratic jargon, big words and lots of passive voice. These bad
habits make it hard to understand the message.
UNDERSTANDING: Understand Your Audience and Its Expectations
If you want to share an idea with others, it helps to understand their current knowledge, views
and level of interest in the topic. If you’ve been asked to write a report, it helps to understand the
expected format and length of the response, the due date, the level of formality and any staffing
requirements. It’s easy to see how mistakes in understanding your audience can lead to
communication problems, and I’m sure you’ve watched others make this mistake. Check out
Chapter 3 for some helpful hints on audience analysis.
SUPPORTED: Use Logic and Support to Make Your Point
Most writers and speakers try to inform or persuade their audience. Part of the communicator’s
challenge is to assemble and organize information to help build his or her case. Support and
logic are the tools used to build credibility and trust with our audience.
sup·port n information that substantiates a position;
v to furnish evidence for a position.
Nothing cripples a clearly written, properly punctuated paper quicker than a fractured fact or a
distorted argument. Avoiding this pitfall is most difficult, even for good writers and speakers.
Logic is tough to teach and learn because it challenges the highest levels of human intellect—the
ability to think in the abstract. We slip into bad habits at an early age and it takes effort to break
them. Chapter 4 provides practical advice on how to use support and logic to enhance your
effectiveness as a speaker and how to avoid common mistakes.
SUMMARY: In this chapter, we defined communication as the process of sharing ideas,
information and messages with others and described how effective communication enables
military personnel to work together. To help writers and speakers stay on target, we introduced
five FOCUS principles of effective communication. In the next chapter, we’ll describe a
systematic approach to help you attain these principles and meet your communication goals.
-3-
Job Aid: Overcoming Barriers to Effective Listening
Overcoming Barriers to Effective Listening
Purpose: Use this job aid to review reminders and guidelines for listening effectively.
It can be difficult to listen properly to someone else. Some of the reasons we struggle to listen properly to other
people are distractions, emotions, ulterior motives, the speed gap, and our own assumptions.
Distractions
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When you need to talk to someone, choose a time and place that will allow you to focus on the
conversation.
Remove anything in front of you that might become a distraction when you talk to someone.
If you need to finish something, ask the speaker to wait a few moments before he or she begins. Then
give the speaker your full attention.
When talking on the phone, remind yourself that without visual cues such as body language, it can be
harder to follow everything the other person is saying.
Emotions
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If a particular word or topic evokes a negative emotional response in you, consider that the speaker
may not have meant to offend or upset you.
Wait for the speaker to finish speaking and then take some time to formulate a response – don’t
interrupt or lash out.
Make a mental note of the topics or words that evoke a strong emotional reaction in you.
Be aware of your level of respect for the speaker. Try to focus on what people are saying rather than
on who they are.
Allow that other people may become emotional when they talk about something they feel strongly
about. Their emotions may actually provide you with important information about the message.
Ulterior motives
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Make a mental note when you feel the urge to impress, influence, or compete with someone, and aim
to prevent this from affecting your ability to listen well.
Avoid finishing other people’s sentences for them out of a desire to help.
Avoid trying to steer a conversation to suit your own agenda.
Avoid interrupting a speaker to offer advice or your own opinions. Instead allow the speaker to finish.
Try not to mistake a straightforward conversation for a debate or argument.
Assumptions
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Wait until the other person has finished speaking before you formulate a response.
Don’t assume you know where the speaker is going with the message – you could be surprised.
Remember that interrupting gives people the impression that you don’t value what they have to say.
Remember that by cutting someone off, you could miss out on valuable information that you weren’t
expecting to hear.
Speed gap
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Be mindful of the speed gap, remembering that it can make it difficult to focus on what a speaker is
saying.
When listening to a slow speaker, use the time to mentally go over what the person is saying to make
sure you understand the message.
Use the speed gap to make note of the speaker’s tone of voice, body language, eye contact, and
choice of words for more information about what they are trying to say.
When you feel your mind start to wander, stop and refocus on the conversation.
Course: Interpersonal Communication: Listening Essentials Topic: The Value and Challenge of Effective Listening
Copyright 2010 SkillSoft. All rights reserved. SkillSoft and the SkillSoft logo are trademarks or registered
trademarks of SkillSoft in the United States and certain other countries. All other logos or trademarks are the
property of their respective owners.
Job Aid: A Guide to Active Listening
A Guide to Active Listening
Purpose: Use this job aid to review the skills you need to be an active listener.
You need to master four main techniques to be an active listener.
Give 100% of your attention
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Make a conscious decision to listen.
Stop what you are doing.
Don’t interrupt.
Read the speaker’s body language, tone, and facial expression.
Demonstrate attention and reception
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Respond verbally to show that you are paying attention and taking in what the speaker is saying.
Use nonverbal responses to show interest and engagement in what the speaker says.
Use the speed gap constructively
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Exercise emotional control by recognizing your emotional reactions, delaying responses, practicing
empathy, and evaluating ideas rationally.
Sense the nonverbal message in the speaker’s body language.
Evaluate ideas rationally through indexing, sequencing, and comparing.
Provide feedback
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Ask clarifying questions.
Reflect feelings without judgment.
Prove your understanding.
Course: Interpersonal Communication: Listening Essentials Topic: Techniques for Active Listening
Copyright 2010 SkillSoft. All rights reserved.
SkillSoft and the SkillSoft logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of SkillSoft in the United States and
certain other countries.
All other logos or trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Lesson Design/Redesign Checklist
Section 1: Administrative data.
1.b. Lesson Title:
1.a. Instructor’s Rank / Name (Last, First, MI):
1.d. Lesson Rater / Rank / Grade / Series Position:
1.c. Lesson Design/Redesign Rater Rank / Name (Last, First, MI):
Section 2: Checklist.
Instructions: Use the following checklist for the lesson redesign (Senior Army Instructor Badge (SAIB) requirement). There are a total of five domains and 39
rating areas. All of the rating areas on the checklist will not apply to every lesson; however, no more than five rating areas can be not applicable (N/A). A score will be
computed by dividing the number of items rated as “GO” by the total number of rating areas evaluated. Instructors seeking the SAIB should score at least 80 percent out of 100
percent.
Guidelines
Meets Guideline
GO
NO GO
Remarks
N/A
Domain # 1: Instructional media selection.
Rating Area 2.a.1 If any part of the training
requires the student to taste, smell, or touch
something while performing the learning
objectives, does the training delivery platform
permit the student to taste, smell or touch the
necessary objects?
Rating Area 2.a.2 Does the delivery platform
simulate all the necessary elements of the
environment in the job setting where the
students will apply their knowledge and skills?
Rating Area 2.a.3 Does the delivery platform
have the capacity to provide immediate
corrective feedback to students when they are
practicing?
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 1
Domain # 2: Evaluating Lesson Introductions.
Guidelines
GO
NO GO
N/A
Remarks
Rating Area 2.b.1 Are the learning objectives
of the lessons stated in words that all students
will understand and be able to do following the
training? (ACTION or other location in the
lesson introduction)
Rating Area 2.b.2. The transfer setting in
which they will be able to do it? (CONDITION
or other location in the lesson introduction).
Rating Area 2.b.3. The speed and accuracy
with which they will be required to perform it
after the training? (STANDARD or other
location in the lesson introduction).
Rating Area 2.b.4. Are the reasons for the
lessons stated in words that all students will
understand: The personal benefits of the lessons
to the students and risks the students take if
they do not learn what is in the training?
Rating Area 2.b.5. Do the lesson overviews
relate the content to the students’ prior
knowledge and experiences?
Rating Area 2.b.6. Do the lesson overviews
points out new or unusual elements of what
students are learning?
Rating Area 2.b.7. Does each lesson provide
an overview of the position of the lesson in the
overall training?
Rating Area 2.b.8. Does each lesson describe
the instructional strategies that will be used in
the lesson?
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 2
Domain # 3. Evaluating Conceptual, Process, and Procedural Knowledge Design.
Guidelines
GO
NO GO
N/A
Remarks
Rating Area 2.c.1. Does the instruction provide
a definition of the concept?
Rating Area 2.c.2. Does the instruction provide
examples and non- examples from the job or
mission environment?
Rating Area 2.c.3. Does the instruction provide
practical exercises requiring students to identify
examples and non-examples of each concept?
Rating Area 2.c.4. If the lesson teaches a
process (how something works), does the
instruction provide a visual model with a
narrated description stating the sequence of
events in the process in job or mission relevant
terms?
Rating Area 2.c.5. If the lesson teaches a
process, does the instruction explain how
actions at each phase lead to the next phase and
to the final outcome of the process?
Rating Area 2.c.6. If the lesson teaches a
process, does the instruction provide practical
exercises requiring the students to describe a
list of phases in the process?
Rating Area 2.c.7. If the lesson teaches a
process, does the instruction provide practical
exercises requiring the students to describe the
actions that occur at each phase?
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 3
Domain # 3. Evaluating Conceptual, Process, and Procedural Knowledge Design.
Guidelines
GO
NO GO
N/A
Remarks
Rating Area 2.c.8. If the lesson teaches a
process, does the instruction provide practical
exercises describing how the consequences
of events at each phase contributes to the
next phase and the final outcome?
Rating Area 2.c.9. If the lesson teaches a
principle (a cause and effect relationship with
predictable outcomes), does the instruction
provide a definition of the principle and the
cause and effect relationship?
Rating Area 2.c.10. If the lesson teaches a
principle does the instruction provide examples
that show the effect of the principle from the
job or mission environment?
Rating Area 2.c.11. If the lesson teaches a
principle does the instruction provide practical
exercises requiring students to troubleshoot a
problem or predict an outcome using the
principle?
Rating Area 2.c.12. Does the lesson provide
clear step-by-step instruction (or how to
demonstrations), of decisions and actions
needed by students to accomplish the task?
Rating Area 2.c.13. Does the lesson provide a
demonstration(s) based on job or mission
relevant scenarios?
Rating Area 2.c.14. Does the lesson
alternatives that must be considered and the
criteria that should be used to choose the best
alternative in routine situations?
Rating Area 2.c.15. Does the lesson provide a
practical exercise requiring students to perform
the procedure?
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 4
Domain # 4. Practice, Feedback, and Assessment Design.
Guidelines
GO
NO GO
N/A
Remarks
Rating Area 2.d.1. Do all lessons include
practice?
Rating Area 2.d.2. Do all the lessons include a
practical exercise as part of a task practice
followed by the whole- task practice?
Rating Area 2.d.3. Does the whole- task
practice mirror the mission environment?
Rating Area 2.d.4. Does practice begin with
simple problems and progress to more complex
problems?
Rating Area 2.d.5. Does practice require
students to solve increasingly novel problems?
Rating Area 2.d.6. Is there consistency
between the practical exercises and the learning
objectives?
Rating Area 2.d.7. Are there at least two
practical exercises to master each skill (parttask and whole-task)?
Rating Area 2.d.8. Do some practice exercises
allow for peer critique?
Rating Area 2.d.9. Do the lessons provide a
method of assessing (testing) student learning
by asking them to apply what was learned?
Rating Area 2.d.10. Are the assessments
aligned with the learning objectives and
practical exercises?
Rating Area 2.d.11. Do the assessments reflect
the performance of the learning objectives in
the mission environment as closely as media
will permit?
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 5
Domain # 5. Evaluating Lesson Summaries.
Guidelines
GO
NO GO
N/A
Remarks
Rating Area 2.e.1. Do all lessons promote
integrating what was learned into students’
everyday life by providing opportunities for
students to reflect on or discuss what they
learned?
Rating Area 2.e.2. Do all lessons create or
discuss personal ways to use what they learned?
Section 3: Total score and rater recommendations.
3.a. Total # Areas Evaluated:
3.b. Total Score:
3.c. Lesson Design/Redesign Rater Recommendations/Remarks:
Section 4: Signature and date.
4.a. Lesson Design/Redesign Rater Signature
TRADOC Form 600-21-5, October 2017
4.b. Date (YYYY/MM/DD)
For use of this form see TRADOC Regulation 600-21; the proponent agency is ARMYU
Page 6