The final, and maybe most important competency, that we hope you'll master is communication skills. You may be the most knowledgeable person in your department or the smartest person at your company, but if you don’t know how to communicate what you know, what’s the point? All of us can think of a scenario when miscommunication has been an issue at work, home, or otherwise. In this section, we will provide you with resources and practice opportunities that will help you communicate effectively through writing.
In today’s world, being able to communicate effectively through writing is just as important as being able to engage in conversation. The nature of this program is a great example of why writing is so important – your primary way of communicating with your peers, your instructors, the librarian, etc., is through the written word. Nearly all of your assignments revolve around your ability to write well. Additionally, strong communication skills are one of the primary competencies we want our graduates to perfect before graduation. You are expected to graduate with the ability to write effectively and read, interpret and convey relevant policies to a diverse audience.
For the ESP degree, you are required to take 2 specific English courses and one writing intensive course:
It is suggested that you take the English courses as soon as possible because what you learn in those courses can be used throughout all of your other coursework.
What and how well you write are a direct representation of you. Keeping that in mind, writing, as your primary tool for communication, can serve as a double-edged sword. You have the benefit of really being able to think through what you’re trying to convey, so that each word is deliberate and purposeful, unlike when speaking off the cuff. However, poorly written messages, assignments, etc., have the ability to erode your reputation very quickly.
In today's energy industry, especially as it relates to policy and communications, you have to be able to explain the issues, understand the context or situation and take a position based on this information. In thinking about this, this old commercial comes to mind, perhaps you will recognize it. It very clearly demonstrates the point that even one word, depending on the context, can influence the meaning and implications associated with it.
Although this one singular word, "Dude" is uttered over and over again, the way in which it is delivered, and the situational surroundings provide enough context for the viewer to decipher the meaning. We can put this same type of example to the test in our energy and sustainability field with one word as well ......green.
What does it mean to be green? Has green been defined? How do you tell if something is not green? How do you explain this difference to others?
Some people may seem like they are naturally good communicators; they can frame a message to suit any audience, and the message is always received loud and clear. Chances are, that although they are good communicators now, that wasn't always the case. We all need to continually practice the art of good communication.
Gain competence in oral, written, and presentation skills for conveying information using various media.
Many of your foundation or prerequisite courses focus directly on written and/or spoken communication. Additionally, many of your other ESP courses will provide you with opportunities to demonstrate and hone these skills. The importance of being able to articulate your thoughts and ideas effectively and concisely through words is not to be underestimated. Being able to explain concepts and your ideas related to those concepts both orally and/or visually is a constant requirement for success in any job. Our advice:
Being able to articulate your ideas in words, however, is only part of the communication challenge. A good communicator understands and does more than this.
Being a good communicator doesn't only require saying the right thing at the right time. It also requires truly listening and understanding your audience and then responding appropriately. Good communicators place listening towards the top of their 'radar' as they reach out and try to understand their audiences and themselves.
If you'd like to become a better listener, take some time to view this tutorial about Effective Listening [9].
The overview provided on LinkedIn Learning for this tutorial:
Listening is a critical competency, whether you are interviewing for your first job or leading a Fortune 500 company. Surprisingly, relatively few of us have ever had any formal training in how to listen effectively. In this course, communications experts Tatiana Kolovou and Brenda Bailey-Hughes show how to assess your current listening skills, understand the challenges to effective listening (such as distractions!), and develop behaviors that will allow you to become a better listener—and a better colleague, mentor, and friend.
Topics include:
Being considered a professional involves:
Think about the many ways in which you can or will communicate with clients, coworkers, and your professors. Find ways to incorporate the above-listed attributes into the messages you draft, and look for evidence that confirms the importance of these attributes.
Consider reviewing Joe Schall's Style for Students Online [13]. Two chapters seem particularly relevant: "Chapter 7. Presenting Yourself in Person and Online" and "Chapter 9. Professional Letters."
When you are presented with a scenario in which you are asked a question that you do not know the answer to, it is best to say "I don't know, but I'll check on that and get back to you" (or something similar). A client (or anyone you are talking to) will appreciate your honesty much more than you presenting them with incorrect, incomplete, or made-up information.
"...saying “I don’t know” is not a sign of weakness, or unpreparedness, or a lack of leadership. In fact, knowing when you don’t know something -- and being honest about it -- is a mark of a true leader. Unfortunately, in our instant, on-demand, bleat-before-you-think culture, it’s easy to substitute instinct, opinion, and even unfettered bias for certainty. And unfortunately, it infects our personal and political lives as much as it does business." (McKee, 2016)
Read more about The lost art of saying "I don't know" [14].
Why is this important?
There are two things that should be learned when studying another language. One is the language itself; the vocabulary, grammar, sentence structure and so forth. The second, and of more importance for the ESP student, is the opportunity to shift outside of your own cultural norms. Learning the French language is very different from speaking with someone from France. Speaking with someone from France involves understanding not just the language, but the culture of the language as well. For example, when people walk into shops in Paris, France, they always, always exchange French greetings with the shopkeeper ("Bonjour madame," "Bonjour monsieur") before proceeding to shop or ask questions. To do otherwise (even in English) is considered extremely rude (if their four-year-old knows this, they would say, why don't you?). Also, walking around with a big smile in Paris? No, no, no. Parisians often interpret this negatively, as A) you are laughing at me as if I have something amiss on my person, or B) you are a simpleton. Are you starting to see why some uninitiated Americans might have a non-optimal experience in the City of Light?
All of this still remains important even as more and more people strive to learn English. Author Joe Carroll wrote an editorial in The Business Journal (2005), pointing out that, "More students in China take English as a second language than there are English-speaking people in the entire world." He also states, "If the world's population totaled 1,000 people, the distribution would be as follows: 564 Asian. 210 European, 86 African, 80 South American, 60 North American -- meaning the United States, Canada, and Mexico." If you want to read more, Carroll's article, "What's the importance of learning a foreign language?" [16] is excellent (The Business Journal, 2005). This article is over a decade old; if it was important to learn a foreign language in 2005, can you imagine the impetus now?
In other parts of the world, knowing the culture is more important than knowing the language, and sometimes the language specifies the way in which one can communicate with a superior. As an extreme example, we might look at what Malcolm Gladwell (author of The Tipping Point and Blink) wrote about in a book called Outliers: The Story of Success. In the chapter entitled, "The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes," he describes a number of scenarios and discusses airline safety from the perspective of cultural communication (in this case, the Korean language).
Evidently, in 1997, Korean Air Flight 801 experienced turbulence and trouble in their approach to Guam. Culturally, the co-pilot did not feel it was his role (as subordinate) to contradict the pilot with his judgment that the plane was about to crash--indeed, linguistically it was nearly impossible. The plane did crash, killing 228 of the 254 people aboard. Here, cultural legacy impinged on the safety of everyone aboard the flight! Essentially, "... Boeing and Airbus design modern, complex airplanes to be flown by two equals. That works beautifully in low power-distance cultures [like the U.S., where hierarchies aren't as relevant]. But in cultures that have high power distance, it’s very difficult." The dynamic of the industry was changed when all pilots and crew were required to speak only in English. Most of us know that English has lost much of its formal/informal verb tense for addressing either a child or the president of a company. This change in cultural norms (which is often built into the language) has allowed the company to fly more safely since the change in language.
Kiss, Bow Or Shake Hands: The Bestselling Guide to Doing Business in More Than 60 Countries [17]. (It is also available through the Penn State Libraries).
One of the many reasons that climate change still isn't fully recognized by Americans is that the scientific community has done such a terrible job of communicating the issue. Not to oversimplify, but it could be said that the state of the world hangs in the balance because of ineffective communication! While not every communication experience carries such weight, the importance of effective communication cannot be ignored or taken lightly!
The complexity of climate change has presented challenges in communicating related information to the general public. The following article gives some really great examples of how that happens and makes some great suggestions for scientists to reverse the situation and hopefully not continue to make the same mistakes.
What's Wrong With the Way We Communicate Climate Change? [18]
Virtual Reality better than video for evoking fear, spurring climate action [19]
Communicating Climate Change: Focus on the Framing, Not Just the Facts [20]
A look at how people around the world view climate change [21]
How Americans see climate change and the environment in 7 charts [22]
Unfriendly Climate [23] - an article about Katharine Hayhoe and how she talks to those who doubt climate change.
Have you heard of a book or a documentary called "Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming"? In both, the authors explain how a successful information campaign can trump any real scientific knowledge.
More about the book/movie from Merchants of Doubt [24]:
"...historians Naomi Oreskes and Erik Conway explain how a loose–knit group of high-level scientists, with extensive political connections, ran effective campaigns to mislead the public and deny well-established scientific knowledge over four decades. In seven compelling chapters addressing tobacco, acid rain, the ozone hole, global warming, and DDT, Oreskes and Conway roll back the rug on this dark corner of the American scientific community, showing how the ideology of free market fundamentalism, aided by a too-compliant media, has skewed public understanding of some of the most pressing issues of our era."
The movie is highly entertaining and while not as detailed as the book, it focuses on communication strategies and why messaging can make or break an informational campaign. If you have the opportunity, pick up the book or view the movie; you won't be disappointed.
So much of Communication is context; the context of the participants, the context of the situation, etc. The reading and activities below are optional but strongly encouraged. The workshops bring contextual differences to light and may help you communicate better with others. We will be completing the Power and Privilege workshop in a later lesson, but it is included here as well because it is part of the series.
Penn State's Division of Student Affairs has developed a number of online workshops that target important, challenging, and perhaps controversial aspects of communicating effectively with individuals, organizations, and communities.
Here are brief descriptions of these online workshops (some of which we will cover in a later lesson):
This workshop focuses on the concepts of power and privilege and how they impact race and ethnic relations. The workshop includes activities that help you to explore your own identity and provide you with opportunities to reflect upon these complex issues. More importantly, how do these ideas impact our efforts as we communicate energy and sustainability issues as we work with individuals, organizations, and communities?
This workshop focuses on understanding and increasing your awareness of a range of stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination, how they differ from each other, and how they influence each other. Rooted within cultural contexts, it is important to get a sense of how our own beliefs come into play as we work to get our messages across to others.
Learn about the concept of "isms" and more specifically about how racism, sexism, classism, and heterosexism affect communications and community relationships. Taken from the workshop: "...it is believed that our levels of success are a direct result of our dedication, discipline, and hard work." As we work with individuals, organizations, and communities, you begin to see how important it is to ask yourself the question of whether or not everyone actually has the same opportunities to succeed.
Links
[1] http://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2017/01/19/09/31/communication-1991849__340.png
[2] https://pixabay.com/ko/users/geralt-9301/?tab=latest&pagi=6
[3] http://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/
[4] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/emsc302/node/482
[5] https://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/student-services/academic-support-center
[6] https://www.flickr.com/photos/rosengrant/4255321476/in/photolist-9P4WcP-bjxx4D-6HMUwa-9YznLC-bDDgg8-9vZNaQ-9A3Fdx-7rXzgR-7u2CPE-7Yd6Yz-9uNJcW-6aW3xc-CDqTf-5caNab-bWmHAm-8Pkyp5-5EFanU-6EkZnF-8s2SnF-8yQXJd-7fMR15-7ExjAh-6YeeeX-fzXMUK-6kaQnD-4kSmDa-dWmQzD-yMpag-dMcJb1-5kAn9q-bsLLrk-aYiuTe-aoFj49-4yqCuX-a1X3n4-66KWAB-8Yvgzg-bJSzVK-JiGgi-4okxe8-NjBYq-8QHWSu-b7j3zt-9t41kx-2j5AMm-b3GKUT-fH7JwF-bB2TS4-bTMq8i-64wjmS
[7] https://www.flickr.com/photos/rosengrant/
[8] https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/
[9] https://www.lynda.com/Business-Skills-tutorials/Effective-Listening/176760-2.html
[10] https://pixabay.com/illustrations/team-spirit-teamwork-euro-207319/
[11] https://pixabay.com/users/geralt-9301/
[12] https://creativecommons.org/choose/zero/
[13] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/styleforstudents/
[14] http://www.smartbrief.com/original/2016/07/lost-art-saying-i-dont-know
[15] https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
[16] http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2005/08/29/editorial2.html
[17] https://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Bow-Shake-Hands-Bestselling/dp/1593373686/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1486752700&sr=8-2&keywords=international+culture+in+business
[18] https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/whats-wrong-with-the-way-we-communicate-climate-change
[19] https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/virtual-reality-better-video-evoking-fear-spurring-climate-action/
[20] https://www.climaterealityproject.org/blog/communicating-climate-change-focus-framing-not-just-facts
[21] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/18/a-look-at-how-people-around-the-world-view-climate-change/
[22] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/04/21/how-americans-see-climate-change-and-the-environment-in-7-charts/
[23] https://getpocket.com/explore/item/unfriendly-climate?utm_source=pocket-newtab
[24] http://merchantsofdoubt.org
[25] http://www.apimages.com/
[26] https://mashable.com/feature/women-keep-fighting