Introduction to Christian Education: Section 4

Law 4The Law of Communication

It is the teachers mission...by sympathy, by example, and by every means of

influence - by objects for the senses, by facts for the intelligence - to excite the mind of the pupils, to stimulate their

thoughts...The greatest of teachers said: “The seed is the word.” The true teacher

stirs the ground and sows the seed.John Milton Gregory

Communication is not easy!

Communication is not easy!

We are in the business of communication.

Communication is not easy!

We are in the business of communication.Communication is the reason for our existence as teachers.

Communication is not easy!

We are in the business of communication.Communication is the reason for our existence as teachers.

It is also our number one teaching problem!

Building BridgesCommunication - from the Latin word, communis, meaning “common” [to impart, to participate, to share].To communicate we must establish commonness, (something we share in common) - the greater this is, the greater the potential for communication.

What techniques would you use to develop commonality with someone - e.g. a fellow

student, a teacher, a church member...

The Law of Communication:To truly impart information

requires the building of bridges

John 4Jesus and the Samaritan woman.Commonality: both are thirsty.Jesus asks for a drink - she is amazed that a Jewish man should ask her for a drink.

Jesus takes the initiative - and assumes nothing.He then breaks down lots of barriers - racial, religious, sexual, social and moral - and establishes a base for communicationJesus builds a bridge between the two of them

To truly impart communication requires the building of bridgesHendricks tells the story of taking an aunt to an evangelistic meeting - at the end the evangelist asked everyone to stand, then told the Christians to sit down - his aunt stood, her whole body stiffened in anger and embarrassment.We have to do our homework on how people feel

How do you apply this to students who are reluctant to speak?

Thought - Feeling - Action

Communication is a complicated process:

You have to deal with how people think, feel and act - and then help them work on the process of producing change in their life

Consider the following addenda from the pen of Simon Smailus http://www.simonsmailus.com/

Gender Differences

MenWhat do you do when you

face a problem?

MenWhat do you do when you

face a problem?

• Go Quiet• Think much• Communicate little

WomenWhat do you do when you

face a problem?

WomenWhat do you do when you

face a problem?

• Talk• Think out loud• Communicate lots

Expressing feelings versusexpressing information

John Gray, Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, Thorsens, 1993

Men

• Men talk silently to themselves partly because they don’t have the verbal capacity of a woman.

• Men communicating with men are happy with fewer words and longer silences.

• However, women will think you are distant, sulky or uninterested.

• If you want to get on better with women you need to talk more and use more expression.

Women

• Women think aloud and perceive it as being friendly and sharing.

• Women use around 20,000 ‘words’ (words, sounds and gestures) every day. Men use 8,000.

• To get men to listen with respect, focus on the outcomes. Don’t think out loud.

• For added affect, deepen your voice and limit your expressions.

The DifferencesMEN

• Literal• Direct

• Wait for a space• Listen like statues

• Single track• Are happy with

silences• Use a grunt to show

they are listening

WOMEN• Emotional• Indirect• Reward with words• Respond as they listen• Multi track• Think silence is rejection• Uses sounds to embellish

words

The importance of Punctuation

http://www.ojohaven.com/fun/correct.punctuation.html

Dear John:I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful.  People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we're apart. I can be forever happy - will you let me be yours?Gloria

http://www.ojohaven.com/fun/correct.punctuation.html

Dear John:I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we're apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?Yours,Gloria

http://www.ojohaven.com/fun/correct.punctuation.html, 04/03/06

Listening

Facts about Listening

Listening is our primary communication activity.

Our listening habits are not the result of training but rater the result of the lack of it.

Most individuals are inefficient listeners

Good listening can be taught/learned

Listening: Learned first, Used most (45%), Taught least.Speaking: Learned second, Used next most (30%), Taught next least.Reading: Learned third, Used next least (16%), Taught next mostWriting: Learned fourth, Used Least (9%), Taught most.

Listening  is composed of six distinct components

Hearing: The physiological process of receiving sound and/or other stimuli.

Attending: The conscious and unconscious process of focusing attention on external stimuli.

Interpreting:  The process of decoding the symbols or behavior attended to.

Evaluating: The process of deciding the value of the information to the receiver.

Remembering:  The process of placing the appropriate information into short-term or long-term storage.

Responding:  The process of giving feedback to the source and/or otherreceivers.

The Law of Communication:To truly impart information

requires the building of bridges

Thought - Feeling - Action

...back to Howard Hendricks;

All communication has three essential components:

Intellect - thought

Emotion - feeling

Volition - action

If I know something thoroughly, feel it deeply, am doing it consistently, I have great potential for being an excellent communicator.In fact the more thoroughly I know...the more deeply I feel it...the more consistently I practice it...the greater my potential as a communicator.

All 3 components have to be there.

Christians believe in the authority and inspiration of the Scripture - a body of truth given by revelation that has to be communicated with the world. We don’t make the message - we declare it.

This is a blessing and a problem for evangelicals - why?

Because most evangelicals rely solely on the intellectual component to communicate it.

We assume that if we tell people the right thing their problems will automatically be solved.

Emotionalism is emotions out of control.Emotions under control is what we aim for - in fact the most effective communication always includes an emotional part - a feeling or excitement factor.

Ask yourself what you get excited about?Is this reflected in your teaching?

“We’re teaching the most exciting truth in all the world - eternal

truth - and doing it as if it were cold mashed

potatoes”

Many Christians communicate as if they are bored by the subject they are speaking about.

“You think, If this is exciting him, I’d hate to see him when he is bored.”

Hendricks suggests:

Use good gestures.

Smile occasionally.

Hendricks (p. 74)

A man tells me he is a Christian businessman, and he cheats. I ask him how he accounts for that in terms of Christian principles.

He says, we are in Rome, when in Rome do what the Romans do.

Hendricks says how about, when in Rome as a Christian does, don’t do as the Romans do.

What you are is far more important than what you say or do.

God works incarnationally - in Jesus - and now in you and me.

Do people leave your teaching thirsty for more of God, wanting to study for themselves?

Every time you teach ask:

What do I know - and what do I want these students to know?

What do I feel and what do I want them to feel?

What do I do - and what do I want them to do?

The Golden Rule

Do you think - I tell it to my students - now they know it they will automatically live it.

“Do to others what you would have them do to you”

•What does it look like in our age group, culture, experience?

•How do we feel about it - comfortable, radical?

•How do we react in a situation which requires the Golden Rule to be lived out? What’s the usual response, why, are there alternatives?

•Let’s find specific ways we can apply this. Set a goal for putting them into practice - what succeeded, what failed?

The Law of Communication:To truly impart information

requires the building of bridges

The Way with Words

When you have something in your mind (thought), and you feel it deeply, then you have to communicate (action) it.So we translate it into wordsRemember it is not the words we are trying to get across - but the life changing message.

But words are importantWe remember the things Jesus said and did - words and deeds, and these always complimented one another, they were in harmonyIf a teacher says I am committed to you,but is never available for you do you believe them?As a teacher you need to be able to use words well

Perfecting your communication

The process: taking concepts, feelings and actions, translating them into words and communicating them through speech.

This requires 2 things:

1. Preparation

2. Presentation

1. Preparation

Preparation gives form to your message - it shapes it.

If you can shape or package your message well then people will respond.

Hendricks suggests you should start with an introduction - and this should be a bang - capture peoples attention

1. Preparation

Preparation gives form to your message - it shapes it.

If you can shape or package your message well then people will respond.

Hendricks suggests you should start with an introduction - and this should be a bang - capture peoples attention

Get the introduction right;Hendricks suggests you have to grab people with your introduction.“Elisha was residing in Dothan. He awakened early one morning, went out to pick up the Dothan Daily and saw what to him was a horrible sight”He says you have driven to the heart of the story and the class is right with you.

Think of a good introduction for;

The parable of the Good Samaritan

Jesus heals the woman with the flow of blood

Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus

...of for any other story from the Bible

Of course all this assumes you still have something worthwhile to say afterwards and you know how to say it - content.

Hendricks suggests almost all messages he has heard could be reduced by 25% - if the speaker knew how to say what they wanted to say

Hendricks suggests you need illustrations, visual aids, things that are personal to you are best and things that are relevant to the lives of the people around you

Then you need a conclusion

Usually it is the least prepared part of a message.

“So the test of communication is not what you as the teacher say, but what your students say; not what you think, but what your students think; not what you feel, but what they feel; not what you’re doing, but what they’re doing”

Hendricks (p. 79)

2. Presentation

Involves many things;

Enunciation - speaking clearly, using your lips, teeth and tongue.

Volume - make sure people can hear

Pitch - use more than one note - up and down

Speed - vary it to make things at least seem interesting - fast, normal, slow

The Law of Communication:To truly impart information

requires the building of bridges

Presenting…

Helpful Hints for Delivering Successful Presentations etc.

Worth Knowing

Most (all?) are nervous at giving a presentation

For many it is considered their number one fear in life

Winston Churchill claimed to prepare one hour for every minute he spoke in public

Most people leave preparation to the last minute - then rush around gathering all the info. they can

What can go wrong in a presentation?

What can go wrong in a presentation?

Audio-visuals (too much info.)Inappropriate environmentPoor body languageNervousness (habits)VerbosityInappropriate appearanceLifeless delivery

External factors (e.g. power supply) Poor planningUnclear messageToo much informationPoor organisationUse of jargonLack of objectives (clear goals)

A Model of Preparation

What is the bottom line?

Why are you making the presentation?

Conceive the conclusion

E.g. successful barristers often write their final argument first and work towards it

Ask, “when I finish what do I want people to remember?”

During the presentation I want to appear

____________________________________

Use 5-10% of the time to conclude

Invent an introduction and title

Title; brief and arousing interest

Opening sentence to grab peoples attention – the first 2-4 minutes are crucial

KISS it - Keep It Short and Simple

Use 5-10% of the time to conclude

Invent an introduction and title

Title; brief and arousing interest

Opening sentence to grab peoples attention – the first 2-4 minutes are crucial

KISS it - Keep It Short and Simple

Rehearse

Language

Use appropriate words

Technical language and/or jargon

Stories, anecdotes, objects

Good visual aids

Make sure they are clear and high quality

WAM them

What About Me – identify with the group

Length of presentationMust knowShould knowCould knowGood notesRead-Speak? Read at 100 wpm, speak at 500

Find out what works for you!Develop the right frame of mind prior to the speech, e.g.

Positive thoughts - Sports psychologists encourage visualising the session / game going wellA quiet walk

Check the setupDo you know where to go? Is it tidy? Is the equipment ready

Distractions

General - Someone walks by, a noise, an insect, a late arrival...

Personal - lack of sleep, illness, worries, financial problems, having had an argument...

You can’t do anything about most distractions, apart from understanding that they will be there

You can’t do anything about most distractions, apart from understanding that they will be there

•Room temperature

•Room setup

•Think things through before the presentation - and then eliminate as many possible distractions as possible

Feedback

•You need as a teacher to know what your students know, learned, felt etc.

•“Do you understand?”

•“Do you have any questions?”

•“How might you use this in your life?”

•“What needs to be changed, what did you like/dislike...?”

•Don’t allow the students to tell you what you want to hear - you need to hear what you don’t want to

•Feedback brings the teaching process right back into the words of your students

The Law of Communication:To truly impart information

requires the building of bridges

Once again our time comes to a

close - cry no tears my friend for there

is yet more to come and inspire

your glorious search for teaching

excellence