Discussion

Use this area to help develop your learning community by introducing yourself and responding to your peers. You may want to include information such as your academic and professional goals and your experiences with online learning. You are also welcome to share information about your career and academic interests and writing successes.

Everyone wants to be understood when communicating with others. In an effective communication situation, "the message is perceived in the way it was intended" (Hybels & Weaver, 2012, p. 23). Unfortunately, individuals may not always translate their thoughts successfully into the written or spoken word, which may result in conflict or confusion.

This unit's Learning Activities include helpful tips about honing word choice, determining whether formal or informal writing suits the occasion, and crafting the appropriate tone and voice. After completing the unit's Activities, respond to the following questions in at least two well-developed paragraphs:

• How would you describe effective communication, and how does that description compare to those outlined in this unit's Learning Activities?

• Describe one example each of particularly effective and ineffective writing that you have encountered either in a personal, professional, or academic setting. Describe how the ineffective communicator could have changed his or her approach to be more successful, and consider the author's use of style (formal versus informal), tone, and word choice.

All Discussion posts and responses to peers should be written in complete sentences using Standard American English. Before posting, proofread for grammar, spelling, and word-choice issues. Be sure to respond fully to every aspect of the Discussion.

Please note that this is a sample Discussion post to help inspire and guide your own original writing of the Assignment. Your Assignment does not need to look exactly like the sample, as this sample is just a possible response to the Assignment prompt. Be sure to review the Reading and grading rubric, complete each task in the instructions, and contact the instructor with any questions.

DISCUSSION POST:

I think the key to effective communication relates to the purpose of writing found in the archived workshop "Hallmarks of Effective Writing," which is "to communicate meaning to an audience" (Hood, 2011, slide 4). To be effective, written or spoken communication needs to be targeted to the intended audience. A person writing a formal memo detailing minutes from a recent meeting for his boss should use the appropriate language, style, and even formatting for that audience and situation. Submitting a memo with slang or any signs of an overly conversational style, poor grammar, or a really disorganized format would definitely not meet the standards of formal writing and could cost that person his job.

I decided to find an example of effective writing that clearly conveyed a message to its intended audience. I love to cook, so I selected the Foodess blog. Pallian's (2013) site has lovely photographs of food and brief descriptions of her reasons for selecting certain foods to highlight in her posts. Her writing style is conversational and occasionally does not follow formal punctuation conventions, but the grammar follows Standard American English guidelines, and Pallian's less formal style actually convinces me that I, too, could cook these recipes. Some food writers have such complicated ways of explaining techniques that I never believe I could duplicate their efforts, so I believe that her style helps her to reach her audience more effectively.

As for an example of ineffective communication, I remember reading an email from a colleague about an upcoming meeting that had some spelling mistakes, but even worse, the sentences were so poorly written that I had to read it three times and ask him questions in a follow-up email to understand exactly where the meeting would take place. His poor writing created confusion and wasted time. Had he heeded tips in this unit's Learning Activities about being clear, concise, and correct, his email would have been much more effective.
CM220: Unit 1 Discussion Sample Kaplan, 2015

References

Hood, R. (2012, September 13). Hallmarks of effective writing [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from https://kucampus.kaplan.edu/DocumentStore/Docs11/pdf/WC/HallmarksofEffectiveW ritingRMHSept13Notes.pdf.

Pallian, J. (2013, August 9). Pureed white bean soup with bacon and roasted cherry tomatoes [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://foodess.com/2013/08/pureed-white-bean-soup-withbacon-and-roasted-cherry-tomatoes/.