Lesson 3 — Activity 1: Contexts for Communication
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Lesson 3 — Activity 1: Contexts for Communication
Context refers to the situation in which we are communicating. It includes audience, purpose, and occasion. That is, the context of communication depends on:
When we communicate with someone, that person is our audience. That is, the audience is the person or people to whom a message is directed.
The way we communicate may change, depending on our audience. To communicate clearly, we have to think about who is going to hear, read, or see our message. Then, we must decide on the best way to express ourselves to get our point across.
Think of all the audiences we might communicate with each day: parents, friends, neighbours, teachers, employers, young children, senior citizens, and so on. With each audience, we will often choose to communicate differently to be sure our messages are received accurately.
- who we are communicating with
- what message we want to communicate
- where and when we are communicating
When we communicate with someone, that person is our audience. That is, the audience is the person or people to whom a message is directed.
The way we communicate may change, depending on our audience. To communicate clearly, we have to think about who is going to hear, read, or see our message. Then, we must decide on the best way to express ourselves to get our point across.
Think of all the audiences we might communicate with each day: parents, friends, neighbours, teachers, employers, young children, senior citizens, and so on. With each audience, we will often choose to communicate differently to be sure our messages are received accurately.
Purpose refers to the reason we are communicating. We communicate for
many reasons, but we need to think about why we are communicating if we
want our messages to be sent and received successfully.
We need to decide if we want to:
Then we can choose the best way to accomplish our purpose. We need to be sure that our purpose is very clear when we communicate with others, whether we are speaking or writing.
We need to decide if we want to:
- entertain
- inform or explain
- persuade the receivers of our message
Then we can choose the best way to accomplish our purpose. We need to be sure that our purpose is very clear when we communicate with others, whether we are speaking or writing.
- Did the author make me laugh? Tell me a story? If so, then their purpose is to entertain.
- Did the author give me facts? Teach me something? If so, then their purpose is to inform.
- Did the author try to change my opinion? Convince me of something? If so, then their purpose as to persuade.
The occasion of communicating a message is sometimes referred to as the setting of a communication.
The setting, or time and place, of a communication also influences the way we communicate. For example, if we are bowling with friends, we will communicate differently than we would if we were sitting with those same friends in a quiet library.
Depending on the setting, we may use different means to communicate with the same audience for the same purpose.
The setting, or time and place, of a communication also influences the way we communicate. For example, if we are bowling with friends, we will communicate differently than we would if we were sitting with those same friends in a quiet library.
Depending on the setting, we may use different means to communicate with the same audience for the same purpose.