I'm gonna put out a rant today. This deals with making assumptions and putting blame/responsibility where it rightfully belongs. First, let me preface this by stating that proper communication goes both ways. Oftentimes a superior or one with greater authority or advantage believes that it is fully the responsibility of the subordinate party to understand the message, even if that message was not delivered in a manner that the receiver could understand.
I've experienced numerous instances recently where there was a breakdown in communication because one party assumed that the other "should just know" the information. The excuse is always voiced something like: "We notified everybody." or "You've been here long enough, so you you should know better by now." or "There's no excuse for not knowing this." I guess it begs to question, whose responsibility is it then to ensure that the receiving party is informed? In the case of a teacher-student relationship, that responsibility falls squarely on the teacher. If your teaching methods were ineffective (and it is reflected in a significant portion of the students not knowing the information in question), then the teacher can't hold the student(s) responsible for that which was not taught properly. You can't assume that your student is just going to know the information. I have also had the unpleasant experience or heard about where students were tested on materials that either weren't adequately covered or there were several "gotcha" questions included in an attempt to ensure that nobody in the class gets a perfect grade. That is not teaching. That is sadistic.
When I use the term "teacher" this can be equally applied to any person in a teaching position (to include parents, mentors, trainers or anyone who teaches). This is not communication, but rather it is an attempt to elevate the "teacher" to a perpetual position of higher status than any student ever could be. Intelligent students can see right through this ruse though. This was a common method of teaching when austere educators were thought to be the ultimate authority, but in modern society, teachers are our peers. Effective teachers don't command respect though sadistic methods, but they earn respect through having genuine interest in the learning process of their pupils. This is especially true when students are paying money out of their own pockets for a quality education. In that respect, the teacher works for the student and if the teacher is apathetic in that sacred calling, it is shameful that students have wasted their valuable time and money attending that class. In the case where a person in a teaching position is abusive, demeaning or sadistic, this is actually counterintuitive to learning and it creates barriers and mental scarring that may take a long time to overcome - and in some cases, these learning blocks may last a lifetime. After nearly five decades, I still suffer from the effects of an abusive teacher I had in first grade. The message that her students received was entirely different than the subject matter at hand.
There are many other instances I have experienced lately that underscored the importance of effective communication - and how merely assuming that your receiving party got the message is not a good idea. When you wish to disseminate your message to a wide audience, you must use multiple methods of communication AND ensure that your receiving parties have received and understood the message. You can't leave fliers taped to doors with indefinite dates and times for an important event (like a parking lot closure due to construction), you can't (or shouldn't) expect all the tenants to move their vehicles for said construction. No, this is not effective communication. This isn't even communication at all. If you want the parking lot cleared, you need to clearly post signs and cordon off the area well in advance. You need to notify each and every tenant AND get an absolute response before you start towing off vehicles and expecting the tenants to pay the towing bill.
I also see how these assumptions can strain friendships, business partnerships and family relationships. For instance, when someone posts a general status update on social media and then expects everybody in their sphere of influence to be responsible for receiving said information. Sometimes the breakdown in communication may be technological, but in many cases there are people who either do not check their Facebook or Twitter pages very often or maybe they don't even have accounts. Some people have limited whose status updates they have on their newsfeed, so the posts are never seen by the intended recipients. It's not their fault they didn't get the memo.
So, how do we break down these communication barriers? How can we be effective teachers and communicators? The first and most important thing is to have genuine consideration for those whom you teach or wish to communicate with. In the corporate world, this could mean the difference between success and utter failure of your enterprise. If we treat our personal and professional relationships as though our livelihoods depended upon care and concern, then perhaps we are getting somewhere. Then and only then can we follow through to the next step - acknowledgement. I went to a communication seminar a few years ago and what the speaker had to say made perfect sense. He stressed that incomplete communication (where the receiving party has not provided acknowledgement or feedback indicating that the message was received), is where communication did not happen. Acknowledgment is more than a head nod or a one-word answer though. Complete communication requires that the receiving party restates the message. In a formal learning situation, that feedback may be in the form of a progress check or an ungraded (or minimally weighted) assignment. This is not only a tool for the student, but as a gauge for the teacher to understand where more emphasis needs to be placed and reveals weak areas in the curriculum.
May we ALL be effective communicators and never assume that the receiving party has heard and understood our message without acknowledgment and as listeners or learners we shouldn't assume that we always heard or read the message properly, especially when it doesn't seem to make sense. It may be necessary to beg for clarification. Communication is duplex - involving both parties being completely involved, both verbally and nonverbally.
