Section D
Writing Skills and Speaking Skills
1.
Elements of Effective Writing
There are so many people in the world who engage themselves in writing. Some of
them do so as a professional requirement while others as a hobby. It is common
knowledge that all of them are not equally successful in their job. Those who
excel do so because they follow certain rules of the game. There are some
elementary rules which every writer has to follow if he wants to make his
writing effective. Even born writers have to follow these principles. It is
another matter that they come to them naturally without having to labour much.
Writing is an art which has to be cultivated and practised to achieve
perfection.
Writing is an important part of the duties to be performed by people working in business
organisations, especially those occupying senior positions. Different kinds of
reports, presentations and a variety of other documents have to be drafted
regularly as part of their assignments. They can do these assignments
successfully if they follow the following rules:
1.
A clear understanding of the purpose
-The first
requirement is to have a clear understanding of
the purpose of writing. A good writer never loses sight
of his purpose. Every word, every sentence every
paragraph in the written document must be focused on the purpose and contribute to its achievement.
2.
Unity of theme - Unity of theme is another
requirement. There must be one important central idea round
which the whole piece revolves. And it must be sufficiently limited to have any meaningful discussion.
Any treatment of too broad an idea can confuse the
reader. The central idea should be clearly
stated in the opening paragraph. This statement should give the reader an idea of the line that the author is going
to follow in the rest of the piece.
There are bound to be
some subordinate ideas but they must contribute to the development of the central idea. Any
writing in which several unconnected ideas are
presented without there being any unifying connection among them is bound to result in
chaos. The reader fails to comprehend what the writer wants to say in the absence of any
unifying thread.
3.
Logical organisation -
i.
All the material in the document should be logically and systematically
organised. The piece should be divided into three broad parts – the beginning, the middle and the end. The beginning should introduce the topic and explain its meaning
and importance. The middle should be
devoted to the discussion of the topic. It
should contain the details of the subject, the arguments, the examples,
the causes, the remedies
suggested, the evidence etc. The ending should
contain the conclusions and the recommendations.
ii.
The material should be clearly classified
into different classes. All the matter pertaining to one class should be given at
one place. There should be no mixing up of
the different classes of information as it can lead to confusion.
iii.
The main ideas contributing to the
development of the central theme should be dealt with
in different paragraphs. The main idea
should be stated in the topic sentence of the
paragraph and should then be followed by the supporting
sub-ideas. There should be no jumbling of the
main ideas and the sub-ideas.
iv.
There are different ways of arranging the
information provided and the choice depends on the nature of the topic.
It may be arranged chronologically or as cause and effect or as problem,
causes, solutions or idea, arguments for and
against followed by conclusions or in the
increasing or decreasing order of importance.
Any unsystematic and illogical presentation of information will confuse the
reader instead of enlightening him.
4.
Sufficient supporting material – The supporting material is the soul of any piece of writing. The author must
provide sufficient supporting material to justify his line of thought. There
must be sufficient arguments, examples, statistics,
quotations etc. to illustrate the writer’s
thesis, to convince the reader of the correctness of his ideas or to persuade the reader to accept his line of argument. Without enough
supporting material, any piece of writing is like a body without a soul.
Moreover, the supporting material should be completely relevant, detailed, specific, clear and convincing. It is no use beating about the bush. Every detail of the
supporting material should be like a blow on the head
of the nail and have the force to drive home the main idea.
5.
Audience oriented – To be effective, any piece of writing
should be audience oriented. The author must have a clear
understanding of the educational and intellectual level and the needs and interests of the audience for which he is
writing. The ideas and the information provided must also match their needs and
interests and the language used should be such as they can easily understand.
6.
Coherence – It is necessary to link the different parts of a piece of writing with
one another clearly and to show the links.
Appropriate linking devices should be used to refer back and forward. Each sentence in a paragraph should be connected with the preceding
and the succeeding one. Similarly, every paragraph
should have a clear connection with the previous and following paragraph.
The entire document should give the impression of
being one unified piece rather than a rambling
collection of ideas.
7.
Transitions – All transitions
– from one idea to another, from one class of information to another, from one part to another should be
natural and spontaneous. They should be suitably
signalled so that they do not come to the reader as a shock.
8.
Variety – Variety is the sauce of writing and
makes it enjoyable. It is advisable
to vary the length of paragraphs, the type of sentences, tenses and
of voice. Similarly, you may also use a different
word sometimes to convey the same idea instead
of repeatedly using the same word because it sounds boring.
9.
Humour – Humour again is an ingredient that
makes your writing interesting and enjoyable. It
is always good to sprinkle your writing with bits and
pieces of humour to keep your reader amused as
he is being enlightened. It helps to hold his
attention longer, and prevents him from feeling exhausted.
10.
Language –
I - Appropriate to the type of
writing - The
language used should be appropriate to the kind of writing. In technical writing, the best thing would be to use simple, clear and specific language. However, in literary writing, ornamental idiomatic language embellished with figures of
speech and appropriate imagery should be used.
Ii - The choice of words must be proper
and accurate enough to convey the intended meaning. The use of even one inappropriate word can spoil the whole show.
Cliches should be avoided. If you are writing for an audience belonging to the
same technical field, you may use the jargon belonging to
that field. If the audience is a general one, jargon should be strictly
avoided.
Iii - Conciseness – You should make every effort to avoid all unnecessary wordiness. The best thing is to
say what you want to say in as few words as possible.
The reader gets lost in the maze of wordiness and loses
sight of the essential argument being presented. As a result, he loses interest and stops reading.
iv - Freedom from ambiguity – The language should be clear and easy to understand. It should not lend itself to multiple
interpretations. Otherwise, the reader is likely
to get confused and will be unable to make head or tail of what he
reads.
v - Spelling, grammar and punctuation
–
I -
Care must also be taken that you use the correct
spelling. If you write ‘power breaks’ instead of ‘power brakes’, the
reader will find it hard to follow what you want to say. Even a slight
difference in spelling can mislead and confuse
the writer.
Ii -
You must also follow the generally accepted rules of
grammar and syntax. A departure from
these rules can lead the reader astray and make him put a different interpretation on the writing from the one
intended by you. Rules regarding noun/pronoun agreement,
subject verb agreement
must be followed strictly. You must also be careful about using the correct tense forms, correct voice, correct case of
pronouns and correct possessive forms.
Iii - It is
also important to use correct punctuation because
wrong punctuation can sometimes change the meaning
and thus mislead the reader.
2. Skills of Effective Speaking
A major part of organisational communication and of
communication in normal life is oral communication which involves speech. A
major weakness of oral communication is that it cannot be rewound and listened
to repeatedly till we are satisfied that we have understood it properly.
Therefore it is very important to know what the important speaking skills are and
to master them in order to become a good communicator. The following components
of speech must be paid special attention to if we want our communication to be
effective and efficient.
1. Proper knowledge of the phonemes of the language – One must have complete and correct
knowledge of the phonemes of the language one is using. Phonemes are the sounds
that a particular language makes use of. One who does not possess this
knowledge may use a sound different from the one he should and this will make
his speech unintelligible.
2. Correct articulation of sounds – Phonetics teach us how different sounds are articulated. Phonetic
knowledge is as necessary as phonemic knowledge. It is not enough to know what
sounds a language uses. One must also know how those sounds are articulated. In
the absence of such knowledge, we may articulate a sound different from the one
we think we are using. That may make it difficult for the listener to
understand us.
3. Correct pronunciation – It is very important to use the correct pronunciation of words. If a
word is mispronounced, it may not be understood at all or may be misunderstood.
Without correct pronunciation of the words of the language being used, it is
impossible to get a message across efficiently.
4. Correct word stress – In some languages, word stress is as important a part of correct
pronunciation as the sounds. In these languages, all the syllables (parts into
which a spoken word is divided) are not given equal stress. Some are stressed
more than the others. English gives maximum stress to one syllable in a
polysyllabic word which is called primary stress. In some words, another
syllable may be given a slightly less stress which is called secondary stress.
All the other syllables are articulated with considerably less force than these
two syllables. Stress on a wrong syllable can confuse the listener who is used
to hearing a different syllable being stressed.
5. Correct sentence stress – All the words in a sentence are not stressed equally in some
languages. So it is important to know which words are stressed in the language
in question and which are not. For example, in English, nouns, interrogative
pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs are normally stressed and auxiliary
verbs, pronouns other than interrogative pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions
and articles are left unstressed. It is also important to know when this
general rule is violated and words normally stressed are left unstressed and
those which are generally not stressed are stressed. Wrong use of sentence
stress can create problems for the listener.
6. Proper use of contrastive stress – Words which are the focus of the contrast of meaning intended to be
communicated by the speaker are stressed even more heavily than the other
stressed words in the sentence. This stress makes it clear to the listener
where the contrast of meaning lies and helps him grasp the correct intended
meaning. This is very important because a sentence containing exactly the same
words can convey different meanings if the contrastive stress is changed. In
fact, by varying the contrastive stress, we can make the same string of words
serve as various sentences.
7. Proper intonation.
Intonation is another important constituent of spoken language. We have to
learn the correct use of different patterns of rising and falling tones.
Intonation is capable of performing several grammatical functions. By using the
rising tone at the end of a statement, we can change it into a yes/no question
without moving the auxiliary in front of the subject. Similarly, if an imperative sentences is
delivered with a falling final tone, it serves as a command and if the falling
tone is replaced by the rising tone, the sentence becomes a very polite
request. The use of the rising tone in the middle of a sentence signals its incompleteness.
The use of the falling tone at such a place would give the impression that the
speaker has reached the end of the sentence and confuse the listener.
8. Correct rhythm –
Rhythm is another important constituent of speech. Different languages use different
rhythmical patterns. Some languages use syllable timed rhythm in which the time
given to stressed and unstressed syllables depends on their number as each
syllable, whether stressed or unstressed, is given the same amount of time. The
rhythm used in English is stress timed rhythm in which unstressed syllables
between stressed syllables are given approximately the same amount of time as
one stressed syllable.
9. Correct pauses –
Pauses also occupy an important place in connected speech. They serve the same purpose as punctuation in
written language. A long pause at the end of a sentence and a short pause where
a comma is used with a pause of a middle length where we have a semicolon is a
general rule of speech. A long pause before an
important piece of information prepares the listener to receive it by
arousing his curiosity and another long pause after it gives him time to
assimilate it and recognise its importance.
10.
Correct use
of weak forms – There are some words in
some languages like English which have two forms, a strong or full form and a
weak or shortened form. One must learn to use them correctly. They help the
speaker to maintain rhythm where a string of unstressed syllables has to be
used in between two stressed syllables.
11.
Volume – Another skill that we need is the sense to
use the right volume according to the requirement of the situation. We must
speak loudly enough to be audible to our listener. But it is improper to shout
unnecessarily. While addressing a large audience, one has to use high volume in
order to make oneself audible. On the other hand, we must keep it low when
speaking to a person sitting in front of us. The volume of voice also has to be
varied according to the emotion being expressed. We raise our volume when we
are angry. Similarly. It is considered rude to speak loudly in front of an
elder or a senior.
12.
Modulation of
voice – It is wrong to keep using the
same pitch, volume and tone all the time. Variation in these parameters
according to the requirement of the message is necessary to save our utterances
from being flat and monotonous.
13.
Right pace – We must also take care of the pace at
which we speak. We should speak at a pace that our listener is able to keep
pace with. If we speak too fast, the listener may not be able to get all that
we communicate. On the other hand, if we speak too slowly, the listener may get
fed up with having to wait too long for the words and may lose interest in what
we are communicating.
3.
Components of an Effective Talk
The general impression is that if a man has adequate
knowledge of the subject, he can give an effective talk. It is thought
that
knowledge of the subject is the only requirement of an effective talk.
There is no
doubt that no good talk can be given without adequate knowledge of the topic. But
knowledge is not everything. It is only a part and a small, though important, part.
There are many other things which contribute to the effectiveness of a talk.
Giving a talk is an art and like all arts, it has to be acquired, cultivated and practised to
achieve perfection.
Given below are the essential components of an
effective talk.
1. Turn out: You must be neatly dressed when
you go to give a talk. Remember that the first impression that the audience gets
of you is from your appearance and your dress is the most important part of your appearance.
A shabbily
dressed speaker makes a poor first impression on his audience and thus lowers his
chances of getting a careful listening.
2. Confidence: You must look fully confident.
There should be no sign of nervousness on your face. A smile on the face is a sign
of confidence. Have a cheerful look, walk to the podium confidently with a measured
pace. Do not rush or be too slow because both of these indicate a
lack of confidence on your part.
3. Posture and movements: Use an erect posture.
Stand
straight before the mike with your hands on your sides. Do not keep
fiddling with some object with your hands or keep them
continuously in your pockets or on the mike. Use them to make appropriate
gestures but do not flourish them too much
4. Audibility – The
first requirement of an effective talk is audibility. If all the members of the
audience are not able to hear every word of uttered by the speaker, the talk can never be successful. Those who
are unable to hear will not only fail to get the message but also create disturbance by talking among
themselves.
5.
Clarity – Clarity is the next essential component. Every word uttered by
the speaker should be clear to the audience. To achieve clarity, the speaker must pronounce all the words correctly. He must
use the correct sounds as well as correct word stress. Right sentence stress, rhythmical
delivery, correct contrastive stress, correct intonation and judicious use of the pauses help the
speaker to achieve clarity. If a speaker is able to do all that, every word
that he speaks will be clearly understood by every member of the audience.
6.
Right pace – Pace is another important component of an
effective talk. If the speaker speaks at too fast a pace, much of what he says will not be understood by his audience. And if he
uses too slow a pace, the
audience will get fed up and may start feeling sleepy.
7.
Effective use of
tone – The tone of the speaker must match the feelings he is expressing and the feelings that he wants to arouse in the
audience. It lends warmth and sincerity to the talk. Never should the speaker use a harsh tone as it is sure to be resented by the audience. Tone also contributes to the clarity
of
the talk because it has semantic implications. A talk delivered in a monotone can never be
impressive.
8.
Voice Modulation – It is not right to go on speaking in a monotone. You should
keep varying your
volume, tone and pitch. Speaking in a monotone makes a talk dull and uninteresting whereas modulation of tone lends variety to the talk and makes it lively and interesting.
9.
Appropriate pitch
– Proper use of pitch is a must to
impress the audience. Low pitch accompanied by deep breathing shows confidence whereas high pitch and shallow breathing betray nervousness and lack of confidence. Variation
of the pitch is also necessary to avoid monotony.
10.
Interesting Start
to Grab the Attention: It is very
important to begin your talk in an interesting manner in order to grab the attention of the
audience immediately. Generally, the members of the audience are busy in their
conversation when you begin your talk. You need to do something to take their
attention off that chit chat so that they may begin to pay attention to you.
You have to grab their attention. To do so, you can begin your talk by with
some amusing
anecdote or quotation or verse or a joke, or an antithetic or shocking
statement. You can also start by asking them a question. But you must do something to catch
their attention at once so that they do not miss the early part of your talk.
11.
Judicious use of
body language - No talk can be effective
without the proper use of body language. One must use body language to support and supplement
his ideas. Body language performs two very important functions. It serves to clarify and reinforce the ideas
being expressed. Besides, body language lends liveliness to the talk and helps the speaker to hold the audience’s interest.
12.
Relevance of
matter – All the information given, ideas expressed and facts supplied should be relevant to the
subject of the talk. Every word spoken, every bit of information should throw light on the topic chosen for
the talk. If it lacks relevance, the talk will be reduced to a farce. The
audience will start raising eyes wondering which way the speaker is heading.
13.
Proper
organisation of matter – The information
being given must be properly classified and organised to create the right effect. Ideas and
facts should be arranged logically in the ascending or descending order of importance. It may
sometimes be advisable to arrange the matter in chronological order. Pyramid or inverted pyramid structure are the
other ways to arrange the material of the talk. The former gives the arguments
first and then draws the conclusions. The latter begins with the conclusions
and then proceeds to support them with arguments and facts. The choice of the
pattern of arrangement depends to a large extent on the topic. But it must in any case follow a
suitable pattern. Haphazardly arranged ideas always lead to chaos and confusion.
14.
Verbal signals of
transition – The speaker has to keep moving from one kind of information
to another. To carry the audience with him, it is essential for the speaker to signal through words the
transition from one type to another, from one idea to another.
These verbal signals help the audience to move with him without any problem. They do not feel lost when the speaker
switches over from one part to the other.
15.
Audience
awareness – The speaker must be aware of
the needs and
interests of the audience, their intellectual level, their educational level and their command of the language. What he tells them, how he tells it and the words he uses are all determined by his awareness of the
audience. He must choose a topic that they are interested in,
give them the information they need and give it in words that they understand.
Otherwise, he will not be able to have and hold their attention.
16.
Simple Language – As far as possible, the language used should
be simple which every
member can understand. If all the members do not belong to the same field of
specialisation, jargon should scrupulously be avoided. However, it may be
used if everyone in the audience are expected to be familiar with it.
17.
Interesting and
amusing – A dry, dull and drab talk can
never be effective. To keep the interest of the audience, the speaker must make
the talk interesting by choosing amusing language, throwing in interesting
anecdotes, injecting into it a sprinkling of humour and varying his tone
continuously.
18.
Relief – Throwing in relief is also another way of
making a talk effective. A serious talk should not be serious throughout. Nor
should a comic one be comic all through. A touch of seriousness in a light talk
and a sprinkling of light touches in a serious talk enhances its beauty and
appeal. All know that excess of everything is bad.
19.
Heeding the
feedback – The speaker should keep his
eyes and ears open and pay due attention to the feedback that he is receiving.
A positive feedback will enthuse him and make him give more than he had
planned. But more important than the positive feedback is the negative feedback.
If at any stage of the talk, he finds that the audience are losing interest in
his talk, he must think of doing something to keep them interested.
20.
Eye contact – The speaker must keep regular eye contact
with the audience. It helps him to hold their attention as well as to keep an
eye on the feedback. He is also able to strike a rapport with the audience
through his eyes. But an important thing is that he should not keep his eyes
focused on one section of the audience all the time. He should keep moving his
eyes from one part of the audience to the other so that no section of the
audience feels ignored.
21.
Question Time
for Clarifications: In the end, it is
important to allow the audience an opportunity to seek clarifications and
remove any doubts by asking questions. Alternatively, you can engage them in a
discussion.
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