PGDE EST 704-Edu Tech. Lecture Series No -Resource Centres and Educational Technology-Lecture Series Instructional Communication

Educational Technology Lecture Series N0 8: Instructional Communication 

By

Olaide Alabi 

Objectives At the end of the lesson learners should be able to: • Define instructional communication • State the Factors that make Instructional communication perceived as a teacher-controlled mode • State the relevance of instructional communication • Highlight the Characteristics of instructional communications • List the Structures of instructional communications Definition of instructional communication. Instructional communication refers to exchanging information, ideas, and messages between teachers and students within the educational context. It covers the various verbal and nonverbal dealings, strategies, and techniques used by teachers to convey instructional content, engage students in learning activities, provide feedback, and facilitate understanding. It is suitable communication behaviour to accomplish educational goals especially to make learners grasp the content of the concept being taught in the classroom and whose personal and academic needs are fulfilled It focuses on the role that communication plays in any instructional process, which is independent of the type of students/learners, the subject matter, or the instructional setting. It is a system that empowers teachers thus, it is seen as a teacher-controlled, linear process the teacher is the person primarily responsible for creating messages which will stimulate teacher-selected meanings in students' minds. It is often perceived so because the teacher typically takes on the role of the primary communicator and facilitator of learning within the educational setting. Factors that make Instructional communication perceived as a teacher-controlled mode The Instructional communication process always follows the conventional order therefore it is expected that teachers have to do everything purposely to facilitate learning, given this instruction has been defined as any intentional effort to stimulate learning by the deliberate arrangement of experiences to help learners achieve a desirable change in capability. The following factors contribute to the conservative nature of Instructional communication.  Teacher as Authority Figure: In traditional educational settings, the teacher is often seen as the authority figure responsible for delivering instruction, organizing learning activities, and guiding student learning.  Power Dynamics: The inherent power dynamic in the teacher-student relationship always influences the flow of communication making the teacher hold authority and expertise over the subject matter hence the teacher exerting control over the content, pace, and direction of instruction.  Curriculum and Instructional Design: Teachers normally follow conventional curriculum guidelines and instructional materials in the instructional process. The overall structure and content of the instruction are often predetermined, contributing to a perception of teacher control over instructional communication.  Classroom Management: Effective classroom management requires teachers to establish and maintain order, structure, and routines within the classroom. Teachers could use many strategies and methods to accomplish this, especially by ensuring that student behaviour is put under control, simplifying learning activities, and creating a positive learning environment, further reinforcing the perception of teacher control.  Role of Feedback and Assessment: Teachers play a central role in providing feedback, assessing student learning, and evaluating performance within the instructional context. Through feedback and assessment, teachers guide student progress, monitor learning outcomes, and make decisions about instructional interventions, contributing to a sense of teacher control over the learning process. While instructional communication may be perceived as teacher-controlled due to these factors, it is important to be aware of the fact that effective instructional communication involves collaboration, interaction, and shared responsibility between teachers and students. Teachers can empower students by encouraging active participation, promoting student voice and agency, and creating opportunities for student-centred learning experiences. By fostering a collaborative and inclusive learning environment, teachers can mitigate perceptions of teacher control and promote meaningful engagement and learning for all students. Relevance of the New Trend of Instructional Communication The new trend in Instructional communication is to allow the process of instruction student-teacher collaboration, whereby a form of teamwork is formed between them. In The new trend Instructional communication serves as the primary means through which knowledge, skills, and understanding are conveyed, shared, and acquired within the educational context interactively. Students are free to communicate their thoughts, feelings and needs. It assists students in coming out of ignorance, confusion and misconception.   Facilitating Understanding: Instructional communication will aid instructors in highlighting the important aspects of the topic that should not be neglected. It reveals the level of intelligence and skill of the instructor and assists in revealing things that are mundane in the course of instruction. It helps students grasp and comprehend complex concepts, theories, and information. Teachers utilise various communication policies, such as clear explanations, examples, analogies, and demonstrations, to make content more accessible and understandable for students.  Promoting Engagement: Instructional communication will make students understand the purpose of the concept at hand, students will find it easy to learn if the teachers make use of Instructional communication effectively. Instructional communication occupies students' attention in instruction, by capturing their interest, attention, and motivation. Engaging communication techniques, such as interactive lectures, discussions, collaborative activities, and multimedia presentations, stimulate student curiosity, curiosity, and active participation in learning activities.  Supporting Differentiation: Instructional communication supports differentiation by accommodating diverse learner needs, preferences, and learning styles. Teachers use a variety of communication methods and formats, such as visual aids, hands-on activities, technology-enhanced instruction, and differentiated instruction strategies, to address individual student differences and promote inclusive learning experiences.  Providing Feedback and Guidance: Instructional communication involves providing feedback, guidance, and support to students throughout the learning process. Teachers offer constructive feedback, praise, encouragement, and corrective guidance to help students monitor their progress, address misconceptions, and improve their learning outcomes.  Facilitating Collaboration and Interaction: Instructional Communication allows students to become more active participants in the learning process. Contributing input requires that students comprehend what is being discussed, organize their thinking coherently, and express that thinking with carefully constructed language. Instructional communication fosters collaboration, interaction, and knowledge sharing among teachers and students. Communication techniques, such as discussions, group work, peer collaboration, and cooperative learning activities, promote social interaction, cooperative problem-solving, and shared learning experiences.  Enhancing Retention and Transfer: Effective instructional communication enhances students' retention and transfer of knowledge by facilitating meaningful learning experiences. It offers the opportunity to think about teaching in new ways, this gives room for instructors to use different techniques. It could aid in facilitating group work. Other techniques, such as web-based course calendars and sample papers posted on the Internet (with student permission) can easily be incorporated into an instructional system. It could promote active engagement, critical thinking, and application of learning, such as hands-on activities, real-world examples, and problem-solving tasks, helping students connect new information to prior knowledge and apply it in different contexts.  Building Positive Relationships: Through Instructional Communication teacher should have the ability to persuade his students to accept new ideas and arguments, knowledge must be presented in a way that will not leave students wondering at the end of the lesson whether to accept or reject the new ideas. It should help build positive relationships and rapport between teachers and students. Clear, supportive, and respectful communication fosters a positive classroom climate, trust, and mutual respect, which are essential for effective teaching and learning. In a nutshell, instructional communication ought to be utilized to build a good atmosphere for meaningful social interactions  Promoting Metacognitive Skills: Instructional communication encourages the development of metacognitive skills, such as self-regulation, reflection, and goal setting, by encouraging students to think about their learning process and monitor their understanding. Teachers use communication techniques, such as self-assessment, goal setting, and reflection prompts, to help students become more self-aware and self-directed learners.  Expand the reach of the curriculum: Instructional Communication can expand the existing curriculum to students on a regional, national, and international level. This is achievable, especially by incorporating various communication strategies and technologies to improve teaching and learning outcomes. Educators can create an enriching learning environment that promotes student engagement, collaboration, critical thinking, and academic success.  Professional satisfaction: Utilising instructional communication plays a crucial role in creating a positive teaching and learning environment, fostering student engagement and success, and promoting professional satisfaction and fulfilment for educators. It can be an enormously rewarding experience for teachers  Instructor convenience: instructional communication plays a crucial role in promoting instructor convenience by facilitating clear communication, structured lesson planning, efficient feedback mechanisms, and use of technology, inclusive practices, flexible delivery options, and collaborative communication within educational contexts. Hence, instructional Communication offers teachers conveniences not available in traditional classroom settings;  Student-centred learning: Instructional communication can be a student-centred learning mode by prioritizing the needs, interests, and experiences of students in the teaching and learning process. There are a variety of tools that can aid specific learning styles and help students become more resourceful learners. Especially by promoting active personalized learning, student empowerment, feedback and reflection, collaborative learning, real-world relevance, and inquiry-based approaches within the teaching and learning process.  Easy access to global resources: Instructional communication can serve as easy access to global resources by leveraging various communication technologies and platforms to connect educators and students with a wide range of educational materials, experts, and opportunities from around the world. Different digital information can be easily accessed and relate well to the process of instruction. As a result, social networks and open-access initiatives connect educators and students with a wealth of related resources, experts, and opportunities from around the world. This could enhance learning experiences, promote cross-cultural understanding, and foster collaboration and innovation in education.  Experiential learning through multimedia presentations: by providing engaging, immersive, and interactive learning experiences, new technologies can be used to engage and motivate students. Technology can also be used to support students in their learning activities.  Accessible for non-traditional students: making instructional communication accessible for non-traditional students requires a proactive approach that prioritizes inclusivity, flexibility, and responsiveness to diverse learning needs and experiences, educators can create an equitable and supportive learning environment where all students can thrive and succeed. Instructional communication can be made accessible for non-traditional students, who may have diverse backgrounds, experiences, and needs, by adopting inclusive communication strategies and leveraging flexible delivery methods. Through Instructional Communication different media could be utilized to deliver instruction and make the mode of learning very easy.  Draws on student interest: Different categories of people have developed an interest in learning and acquiring more knowledge instructional communication will provide opportunities for all categories of interested learners. By drawing on student interest through these strategies, instructional communication can create a more engaging, relevant, and motivating learning environment that fosters curiosity, enthusiasm, and active participation among students. Overall, instructional communication is essential for creating meaningful learning experiences, promoting student engagement and understanding, supporting diverse learner needs, and fostering a positive and inclusive learning environment. By employing effective instructional communication strategies, teachers can enhance teaching effectiveness, facilitate student learning, and promote academic success for all learners. Characteristics of Instructional Communications Student-Centred Classrooms: Instructional communication fosters a student-centred classroom by promoting active engagement, personalized learning, student empowerment, feedback and reflection, collaborative learning, real-world relevance, and inquiry-based approaches within the teaching and learning process. By prioritizing the needs and interests of students, instructional communication creates a supportive and inclusive learning environment where all students can thrive and succeed. 1. Teaching for Understanding: instructional communication serves as a teaching for understanding by promoting clarity and explanation, active engagement, conceptual understanding, critical thinking skills, problem-solving abilities, metacognitive awareness, and transfer of learning among students. By fostering deep comprehension and meaningful learning experiences, instructional communication equips students with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed for success in academic, professional, and everyday contexts 2. Teachers support students learning: The role of teachers is to assist students to have links to the new learning experience and with impending ideas on how to solve all sorts of challenges. Instructional communication plays a crucial role in helping instructors support students in having links to the new learning experience, by facilitating clarity of instruction, promoting active and cognitive engagement, scaffolding learning, differentiating instruction, promoting transfer, and creating a supportive learning environment. By leveraging effective communication strategies, educators empower students to build upon their prior knowledge and experiences, make connections across disciplines, and construct new understandings in meaningful and relevant ways. 3. It is an avenue for educators to support learners in being metacognitive: instructional communication plays a crucial role for educators to assist students in being metacognitive, especially by promoting reflective thinking, enhancing self-regulation, and improving learning strategies, facilitating the transfer of learning, supporting problem-solving skills, and fostering habits of lifelong learning. By incorporating metacognitive activities and strategies into instructional practices, educators empower students to take ownership of their learning, become more independent and self-directed learners, and develop the skills and dispositions needed for success in academic, professional, and everyday contexts. 4. It makes teachers and learners become partners in the instructional system: Instructional communication plays a crucial role in making. It makes teachers and learners become partners in the instructional system, by promoting collaboration, shared responsibility, mutual respect, two-way feedback, and co-creation of learning experiences and resources. By fostering a collaborative and inclusive learning environment, instructional communication empowers educators and students to work together towards common goals, co-construct knowledge, and cultivate lifelong learning skills that are essential for success in academic, professional, and everyday contexts 5. Educators create time for students to learn collaboratively: instructional communication plays a crucial role in making educators create time for students to learn collaboratively by promoting active engagement, peer learning, critical thinking, communication skills, social interaction, diversity and inclusion, and lifelong learning habits. By incorporating collaborative learning activities into instructional practices, educators create a supportive and interactive learning environment where students can thrive academically, socially, and personally. 6. An avenue for educators to utilise practical, meaningful and reliable assessments: instructional communication plays a crucial role in making practical, meaningful and reliable assessments by promoting alignment with learning goals, deeper understanding, preparation for real-life applications, student engagement, critical thinking, feedback for improvement, and equity and inclusion. By incorporating meaningful and authentic assessment methods into instructional practices, educators enhance the quality and relevance of assessment practices and better prepare students for success in academic, professional, and personal contexts. 7. Students are endowed to use former knowledge to create new learning: instructional communication plays a crucial role in empowering students to use former knowledge to create new learning by promoting active engagement, meaningful learning experiences, self-directed learning, transfer of learning, metacognitive awareness, and lifelong learning habits. By connecting students' prior knowledge as a foundation for new learning, educators create a supportive and inclusive learning environment where all students can thrive and succeed. Structures of instructional communications. 

  Instructional Environment: the instructional environment plays a multifaceted role in instructional communication by shaping the physical, social, cultural, and psychological context in which teaching and learning occur. By creating a supportive, inclusive, and engaging instructional environment, educators can enhance the effectiveness of instructional communication and promote meaningful learning experiences for all students. Instructional environments include such elements as the nature of the institution, the nature of the classroom, the culture of the institution in the surroundings along with the population, all levels of instruction, the physical and social climate in which the institution exists, transitory factors (e.g., political setting, the existence of athlete activities, class size, and various additional elements.  Students: If students could apply critical thinking and inquiry skills, collaborate with peers, develop metacognitive awareness, apply and transfer learning, and engage in feedback and reflection students could play an active and multifaceted role in instructional communication. This will enable them to be actively engaging with instructional content, self-regulating their learning and engaging in producing instructional content, self-modifying their learning. With this kind of responsibility in their learning and actively partaking in the instructional process, students promote the effectiveness and success of instructional communication to achieve meaningful learning outcomes. Some other elements in which students are relevant include their intelligence capacity, previous knowledge and disposition. In every classroom, students also usually differ in terms of gender, culture, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, etc. All of these elements impact the way students perceive teachers and teachers' communication behaviours.  Teachers: the teacher plays a central and dynamic role in instructional communication by serving as a facilitator of learning, content expert, instructional designer, facilitator of collaboration, assessor of learning, facilitator of reflection, role model, and mentor. By utilising effective instructional communication strategies and practices, the teacher promotes meaningful learning experiences, fosters student engagement and achievement, and cultivates a culture of inquiry, critical thinking, and lifelong learning in the classroom. The teacher introduces many aspects of variance into the instructional system. The teacher's level of intelligence, content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, communication competence, and experience are important. So are the teacher's education, personality, and temperament. All of these elements influence the teacher's choices of verbal and nonverbal communication behaviours in instruction.  Teachers' Verbal and Nonverbal Behaviours: There are individual differences in the manner of communication and teachers are not exempted from it. Teacher behaviours that are not orally spoken initiate considerable variance' into the instructional process. What teachers say and what they do not say serve as a continuous stream of messages which influence the meanings which are stimulated in students' minds. Normally, each teacher tends to have steady communication behaviour patterns which are apparent to students.  Student perceptions of the teacher: Sometimes students have opinions of the teacher even before any instructional process with that teacher. Students may have received information about the teacher from the surrounding environment. If the teacher is unknown, however, students will begin to develop personal opinions of the teacher as soon as they begin to be exposed to her/him. These may be weak and unimagined at first, but they become stronger as exposure continues. These attitudes will be created primarily based on the teacher's verbal and nonverbal communication behaviours based on what the teacher says and how he/ she says it.  Instructional Outcomes: The primary outcomes of instructional communication are concerned with learning; cognitive, affective, and psychomotor in classes where appropriate. Another important aspect of instructional communication is student appraisals of the teacher. No matter the other numbers of outcomes students' assessment of teachers is central to the instructional communication process. Assignment Give a brief explanation of the structure of Instructional Communication References Baafi, R. K. A. (2020). School physical environment and student academic performance. Advances in Physical Education, 10(2), 121-137. Bao, W. (2020). COVID‐19 and online teaching in higher education: A case study of Peking University. Human behavior and emerging technologies, 2(2), 113-115. 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