WHAT IS LANGUAGE?

According to Diaz (2006), language is our most

effective medium of communication. It has one (1)
purpose: to serve as the code for the transmission
of messages between and among people. Thus, by
the virtue of convention or social agreement,
language exists as a tool used in expressing ideas
and feelings to achieve understanding. It is a part
of, in fact, the greatest achievement of culture and
is adequate for the communication needs of the
people who use it.
In addition, we also use language to communicate with
other people.
• When and how communication stared?

• Are we born with the gift to speak a

particular language different from that
of others?

• How do we learn to communicate?

• Where did language came from?

 WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
• The transmission of ideas and emotions
between or among persons with the use
of verbal and non-verbal cues.

• Broad term for the two-way dynamic

process of message transmission.

• Embraces both the verbal and non verbal

aspects.
 THEORIES OF COMMUNICATION

Bow-wow Theory - This theory states that language is a product of man’s

mimicking of the sounds of nature. For example, when water moves, one
hears a splash or a slosh. Animal sounds form part of the English dictionary.
Among them are croak (frogs), cackle (hens), crow (roosters), growl (tigers),
tweet (birds), and oink (pigs).

Ding-dong Theory - Similar to Bow-wow Theory, the ding-dong theory

attributes the development of the language to man’s imitative nature.
However, human beings did not only imitate sounds coming from nature, but
also imitated the sounds emanating from those things they themselves
produced. For example, the sounds of a train (toot), a clock (tick or tic-tac), a
horn (honk), a gun (bang), an explosive device (boom), and a metallic object
(ting) form part of the English vocabulary.
Pooh-pooh Theory - According to this theory, languages of men came
as a result of their emotional outbursts. For example, the Americans
exclaim words out of pain (ouch), awe (lo), pleasure (wow), cheer
(hurray), disgust (yuck), and dismay (oh). In the same way, Filipinos
have expressions for pain (aray), awe (hay), pleasure (naks), cheer
(yehey), disgust (naku), and dismay (ay).

Yo-he-ho Theory - This theory states that a language is a product of

man’s physical activities. Human beings utter words as they exert effort
in accomplishing their physical tasks. For example, when an individual
smells what he is cooking, he expresses “Hmmm!” When a martial arts
expert performs a karate move, he says “Hayks!” When a woman gives
birth to a baby, she cries “Oooh!” And when someone gets too tired in a
marathon race, he murmurs “Ah!”.
Ta-ta Theory - Allied to the yo-he-ho theory, the ta-ta theory attributes man’s
language to some physical acts of men, particularly their hand gestures. It
states that language is produced out of their ability to form words based on
the movements of their hands. For example, the term “ta-ta”, a French word
meaning “goodbye”, is created by letting the tongue move up and down in
much the same way as the hand moves as a person waves goodbye.

Tarara-boom-de-ay Theory - According to this theory, rituals of primitive

men were responsible for the birth of language. Rituals were an
indispensable part of their lives. During these rituals, there were dancing,
singing or chanting and shouting. The words that came out of their mouths
as they chanted and shouted later became expressions in their respective
languages.
Before, we are not aware of the things about the theories of language and
communication even if we are using it everyday. Now, it is clear and made us
more intellectual about the history and theories of communication. We
imitate sounds to communicate with other people and this is how
communication started.
When we were young, we tried to communicate with our parents through
imitation of sounds, words though unclear are still a way of communication
understood by chosen people around we who uses the same language.
• What is effective communication?

• Why should we communicate?

• How do we foster effective

communication?
 EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
In the information age, we have to send, receive, and process huge
numbers of messages every day. But effective communication is
about more than just exchanging information; it's also about
understanding the emotion behind the information. Effective
communication can improve relationships at home, work, and in
social situations by deepening your connections to others and
improving teamwork, decision-making, and problem-solving. It
enables you to communicate even negative or difficult messages
without creating conflict or destroying trust.
 EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS
1. Listening - Listening is one of the most important aspects
of effective communication. Successful listening means
not just understanding the words or the information
being communicated, but also understanding how the
speaker feels about what they’re communicating. The
following are the tips for effective communication.
To become more effective in listening, you may...
• focus fully on the speaker
• avoid interrupting
• avoid seeming judgmental
• show your interest
2. Non-verbal Communication - When we communicate things that we care

about, we do so mainly using nonverbal signals. Wordless

communication, or body language, includes facial expressions, body

movement and gestures, eye contact, posture, the tone of your voice,

and even your muscle tension and breathing. The way you look, listen,

move, and react to another person tells them more about how you’re

feeling than words alone ever can. Developing the ability to understand

and use nonverbal communication can help you connect with others,

express what you really mean, navigate challenging situations, and

build better relationships at home and work.

Non-Verbal Communication is basically important in communication

because it is how your body/facial expressions tend to react the

conversation will speaking or listening. This may trigger the anger or

unpleasant reactions that may affect the delivery of the message.

3. Managing Stress - In small doses, stress can help you perform under pressure.
However, when stress becomes constant and overwhelming, it can hamper

effective communication by disrupting your capacity to think clearly and

creatively, and act appropriately. When you’re stressed, you’re more likely to

misread other people, send confusing or off-putting nonverbal signals, and lapse

into unhealthy knee-jerk patterns of behavior. If you can quickly relieve stress and

return to a calm state, you’ll not only avoid such regrets, but in many cases you’ll

also help to calm the other person as well. It’s only when you’re in a calm, relaxed

state that you'll be able to know whether the situation requires a response, or

whether the other person’s signals indicate it would be better to remain silent.

Before communicating to other people, if you are stressed, make sure that you are

calm and may never transfer the stressed to other people which may affect the

communication or the worst, the relationship.

4. Emotional awareness —the consciousness of your moment-to-
moment emotional experience—and the ability to manage all of
your feelings appropriately is the basis for effective
communication. It provides you the tools needed for
understanding both yourself and other people, and the real
messages they are communicating to you. Although knowing
your own feelings may seem simple, many people ignore or try
to sedate strong emotions like anger, sadness, and fear. But
your ability to communicate depends on being connected to
these feelings. If you’re afraid of strong emotions or if you insist
on communicating only on a rational level, it will impair your
ability to fully understand others, creatively problem solve,
resolve conflicts, or build an affectionate connection with
someone.
 PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION
• According to Menoy (2010), communication is a process and, as such, it
comes in stages. It starts with the encoding and ends with the
decoding. The encoder is more popularly known as the sender of the
message. He transmits his message (for example, an idea) to the
receiver, a more popular term for the decoder of the message. The
recipient tries to understand the message, and if he does,
communication takes place. He may then give his feedback. If there is a
continuous exchange of messages between the sender and the receiver,
particularly in an oral discourse, communication takes the form of a
cycle.

• Menoy (2010) adds that in cases where there is a channel (medium or

instrument used in the transmission of message, for example, a
telephone) of communication, it forms part of the diagram.
 ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION
• The sender

• The message

• The channel

• The receiver

• Feedback
The sender – is the speaker or the communicator who
has his/her own purpose, knowledge, interests, attitudes,
skills and credibility.

The message – is the idea being transmitted by the

sender to the listener. It includes the three (3) aspects of
content, structure and style.

The channel – is the medium or vehicle through which

the message is sent. It may be verbal or visual. The latter
is often supplemented with the pictorial and aural
channels
The receiver – is the target of the communication.
S/he is the destination of the message, the listener,
with his/her own purposes, knowledge and interest
levels, attitudes and listening skills.

Feedback – is the reaction given by the listener to

the sender of the message. It is what completes the
communication process.
MODELS OF COMMUNICATION