Why should teachers have good communication skills?
The art of communication comprises several areas, including listening, speaking, reading and writing. For teachers, it is necessary to gain expertise in all of these areas so that they can make teaching-learning more effective. Teachers with sound communication skills are better able to understand as well as analyze information and express their thoughts and feelings. All these traits enable such teachers to disseminate knowledge and communicate with their pupils in a better way. Further, teachers with good communication skills are found to be more successful when it comes to conveying their care for students, influencing as well as guiding students, understanding students’ feelings and emotions and regulating them in a better way.
Communication can be receptive as well as expressive. Teachers should be able to listen to their students properly and at the same time, explain things to their students in a clear manner. While presenting a new material or teaching a new chapter or concept, teachers should have clarity of thought. Similarly, they should be able to teach complex ideas/concepts in a simple and easy-to-understand manner. These skills pave the way for teachers to ensure students’ optimum development and learning.
Students’ learning style and learning needs vary. Teachers, therefore, should adopt a teaching approach that caters to different learning styles and learning needs of students. Undoubtedly, an effective teaching approach may prove futile if a teacher’s communication skills are not up to par. If a teacher is a good communicator, he/she will be able to add life to any boring lesson.
Non-verbal communications, comprising tone of voice, facial expression, body language, gesture, can make a teacher’s teaching style more effective. All these skills help teachers convey their instructions in a more effective manner. Besides, be it influencing students or observing students’ day-to-day activities, these skills always come in handy for teachers.
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