In this article, the behavior of a school going child (Chad) would be evaluated in order to understand his communicative behavior. The child is a Kindergarten child being brought up by a single mother. The academic performance of the child has been affected since he lacks communication skills that would help him cope with the challenges of the academic environment. In the case study, the child suffers from a serious problem related to poor academic performance and lack of turn-taking in discussions.
This implies that he lacks the verbal communication skills. The child tends to interrupt others when they are talking because he does not give others time to express their ideas in class. The child does not have sufficient skills that would help him do his homework meaning that he lacks the self-concept. Moreover, the child does not associate well with others in class.
His peers tend to shy-away from him because of the antisocial behavior. This is caused by negative perceptions towards others. The problem is serious because it has affected the socialization of Chad in many ways. He does not have friends since all of them would avoid him because of his poor communicative behavior. During class time, he does not take time to listen to the views of other students or even the teacher.
He interrupts the teacher meaning that he suffers from inferiority complex, which is associated with lack of self-concept. The child does not have confidence because he believes that he should contribute in every discussion for him to be seen as an able individual (Seon-Kyoung, & Doohwang, 2010). In other words, the child is suffers from guilt since he believes that keeping quiet and listening to others would subordinate him. This is a sign of lack of communication skills.
Characteristics of the Child’s Communication Behavior
A child is able to cope well with the challenges of society in case he or she is able to define his role in society. This entails learning relevant communication skills that would allow him or her interact freely with other members of society. The self plays an important role in development and acquisition of necessary skills needed for survival.
Children who are able to define their positions in society have high chances of excelling as compared to those who are confused as regards to self-definition. Research shows that the social-cognitive development of a child starts from the understanding of the physical world before it moves to the comprehension of the theoretical world.
This implies that children would first understand the noticeable characteristics surrounding them, including those of their friends before they become aware of the internal processes. The internal processes include the existence of wishes, viewpoints, aspirations, capacities, and outlooks. The way an individual express these internal process affects his communicative behavior. In an attempt to understand how self-understanding affects the development of children, this article gives the characteristics of Chad (Berk, 2009).
Chad has an antisocial behavior, which pushes him to engage others in fierce discussions even if it is not his turn. This shows that the child lacks basic communication skills. One of the features therefore is that the child is a poor listener because he does not wait for his turn whenever an opportunity for discussion arises. Additionally, the child does not have self-concept, which is usually considered communication strength.
He rarely plans for his time since he lacks even the slightest time to conduct private studies and accomplish his homework (Northup, & Liebler, 2010). The child is a good speaker, but this strength is invisible because he uses it negatively. He speaks a lot, which means that if he learns the concept of turn-taking, he would definitely become a good speaker in the future. The behavior of the child shows that he has a negative perception towards other individuals.
He does not believe that other people have anything tangible to offer. This is a very dangerous attitude in a communication environment. An individual with such behavior would tend to interrupt whenever others speak because he believes he or she is intelligent. In communication, an individual is expected to listen carefully and evaluate the message before making a conclusion.
Strategies for Improving Communication
Chad should be given specialized lessons in order to help him improve his communication skills. Chad is not any different from other people suffering from poor interaction skills. Without communication skills, it is difficult for an individual to undertake his or her responsibilities in the right way. For Chad to improve, a number of strategies are suggested. The areas that he needs to improve include perception, listening, and self-concept. He will definitely improve if he changes his perception towards others.
Through relevant strategies, he would not be interrupting other people when they talk. The issue of not working on his assignments would be resolved through cultivating the idea of self-concept. Communication scholars observe that communication skills are hard to acquire, but they are easy to maintain (Gamble, & Gamble, 2008). Therefore, Chad will be a changed person once he learns the communication skills.
To achieve effective communication, Chad should be advised to focus fully on the speaker in any conversation. In this regard, he should be advised to observe the body language of the speaker, including other non-verbal cues.
Concentrating on what speakers say is very important for any individual wishing to learn listening skills. Regarding the issue of interruption, he needs to be advised to redirect the conversation to his own concerns. He should be giving each speaker a chance to talk before thinking of what to say based on the speaker’s message.
Being judgmental might be another reason why Chad is a poor communicator, especially when it comes to listening. As a rule, Chad should develop an interest in what is said for him to respond to other people’s views in a timely manner. Stress might be one of the reasons why Chad does not concentrate on his homework. In this case, strategies aiming at eliminating stress are to be adopted in advising Chad to improve his communication.
Application of the Case Study
It should be understood that communication influences many things in an individual’s life. The way an individual relates with other members of society determines his or her position. Individuals who give others a chance to express their ideas are usually respected, as opposed to those who interrupt others when they are speaking.
For Chad, he is hated by his friends because he does not respect them when they try to express their feelings. In this case, turn-taking should be emphasized since it plays a critical role in enhancing listening skills. The case study teaches that people should always give others a chance to express their ideas and feelings before responding. One of the positive lessons learned about Chad is that he is a great speaker. However, he does not apply his speaking skills appropriately.
References
Berk, L. E. (2009). Child Development. Boston, MA: Ally &Bacon.
Gamble, T. K. & Gamble, M. (2008). Communication works. Boston [Mass.: McGraw-Hill.
Northup, T. & Liebler, C.M. (2010). The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful. Journal of Children & Media, 4(3), 265-282.
Seon-Kyoung, A. & Doohwang, L. (2010). An Integrated Model of Parental Mediation: The Effect of Family Communication on Children’s Perception of Television Reality and Negative Viewing Effects. Asian Journal of Communication, 20(4), 389-403.