Preliminary communication

Communication quality and social relationships in the classroom

Smiljana Zrilić ; Sveučilište u Zadru, Odjel za izobrazbu učitelja i odgojitelja

Abstract

The central motivation for exploring the quality of communication and social relationships in the classroom springs from the fact that pupils, but also their teachers, often fail to initialise and maintain satisfactory mutual relationships and have difficulties in establishing quality communication in the classroom. Contemporary theories see communication as the key to successful social relationships and desirable behaviour. Communication skills thus no longer include only the skill of using (context-appropriate forms of) speech, but a lot more: an ability to express and support one’s own opinion, an ability to engage in dialogue and a readiness to communicate. As communication is primarily developmental rather than static phenomenon, it is adjusted to a context and exposed to continual changes, it is both verbal and non-verbal, it is difficult to define in terms of contents and to situate within clearly set boundaries. It is therefore important to highlight the elementary components that affect the quality of communication and the development of social relationships – free and unthreatened communication. The teacher, as the head of the educational process, must encourage mutual understanding, respect, communication and equal collaboration among pupils. The teacher’s communication competencies are a precondition for the development of communication and social relationships quality in the classroom, so these will be considered in this context.

Keywords

communication quality; verbal and non-verbal communication; social relationships; social competencies; pupil; teacher

Hrčak ID:

118096

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/118096

Publication date:

29.12.2010.

Article data in other languages: croatian german

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