Table 4: Expectations for Speaking and
Listening for College Graduates
Advanced Communication Skills
(Morreale & Rubin, 1997)
Advanced skills are more than just knowing, doing, or
feeling (Rubin & Morreale, 1996). They are blends of knowledge, skill, and attitude;
they require greater levels of behavioral flexibility/adaptability. For instance, a basic
skill such as "Identify communication goals" at an advanced level becomes
"Manage multiple communication goals." This advanced skill requires both
identification of the goals and the behavioral component of managing the goals, both of
which require adaptability. Such advanced skills were identified by the survey of faculty,
employers, and policy makers (Jones, 1994). The following list of advanced skills
represents what might be expected of a college graduate in a variety of different
communication situations. Advanced skills specifically for public speaking and for
interpersonal (one-on-one) communication are also included.
Advanced skills also require reasoning and audience
analysis. Examples of advanced skills include being able to understand people from other
cultures, organizations, or groups, and adapting messages to the demands of the situation
or context (Jones, 1994). Both require greater emphasis on creating appropriate and
effective messages, two main components of competence. College graduates also need to
refine their listening skills; they need to identify important issues or problems, draw
conclusions, and understand others to manage conflict better and empathize with their
colleagues. Jones concluded that "advanced skills in both writing and speech
communication require the development of reasoning skills" (p. 38). Speech
communication educators have long been teaching reasoning skills because they realized
that even basic communication skills require sound reasoning.
The advanced skills could be used to describe
expectations for graduates from any academic discipline. So each discipline could examine
these skills and determine applications for their graduates. Faculty and alumni groups
could identify examples of how the skills could be utilized by their graduates. In
capstone courses and before graduation, students’ skills could be assessed through
observation and testing. The department and the institution could use the assessment
results to inform their accountability and program review efforts (Rosenbaum, 1994).
Students could use the results in their personal portfolios to inform potential employers
of their advanced communication skills.
College graduates should be able to:
I. GENERAL SKILLS
1. Identify and adapt to changes in audience
characteristics.
2. Incorporate language that captures and maintains
audience interest in message.
3. Identify and manage misunderstandings.
4. Demonstrate credibility.
5. Demonstrate competence and comfort with information.
6. Recognize time constraints of a communication situation
and know how to operate within them.
7. Manage multiple communication goals effectively.
8. Demonstrate attentiveness through nonverbal and verbal
behaviors.
9. Adapt messages to the demands of the situation or
context.
II. SPEAKING IN PUBLIC
1. Incorporate information from a variety of sources to
support message.
2. Identify and use appropriate statistics to support the
message.
3. Use motivational appeals that build on values,
expectations, and needs of the audience.
4. Develop messages that influence attitudes, beliefs, and
actions.
III. RELATING TO OTHERS
1. Manage and resolve group conflicts effectively.
2. Approach and engage in conversation with new people in
new settings with confidence.
3. Negotiate effectively.
4. Allow others to express different views and attempt to
understand them.
5. Effectively assert themselves while respecting others'
rights.
6. Convey empathy.
7. Understand and value differences in communication
styles.
8. Be open-minded about and receptive of another's point of
view.
9. Motivate others to participate and work effectively as a
team.
10. Understand and implement different methods of building
group consensus.
11. Set and manage realistic agendas.
12. Lead meetings effectively.
13. Understand and adapt to people from other cultures,
organizations, or groups.
14. Identify important issues or problems, draw
conclusions, and understand other group members.
Continue on to Development of the
Competencies
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