TASKs for democracy

Muddled messages
Effective communication starts with a clear message. Compare these two messages: “Please be here around
9:00 tomorrow morning” and “Please be here at 9:00 tomorrow morning”. The one-word difference makes the
first message muddled and the second message clear. Muddled messages are a barrier to communication
because the sender leaves the receiver unclear about the intent of the sender. Clarifying muddled messages
is the responsibility of the sender. The sender hoping the receiver will figure out the message does little to
remove this barrier to communication.
Language
This can be described by a real example from a classroom. A young and ambitious teacher planned a lesson
about the decision-making process in her country. When she finished her presentation she asked her students
if everything was clear. The answer was positive. Still, she had concerns. To check her suspicions, she handed
each student the handouts with her presentation and asked them to highlight the words they did not understand
in red. When she collected the feedback she was stunned – almost half of the text was in red.
Physical distractions
Physical distractions are the physical things that get in the way of communication. Examples of such things
include the telephone, a desk, an uncomfortable meeting place, noise, a meeting room with uncomfortable
chairs that soon cause people to want to stand and leave even if it means cutting short the discussion.
TASK SHEET 5
Chart for discussion in groups
Barriers to communication
There are many different barriers to communication and approaches to classify them.
This is the opinion of MY GROUP about barriers to communication that are most disruptive in the context of
EDC/HRE implementation and building a positive ethos at school.
Aspects of school ethos that interfere with
EDC/HRE implementation
How to overcome barriers
TASKs for democracy Page 182