participate in workplace communication

There are thousands of words in any language. But not all words have the same job. For example, some words express "action". Other words express a "thing". Other words "join" one word to another word. These are the "building blocks" of the language. Think of them like the parts of a house. When we want to build a house, we use concrete to make the foundations or base. We use bricks to make the walls. We use window frames to make the windows, and door frames to make the doorways. And we use cement to join them all together. Each part of the house has its own job. And when we want to build a sentence, we use the different types of word. Each type of word has its own job.

“Parts of speech” are the basic types of words that English has. Most grammar books say that there are eight parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions and interjections.

A noun is a word used to name a person, animal, place, thing, and abstract idea. Nouns are usually the first words which small children learn. The highlighted words in the following sentences are all nouns:

Late last year our neighbours bought a goat. Portia White was an opera singer. The bus inspector looked at all the passengers' passes. According to Plutarch, the library at Alexandria was destroyed in 48 B.C. Philosophy is of little comfort to the starving.

A verb is a word which describes an action (doing something) or a state (being something).

In each of the following sentences, the verb or compound verb is highlighted:

Dracula bites his victims on the neck.

The farmer searches the woods for his cow.

His automobile develops a motor trouble.

A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. You use pronouns like "he," "which," "none," and "you" to make your sentences less cumbersome and less repetitive.

In the following sentences, each of the highlighted words is a subjective personal pronoun and acts as the subject of the sentence:

I was glad to find the bus pass in the bottom of the green knapsack.

You are surely the strangest child I have ever met.

He stole the selkie's skin and forced her to live with him

When she was a young woman, she earned her living as a coal miner.

After many years, they returned to their homeland.

An adjective modifies a noun or a pronoun by describing, identifying, or quantifying words. An adjective usually precedes the noun or the pronoun which it modifies.

In the following examples, the highlighted words are adjectives:

The truck-shaped balloon floated over the treetops.

Mrs. Morrison papered her kitchen walls with hideous wall paper.

The small boat foundered on the wine dark sea.

The coal mines are dark and dank.

Many stores have already begun to play irritating Christmas music.

A battered music box sat on the mahogany sideboard.

The back room was filled with large, yellow rain boots.

An adverb can modify a verb, an adjective, another adverb, a phrase, or a clause. An adverb indicates manner, time, place, cause, or degree and answers questions such as "how," "when," "where," "how much".

While some adverbs can be identified by their characteristic "ly" suffix, most of them must be identified by untangling the grammatical relationships within the sentence or clause as a whole. Unlike an adjective, an adverb can be found in various places within the sentence.

In the following examples, each of the highlighted words is an adverb:

The seamstress quickly made the mourning clothes.

The midwives waited patiently through a long labour.

The boldly spoken words would return to haunt the rebel.

We urged him to dial the number more expeditiously.

You can use a conjunction to link words, phrases, and clauses, as in the following example:

I ate the pizza and the pasta.

Call the movers when you are ready

A preposition links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that the preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition.

A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence as in the following examples:

The book is on the table.

The book is beneath the table.

The book is leaning against the table.

The book is beside the table.

She held the book over the table.

She read the book during class.

In each of the preceding sentences, a preposition locates the noun "book" in space or in time

An interjection is a word added to a sentence to convey emotion. It is not grammatically related to any other part of the sentence.

You usually follow an interjection with an exclamation mark. Interjections are uncommon in formal academic prose, except in direct quotations.

The highlighted words in the following sentences are interjections:

Ouch, that hurt!

Oh no, I forgot that the exam was today.

Hey! Put that down!

I heard one guy say to another guy, "He has a new car, eh?"

I don't know about you but, good lord, I think taxes are too high!

A sentence is a group of words containing a verb and its subject and expressing a completed thought.

A sentence always begins with a capital letter and ends with a mark of punctuation.

In order to express a complete thought, every sentence must have two parts – the subject and the predicate.

The subject of a sentence is that part about which something is said. In the following sentences, the subjects are in heavy type.

1. The eager quarterback shouted the signals.

2. Ricky reminded me of the game tonight.

3. An old brick building hung over the river’s edge

To find the subject of a sentence, ask yourself Who…? or What…? Suppose you want to find the subject of this sentence: The huge plane rolled slowly out of the hangar onto the runway. Ask yourself, What rolled? The answer is, The huge plane rolled. The plane is the subject of the sentence

The predicate of a sentence is that part which says something about the subject. In the following sentences, the predicates are in heavy type.

1. The tulips bloomed early this year.

2. Mr. McKay took a later train than usual.

3. Summer vacation is always too short.

That's it! A sentence is just someone or something being or doing something. Simple, huh?

A fragment is a sentence which is not complete, and therefore not grammatically correct. Sentence fragments are problematic because they are disjointed and confusing to the reader. There are three main causes of fragments: (a) a missing subject; (b) a missing verb; (c) "danger" words which are not finished.

When you read a sentence fragment, you are left wondering whom or what the sentence is about or what happened in the sentence.

You can change a sentence fragment into a complete sentence by adding the missing information.

A run-on sentence is one which actually contains two (or more) complete sentences without the proper punctuation to create separate sentences. There are two common forms of the run-on: (1) the "comma splice" in which a comma is inserted between two comp lete sentences where a period should actually be used; (2) a lack of punctuation where a semi-colon or period is needed.

John is a musician, he plays the guitar for a living. - Incorrect Example

The sentence above is incorrectly joined by a comma, thus "splicing" two complete sentences together into one run-on sentence. To correct these runon's, the comma should be replaced by a period, thus creating two separate sentences, as shown below.

John is a musician. He plays the guitar for a living. - Correct Example

Incorrect Examples:

1. There is a problem with the television however no one is available to fix it.

2. Nobody knows what really happened the policeman said there was a fight.

In each of the examples above, some type of punctuation is needed to separate the two parts of the sentence: either a semi-colon or a period.

Correct Examples

1. There is a problem with the television; however, no one is available to fix it. There is a problem with the television. However, no one is available to fix it.

2. Nobody knows what really happened; the policeman said there was a fight. Nobody knows what really happened. The policeman said there was a fight.

In order for a sentence to be grammatically correct, the subject and verb must both be singular or plural. In other words, the subject and verb must agree with one another in their tense. If the subject is in plural form, the verb should also be in plural form (and vice versa). To ensure subject-verb agreement, identify the main subject and verb in the sentence, then check to see if they are either plural or singular. Consider the examples below

• The following common pronouns are singular and take a singular verb: anybody, anyone, each, either, everybody, neither, nobody, no one, somebody, someone.

Examples:

1. Each of the pens costs a dollar

2. Everyone in the two families likes to play ping-pong.

3. Neither of these paths is the trail.

• The following common pronouns are plural and take plural verbs: both, few, many, several.

Examples:

1. Both of his trucks are disabled

2. Many of the sailboats are out today.

3. Several of the players rush to the mound.

• When the subject comes after the verb, as in interrogative sentences and sentences beginnining with here or there, be especially careful to determine the subject and make sure that it agrees with the verb.

Examples:

1. Was the contest exciting?

2. Were the contests exciting?

3. Here is the book.

4. Here are the books.

• Compound subject joined by and are plural and take a plural verb.

Examples:

1. Fishing and lumbering are carried on in the Northwest.

2. Corn and beans grow well in one garden.

Exemption: If the items in a compound subject actually refer to only one person or are thought of as one thing, the subject and the verb are singular.

Ex.

1. The president and manager of the factory is on vacation.

2. Strawberries and cream costs thirty pesos.

• Singular subjects joined by or or nor are singular and take a singular verb.

Examples:

1. Monday or Tuesday is all right for the picnic.

2. Neither snow nor icy wind keeps the travelers indoors.

COMMUNICATION

Is defined as the art of sending and receiving information. It is a process of conveying messages, of transmitting meaning between individuals. It is an exchange; for it to be effective, information must flow back and forth from sender to the receiver. The former must have some knowledge of the latter’s reaction. This process by which a system regulates itself by feeding to itself parts of its outputs is called feedback.

Basic Elements of Communication:

The process of communication is composed of three elements:

1. the source (sender, speaker, transmitter, or instructor),

2. the symbols used in composing and transmitting the message (words or signs), and;

3. the receiver (listener, reader, or student).

The three elements are dynamically interrelated since each element is dependent on the others for effective communication to take place.

Effective Communication helps workers to:

• complete a schedule of tasks

• follow a set of instructions

• learn correct procedures and improve work practices

• solve problems

• work as part of a team

• follow the enterprise Occupational Health and Safety and environmental procedures.

1. Verbal communication

2. Non-verbal communication

3. Written communication

In industries a large proportion of communication is verbal or spoken. This may occur face-to-face or via telephones or two-way radios. For verbal communication to be effective both the speaker and the listener need to be actively engaged in the conversation.

The speaker should be clear, concise, and courteous and use a style of language that is appropriate to the situation and the audience. The information should be accurate to the best of the speaker’s knowledge. The tone of voice and body language used when speaking are often as important as the words themselves.

The listener should give the speaker their full attention and be sure that they clearly understand the message being conveyed. Again, body language is very important. Good listening skills are necessary when receiving instruction or being taught new procedures.

Questions should be asked by the listener to clarify the meaning and by the speaker to ensure that the information has been fully understood. There are three types of questions:

1. Closed questions are used to obtain a particular piece of information. They are usually answered with a yes or no or with a limited response.

For example: Have you driven a four-wheel drive tractor before?

2. Open questions encourage people to discuss a situation and share information. They often require longer answers and begin with how, where, when, which, who, why or what.

For example: What types of tractors have you driven?

3. Reflective questions, also called mirror questions, are used to show the speaker that you have been actively listening to them. They are also helpful when encouraging a person to express their opinions clearly.

For example:

• So, you’ve driven this type of tractor before?

• You’ve found this type of tractor to run reliably, haven’t you?

Good speaking, listening and questioning skills are essential when communicating via the telephone or two-way radios to ensure that the correct information has been received.

There are a number of barriers that reduce the effectiveness of verbal communication. These include:

• inappropriate choice of language style

• inappropriate body language

• disruptions

• noise in the proximity and/or a poor signal

• relevance of the topic to the listener

• Assumptions made by both the speaker and listener.

A significant aspect of face-to-face communication is non-verbal body language. This includes body posture, arm and hand positions, facial expressions, and eye-contact and hand gestures. Sometimes a conflicting message may be given because the words spoken do not match a speaker’s body language.

Good observation skills are needed to ‘read’ what is really being communicated. Being aware of cues and signals is a crucial skill in understanding people’s attitudes.

Personal presentation, dress and hygiene also contribute to the impression a person makes when they are communicating.

Other forms of non-verbal communication regularly found in the workplace include:

• Signals, for example hand signals used when operating machinery; traffic lights.

• Signs, for example safety signs; workplace warnings; men’s, ladies and disabled toilets; first aid posts.

• Diagrams, for example property maps; diagrams in machinery manuals.

• Symbols, for example poison schedules; map legends; machinery gears and levers.

The four basic methods of communication in everyday life are: listening, speaking, reading and writing.

• Effective Listening and Speaking

In today’s changing world, listening and speaking play significant roles because the first contact between ourselves and others is established through this two-way process.

Listening and hearing are not the same. Hearing is simply the travel of sound through the ears to the brain without effort for the listeners; listening involves a reaction of the brain to the sounds waves. Another way of expressing this difference is to say that listening has a purpose. Different purposes in listening imply different kinds of listening.

Among the linguistic skills, speaking developed alongside listening. Learning to speak well is an asset. Since most of us talk much more than we write, we are judged more than by our speech than by our writing.

• Reading

A third communication skill after listening and speaking is reading. People read for many different reasons and in many different ways. One reason for reading is to find specific information, which is called scanning. Another, is for meaning and absorption of information or which is called active reading.

• Writing

Writing tends to be more formal than speaking. Writing can be group into three kinds according to style: formal, informal-public, and casual.

• Formal style is used for writing letters to the government officials, speeches, articles for newsletter and magazines, school assignments, long reports and formal compositions.

• Informal-public style is used in public communication, not private communication; we use it when we want to sound informal, not formal.

• Casual style is used in writing to friends, to classmates, and in jotting down notes to family members.

Recognizing the various barriers to communication further enhances the flow of ideas between an instructor and the student. The instructor must develop communication skills in order to convey desired information to the students and must recognize that communication is a two-way process. In the end, the true test of whether successful communication has taken place is to determine if the desired results have been achieved.

• Lack of common experience. Many people seem to believe that words transport meanings from speaker to listener in the same way that a truck carries bricks from one location to another. A communicator's words cannot communicate the desired meaning to another person unless the listener or reader has had some experience with the objects or concepts to which these words refer

• Confusion between the Symbol and the Symbolized Object. Languages abound with words that mean different things to different people. Confusion between the symbol and the symbolized object results when a word is confused with what it is meant to represent. Although it is obvious that words and the connotations they carry can be different, people sometimes fail to make the distinction. Words and symbols do not always represent the same thing to every person.

• Overuse of Abstractions. Abstractions are words that are general rather than specific. Concrete words or terms refer to objects that people can relate directly to their experiences. They specify an idea that can be perceived or a thing that can be visualized. Abstract words, on the other hand, stand for ideas that cannot be directly experienced, things that do not call forth mental images in the minds of the students.

• Interference. Barriers to effective communication are usually under the direct control of the sender/encoder. However, interference is made up of factors that are outside the direct control of the sender/encoder: physiological, environmental, and psychological interference. To communicate effectively, the sender should consider the effects of these factors.

Psychological interference is any biological problem that may inhibit symbol reception, such as hearing loss, injury or physical illness. These, and other physiological factors, can inhibit communication because the student is not comfortable.

Environmental interference is caused by external physical conditions. One example of this is the noise level found in many light aircraft. Noise not only impairs the communication process, but also can result in long- term damage to hearing.

Psychological interference is a product of how the sender and the receiver feel at the time the communication process is occurring. If either sender or receiver is not committed to the communication process, communication is impaired. Fear of the situation or mistrust between the sender and receiver could severely inhibit the flow of information.

• Downward communication. Communication flows from the superiors to its subordinates.

• Upward communication. The communication flows from the subordinates to its superiors.

• Lateral communication. Communication flows from functional areas at a given level of the organization or hospital.

• Diagonal communication. The communication flows from a subordinate of a certain level to the superior of another level and vice versa.

• Grapevine. It stretches throughout the organization in all directions irrespective of authority

• Rewarding and harmonious relationships with others

• Easily build rapport with clients, customers, friends, new acquaintances

• Getting what you want

• More time for yourself and others

• Satisfaction and success in life

It is often our failure to communicate effectively that leads to:

• Professional setbacks

• Personal disappointment

• Breakdown of important relationships

• Wasting energy and time on frustration and dramas

• Not reaching our full potential

TECHNICAL COMMUNICATIONS

Technical communications—or technical writing, as the course is often called—is not writing about a specific technical topic such as computers, but about any technical topic. The term "technical" refers to knowledge that is not widespread, that is more the territory of experts and specialists. Whatever your major is, you are developing an expertise—you are becoming a specialist in a particular technical area. And whenever you try to write or say anything about your field, you are engaged in technical communications.

Another key part of the definition of technical communications is the receiver of the information—the audience. Technical communications is the delivery of technical information to readers (or listeners or viewers) in a manner that is adapted to their needs, level of understanding, and background. In fact, this audience element is so important that it is one of the cornerstones of this course: you are challenged to write about highly technical subjects but in a way that a beginner—a nonspecialist—could understand. This ability to "translate" technical information to nonspecialists is a key skill to any technical communicator. In a world of rapid technological development, people are constantly falling behind and becoming technological illiterates. Technology companies are constantly struggling to find effective ways to help customers or potential customers understand the advantages or the operation of their new products.

Technical-writing introduce you to some of the most important aspects of writing in the world of science, technology, and business—in other words, the kind of writing that scientists, nurses, doctors, computer specialists, government officials, engineers, and other such people do as a part of their regular work.

To learn how to write effectively for the world of work, you'll study common types of reports, special format items such as lists and headings, simple techniques for putting graphics into reports, and some techniques for producing professional-looking final copy.

No matter what sort of professional work you do, you're likely to do lots of writing—and much of it technical in nature. The more you know about some basic technical-writing skills, which are covered in this guide and in technical writing courses, the better job of writing you're likely to do. And that will be good for the projects you work on, for the organizations you work in, and— most of all—good for you and your career.

Technical-background report. The background report is the hardest to define but the most commonly written. This type of technical report provides background on a topic—for example, solar energy, global warming, CD-ROM technology, a medical problem, or U.S. recycling activity. However, the information on the topic is not just for anybody who might be interested in the topic, but for some individual or group that has specific needs for it and is even willing to pay for that information.

Instructions. These are probably the most familiar of all the types of reports. Students often write backup procedures for the jobs they do at their work. Others write short user manuals for an appliance, equipment, or program. If there is too much to write about, they write about some smaller segment—for example, instead of instructions on using all of WordPerfect, just a guide on writing macros in WordPerfect.

Feasibility, recommendation, and evaluation reports. Another useful type of report is one that studies a problem or opportunity and then makes a recommendation. A feasibility report tells whether a project is "feasible"—that is, whether it is practical and technologically possible. A recommendation report compares two or more alternatives and recommends one (or, if necessary, none). An evaluation or assessment report studies something in terms of its worth or value.

Primary research report. Primary research refers to the actual work someone does in a laboratory or in the field—in other words, experiments and surveys. You may have written a "lab report," as they are commonly called, for one of your previous courses. This is a perfectly good possibility for the technical report as well. In this type of report, you not only present your data and draw conclusions about it, but also explain your methodology, describe the equipment and facilities you used, and give some background on the problem. You can modify this type by summarizing other primary research reports.

Technical specifications. In this report type, you discuss some new product design in terms of its construction, materials, functions, features, operation, and market potential. True specifications are not much on writing— the text is dense, fragmented; tables, lists, and graphics replace regular sentences and paragraphs whenever possible. Thus, specifications are not a good exercise of your writing abilities. However, you can write a more high-level version—one that might be read by marketing and planning executives.

Report-length proposal. As you may be aware, proposals can be monster documents of hundreds or even thousands of pages. (Please, not this semester.) Most of the elements are the same, just bigger. Plus elements from other kinds of reports get imported—such as feasibility discussion, review of literature, and qualifications; these become much more elaborate.

Business plans. If you are ambitious to run your own business, you can write a business plan, which is a plan or proposal to start a new business or to expand an existing one. It is aimed primarily at potential investors. Therefore, it describes the proposed business, explores the marketplace and the competition, projects revenues, and describes the operation and output of the proposed business.

Here is a brief review of some of the chief characteristics of the technical report:

Graphics: The report should have graphics. Graphics include all kinds of possibilities. If you can't think of any graphics for your report project, you may not have a good topic.

Factual detail: The report should be very detailed and factual. The point of the report is to go into details, the kind of details your specific audience needs.

Information sources: Your report should make use of information sources. These may include not only books and articles that can be found in libraries but also technical brochures, interviews or correspondence with experts, as well as first-hand inspections. If you don't believe any information sources are necessary for your report project, contact your instructor.

Documentation: When you use borrowed information in your technical report, be sure to cite your sources. One style commonly used in science and engineering is called the number system.

Realistic audience and situation: The report must be defined for a real or realistic group of readers who exist in a real or realistic situation. Most students invent an audience and situation. And the audience can't merely be something like "anybody who might be interested in global warming." Instead, it has to be real, realistic, and specific

Headings and lists: The report should use the format for headings that is required for the course, as well as various kinds of lists as appropriate.

Special format: The technical report uses a rather involved format including covers, binding, title page, table of contents, list of figures, transmittal letter, and appendixes.

Production: The technical report should be typed or printed out neatly. If graphics are taped in, the whole report must be photocopied, and the photocopy handed in (not the original with the taped-in graphics). The report must be bound in some way.

Length: The report should be at least 8 double-spaced typed or printed pages (using 1-inch margins), counting from introduction to conclusion. This is a minimum; a report of this length is rather skimpy. There is no real maximum length, other than what your time, energy, and stamina can handle. But remember that sheer weight does not equal quality (or better grade). If you get into a bind with a report project that would take too many pages, contact your instructor—there are numerous tricks we can use to cut it down to size.

Technical content: You must design your report project in such a way that your poor technical-writing instructor has a chance to understand it—in other words, you must write for the non-specialist. Also, at some point, you may get concerned about the technical accuracy of your information.

In the traditional system of taking notes for a long report, you:

1. Develop a rough outline.

2. Do any preliminary reading necessary to construct a rough outline.

3. Locate your information sources, and make bibliography cards for each source.

4. Take the actual notes on index cards.

5. Label each notecard according to its place in the outline.

6. Provide bibliographic information on each notecard.

7. Change or add extra detail to the outline as the note-taking process continues.

8. Check off the areas of the outline for which sufficient notes have been taken.

When you have taken sufficient notes to cover all parts of an outline, you transcribe the information from the notecards into a rough draft, filling in details, adding transitions, and providing your own acquired understanding of the subject as you write. Naturally, you may discover gaps in your notes and have to go back and take more notes.

How to Take Notes at a Meeting

Taking notes at a meeting is a completely different task than taking minutes at a meeting. When taking notes, one is not focusing on a general outline of decisions that were made or topics covered. Rather, the notes should serve as a comprehensive listing of the details of the meeting and the ideas and topics covered.

There are a number of ways to effectively take notes at a meeting. Choosing one should depend entirely on the method that is best suited to enhancing the memory and understanding of the note taker.

Comprehensive notes: For a person who is more comfortable knowing, and recording, every single detail, it is best to write everything that is said. While this would be difficult or impossible for some, for others it is simply the only way to be sure the information they collect is accurate.

Mind mapping: This graphical approach is an excellent option for people who do not want, or who don't feel able, to accumulate such detailed information. To create a mind map, it is best to obtain a copy of the agenda prior to the meeting. Then list any topics of the meeting on the center of a piece of paper.

Noting on the agenda: One of the easiest ways to take notes is on the physical agenda itself because the agenda already has the main points listed. Any information that could be used at a later date could be added next to the point on the agenda where it was discussed.

Technology helpers: For people who are able to type quickly, taking a laptop to a meeting is an effective way to take and organize notes. Notes can be typed directly into a word processing program and edited as the meeting is being held.

Rules for Numbers in Technical Writing

Technical writing often is filled with equations, measurements, quantities and other numeric data. The format for presenting the numeric data is ultimately determined by the assumed audience for the writing and their expectations. In general, the key to determining an appropriate form for a written number is the simple requirement that the meaning of the number must always be unambiguous.

Spelling out Numbers . Usually, numbers nine and under are written out as words, while numbers greater than that are written in numeric form. This requirement applies to ordinal numbers such as first, second and ninth. When numbers above 21 are written out, they are written as hyphenated words. Fractions such as one-third are hyphenated as well.

Measurements or Calculations. Always use numerals to express measurements or calculations. Write 8 inches x 10 inches rather than eight inches by ten inches. The audience or style guide will determine the appropriate use of abbreviations to match with numeric value. In the preceding example, inches was spelled out, but for many audiences the abbreviation in. would be appropriate. Equations are always expressed in numerals with the proper operator symbols. Write 2 + 2 = 4, not two plus two equals four. Decimal and percentage values always use numerals.

Sentence Structure. Do not begin a sentence with a numeral, regardless of the other formatting rules. Never write “33 dolphins were tested.” Write out the number; “Thirty-three dolphins were tested.” When a noun comes before the number, capitalize it. “Dolphin 9” but not “the ninth dolphin.”

Plural Numbers. A common mistake occurs when creating the plural form of a number, but the rules that apply are simple. The plural form of numbers less than 10 are formed by adding an apostrophe and an "s." Numbers that are 10 and greater are written by appending the "s" alone. Write “count by 2’s” and “in the 1970s”.

COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

All businesses have a need for effective communication, both between personnel within the workplace and with individuals and other businesses outside the workplace. Each workplace will have a communication system designed to meet its particular needs. Some of these needs include:

• obtaining, recording and reporting information

• enhancing effective training

• providing a safe workplace

• Improving the efficiency and effectiveness of work practices.

Communication systems use technology such as:

• telephones, including landlines, mobile and satellite phones

• answering machines

• facsimile (fax) machines

• computers with email and internet access

• two-way radios

• Paging systems.

Most workplaces have procedures and protocols in place for the use of each type of technology. Workers should familiarize themselves with the system features and control functions and operate each device according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If not sure of the operating procedure for a particular communication device, a worker should ask for assistance.

Some systems, such as telephones, answering machines and two-way radios rely solely on speech. Effective communication is more difficult as the parties communicating are not able to see each other and gauge the progress of the conversation from body language. It is important to speak clearly, concisely and courteously especially when answering the phone or leaving a message. The correct greeting and identification of the business and the individual should be used.

Private conversations and text messaging on mobile phones should be minimized during work hours. Only essential calls should be made or received.

Designated channels and call signs should be used with two-way radios. Conversations should be limited to relaying necessary information. Batteries should be recharged on a regular basis and the radios kept in good working order. They may be a vital means of communication in an emergency.

Enterprise procedures and protocols should also be followed when using systems that rely on written communication such as faxes and emails. Many businesses have a standard cover sheet that is attached to the front of outgoing faxes. Incoming faxes should be given to the appropriate person or placed in designated in-trays or pigeon holes.

Information in faxes and emails should be written clearly and concisely. A standard ‘signature’ should be attached to the end of an email. Again, work computers should not be used to send private emails.

Workplace meetings

The efficient operation of all workplaces relies on the effective sharing of information. This exchange of information may be needed to:

• explain changes happening in the workplace

• discuss and solve problems and make decisions

• update Occupational, Health and Safety (OH&S) and other procedures

• determine workplace targets

• schedule and allocate tasks

• provide feedback and evaluation.

Information can be shared in a number of ways. Written information might be distributed via the intranet, email or in newsletters, memos and notices. Formal meetings, informal discussions and work team briefings are commonly used to share information in a face-to-face setting. Meetings might be convened for a specific purpose, such as OH&S or union meetings, or they may be more general in their purpose.

All meetings must be structured to achieve their purpose and conclude in a reasonable time frame. An agenda may be used to outline the purpose of a meeting and the important points that need to be raised and discussed.

Formal meetings use an agenda which generally includes the following items:

• opening, welcome, and names recorded of those present and names of apologies received

• dated minutes and business arising from the previous meeting, including the acceptance of these minutes

• correspondence, both in and out, with business arising

• reports from the finance and other subcommittees

• general and other business

• date, time and place of the next meeting and the close of the current meeting.

Minutes are detailed notes taken during a meeting of everything that has been said and agreed upon. In some meetings a vote may be taken on important issues, either by a show of hands or a secret ballot. The minutes should record the outcomes of voting and any decisions made.

Informal meetings, discussions and briefings are less rigid in their structure. However, it is still important to provide opportunities for discussion and take notes of decisions.

Whatever the style of the meeting there is a protocol or code of behavior that all participants should adhere to:

1. Attend the meeting on time.

2. Listen effectively.

3. Don’t interrupt other speakers.

4. Contribute to the meeting by expressing opinions in an appropriate manner.

5. Behave courteously towards other participants in the meeting.

6. Don’t discuss issues that are outside the purpose of the meeting.

7. Ask questions to clarify misunderstandings.

8. Take notes where appropriate of decisions agreed to in the meeting and retain these for future reference.

9. Act on the instructions or decisions of the meeting within the agreed time.

10. Keep sensitive issues raised at the meeting confidential.

MATHEMATICS

It is the systematic study of magnitude, quantities, and their relationships as expressed symbolically in the form of numerals and forms.

Comparison of mathematics in the workplace with mathematics in the classroom reveals a disjuncture that is disconcerting to anyone who believes that a primary purpose of school is to prepare students for work. School mathematics lives in decontextualized ether, employing data that are without blemish and language that is devoid of ambiguity. In contrast, real problems are embedded in concrete tasks, use data that are often ill-defined or inaccurate, and rely on language that is often imprecise and misleading. In the world of work, mathematics is collaborative rather than individualistic; accuracy is defined by the situation rather than given by the textbook; and mathematical processes are used rather than studied. The new challenge is to seek common ground among these very different traditions--of mathematics for and from the workplace and of mathematics as preparation for further study.

One resolution of the dilemma of tracking would be a common mathematics program that could serve equally well as preparation both for college and for skilled work. All students could benefit from the broadening effects of such a high school preparation, yet there are currently few good models of curricula that serve both agendas. Another approach would be to develop a new form of vocational and technical education, with status equal to the academic track, that would simultaneously prepare students for the world of work and for further study in post-secondary institutions. U.S. educators who are concerned about vocational education debate both the desirability and feasibility of such a "separate but equal" track.

Arithmetic or arithmetics (from the Greek word ἀριθμός = number) is the oldest and most elementary branch of mathematics, used by almost everyone, for tasks ranging from simple day-to-day counting to advanced science and business calculations. It involves the study of quantity, especially as the result of combining numbers.

The basic arithmetic operations are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Any set of objects upon which all four arithmetic operations (except division by zero) can be performed, and where these four operations obey the usual laws, is called a field.

Addition (+)

Addition is the basic operation of arithmetic. In its simplest form, addition combines two numbers, the addends or terms, into a single number, the sum of the numbers. 1 + 3 = 4

Adding more than two numbers can be viewed as repeated addition; this procedure is known as summation and includes ways to add infinitely many numbers in an infinite series; repeated addition of the number one is the most basic form of counting.

Subtraction (−)

Subtraction is the opposite of addition. Subtraction finds the difference between two numbers, the minuend minus the subtrahend. If the minuend is larger than the subtrahend, the difference is positive; if the minuend is smaller than the subtrahend, the difference is negative; if they are equal, the difference is zero. 17 – 9 = 6

Subtraction is neither commutative nor associative. For that reason, it is often helpful to look at subtraction as addition of the minuend and the opposite of the subtrahend, that is a − b = a + (−b). When written as a sum, all the properties of addition hold.

Multiplication (× or ·)

Multiplication is the second basic operation of arithmetic. Multiplication also combines two numbers into a single number, the product. The two original numbers are called the multiplier and the multiplicand, sometimes both simply called factors. 4 × 4 = 16

Multiplication is best viewed as a scaling operation. If the real numbers are imagined as lying in a line, multiplication by a number, say x, greater than 1 is the same as stretching everything away from zero uniformly, in such a way that the number 1 itself is stretched to where x was. Similarly, multiplying by a number less than 1 can be imagined as squeezing towards zero. (Again, in such a way that 1 goes to the multiplicand.)

Multiplication is commutative and associative; further it is distributive over addition and subtraction. The multiplicative identity is 1, that is, multiplying any number by 1 yields that same number. Also, the multiplicative inverse is the reciprocal of any number (except zero; zero is the only number without a multiplicative inverse), that is, multiplying the reciprocal of any number by the number itself yields the multiplicative identity.

The product of a and b is written as a × b or a • b. When a or b are expressions not written simply with digits, it is also written by simple juxtaposition: ab. In computer programming languages and software packages in which one can only use characters normally found on a keyboard, it is often written with an asterisk: a * b.

Division (÷ or /)

Division is essentially the opposite of multiplication. Division finds the quotient of two numbers, the dividend divided by the divisor. Any dividend divided by zero is undefined. For positive numbers, if the dividend is larger than the divisor, the quotient is greater than one, otherwise it is less than one (a similar rule applies for negative numbers). The quotient multiplied by the divisor always yields the dividend.

Division is neither commutative nor associative. As it is helpful to look at subtraction as addition, it is helpful to look at division as multiplication of the dividend times the reciprocal of the divisor, that is a ÷ b = a × 1/b. When written as a product, it obeys all the properties of multiplication.

Rounding

When we round decimals to a certain number of decimal places we are replacing the figure we have with the one that is closest to it with that number of decimal places.

An example: Round 1.25687 to 2 decimal places

1. Firstly look at the decimal place after the one you want to round to (in our example this would be the third decimal place)

2. If the number in the next decimal place is a 6,7,8 or 9, then you will be rounding up, so you add 1 to the number in the place you are interested in and you have rounded. In our example the number in the third place is a 6 so we round up. We change the 5 in the second place to a 6 and our rounded number is 1.26

3. If the number in the place after the one we are interested in is a 0,1,2,3 or 4 we round down, i.e. we just write the number out as it is to the required number of places.

4. If the number in the place after the one we are interested in is a 5, then we need to look at what follows it. Cover the number from the beginning to the place you are interested in, for example, suppose we are rounding 2.47568 to three decimal places we look at just the 568 and we ask is that closer to 500 or 600. Since it’s closer to 600 we get a rounded number of 2.476

5. If only a 5 follows the place we are interested in then different disciplines have different conventions for the rounding. You can either round up or down since 5 is exactly half way between 0 and 10.

Percentages are fractions with a denominator of 100. Often there will not be 100 things or 100 people out of which to express a fraction or a percentage. When this is the case you will need to find an equivalent fraction out of 100 by multiplying by 100% which is the same as multiplying by 1.

Written Communication

Companies/ enterprises often require workers to use written forms of communication. This may involve reading workplace notices and instruction such as:

• signs and labels

• notes, messages and memos

• rosters and work schedules

• safety material and notices

• invoices and dockets with customer information

• tables and simple graphs.

Employees may also be required to write down information, messages and material and tool requirements. They will need to fill out a variety of workplace forms.

To be effective, written workplace information must be:

1. Clear – the handwriting must be legible and the information written in a manner that will not be confusing.

2. Concise – the message should be written in simple language using short sentences or point form. Unnecessary information and repetition should be avoided.

3. Correct – accuracy is very important when writing down information. If taking a phone message, read the details back to the caller, especially names, addresses and phone numbers. Use correct terminology where appropriate

4. Courteous – as with verbal communication, the style of the language chosen should be appropriate to the situation and the reader.

Primary industry businesses regularly collect record and report workplace information. This is done to fulfill production, business and legal requirements.

There are different types of information kept by agricultural and horticultural workplaces. These include:

• Financial – for example invoices for purchases and sales, profit and loss statements, taxation records, bank and dividend statements.

• Production – for example records of livestock numbers, growth rates, births and sales, crops sown and harvested, weed and pest control management.

• Marketing - for example product sales, promotional and advertising material.

• Maintenance - for example machinery and vehicle log books and service records, property structure repairs.

• Staff – for example personal and taxation records for employees, time sheets and salaries, work rosters

• Legal - for example workers’ compensation, public liability and property insurance, deeds and titles.

Workers may be required to contribute to the collection, recording and reporting of a wide range of workplace information. To do this effectively they need to be able to:

1. Correctly identify sources of information.

Information can be sourced internally by asking appropriate questions of employers, supervisors or colleagues. Another way of sourcing information is to access and read workplace documents. It is important to know where workplace records are kept and to return them to the correct place after use.

Most enterprises have a business directory that contains the names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, email addresses and contact names for a number of services such as:

• suppliers

• contractors

• the local veterinarian

• trade personnel

• industry and regulatory bodies

• local government.

Training organizations and advisors from the Department of Primary Industries and Rural Lands Protection Board are often listed on the directory of business services.

Other external sources of information can be sourced from the media, internet, CD ROMs and DVD’s, reference material supplied by companies and the local library.

2. Obtain appropriate information.

Once the source of the information has been found, the correct information needs to be collected. This will depend on the purpose of the information, the people who will use the information and the time available or necessary to obtain it.

For example, if a worker is asked to ring around the local produce stores to compare fertilizer prices, a half-hour conversation catching up on the local gossip would not be appropriate. Conversely, if the employee responsible for machinery maintenance was sent to look at a second-hand tractor, there would be an expectation that sufficient time would be spent to thoroughly assess the condition of the machine

Information needs to be sorted so that only relevant data is collected. If a worker is asked to obtain a three-day weather forecast for the local district, a detailed analysis of the likelihood of cyclones in Queensland the following summer, although possibly interesting, would not be appropriate.

3. . Record information on standard forms.

A number of forms need to be completed and submitted prior to, at the commencement of and during employment. These forms may be related to:

• employee records and workplace agreements

• personnel and staffing details

• taxation and superannuation

• banking and finance

• health and insurance records

• Workers Compensation, accidents and incidents.

It is important to read through all forms carefully, as well as any accompanying instructions, before starting to fill them out. Make sure that all the information is available and is correct. Check the spelling of names and addresses and that any numbers have been accurately recorded. Government forms are often translated into official documents and any errors will be duplicated on them.

Details that are commonly requested include:

• full name and title

• home and postal addresses

• date of birth and country of citizenship

• phone and fax numbers and email addresses occupation

• Signatures and dates.

Other details that may be required could include:

• highest level of qualification

• tax file number

• bank account details

• ABN number

• Emergency contact names, addresses and phone numbers.

Forms should be completed clearly and neatly in the spaces provided using the type of pen and style of writing indicated in the instructions. Always check through the answers for accuracy. Any corrections which are necessary should be made according to the procedure set out in the instructions.

It is good practice to make a copy of the form for future reference before presenting or mailing it. If sending the form by mail, ensure that the postal address is correct, the sender’s address is on the envelope and the correct postage is affixed. Retain original forms such as Birth Certificates and only forward photocopies.

Each workplace will have a range of forms, specific to the enterprise that workers need to complete. There is a legal obligation on employers to keep some of these records such as safety reports and chemical records.

Forms that are common to most enterprises include:

• safety reports

• dockets, invoices and receipts

• petty cash vouchers

• time sheets

• telephone message forms leave forms.

Other enterprise forms might include:

• chemical records

• weather records

• vehicle and machinery

• log books registration,

• license and insurance forms

• equipment inspection records.

4. Use correct procedures for the storage of information

Every organization and business has a particular method for storing information. It is important that all employees who need to access that information are familiar with the location and the filing systems used. Records might be stored in the following places:

• filing cabinets

• computer files and databases

• folders on shelves, in drawers or under counters

• pin boards and white boards

Information stored in filing cabinets is usually organized alphabetically or under different topic headings. Basic computer skills are required to access computer records. Help should be sought if a particular piece of information cannot be found. All records should be filed correctly and returned to the appropriate location after use.

Many workplaces also store information which is confidential. Anyone with access to these records should only use them when necessary and only allow distribution of the information to relevant personnel