Communication task feedback

Task reminder

As you watch the video clip, consider the following questions:

• What are your initial thoughts as you watch this video?

• How do the young people perceive their own speech, language and communication?

You may wish to compare your observations and thoughts to the feedback below. This feedback is based on our observations and thoughts, and is not necessarily a ‘correct’ answer. Your own observations are very important and will reflect your own learning and experiences.

Feedback

What are your initial thoughts as you watch this video?

The young people in the clips demonstrate a wide range of abilities and discuss a variety of difficulties.

Many of the young people in the clips are able to talk about aspects of communication which they find difficult. These include difficulties in making themselves understood, perhaps due to difficulties with speech sounds or with finding the right word, and difficulties in understanding long, complex instructions.

Some of the young people mention difficulties with more subtle aspects of communication, such as understanding non-verbal information, for example gestures, facial expressions or body language, or understanding the reactions of others.

The young people also demonstrate, and in some cases discuss, communicative strengths and skills. All the young people engage in interaction with the interviewers: they demonstrate turn-taking skills by responding to the interviewers’ questions, and all appear to make eye contact. On the whole, their responses are relevant to the questions. Some appear to be confident communicators, comfortably engaging in conversation.

It is useful to remember that difficulties with understanding language may not be as easy to spot as difficulties in expressive language.

How do the young people perceive their own speech, language and communication?

Some of the young people in the video demonstrate a good level of insight into their own communicative skills. Some accept that they sometimes do not understand what is being said to them. One young person mentions that the support he receives at school helped him to speak more clearly and to understand other people’s body language.

The other young people seem to have some awareness that they are not always understood by those around them, and are learning strategies to help with this, such as rephrasing their sentences when they are talking to others.

Some of the young people are able to give an insight into what it can be like to have speech, language or communication difficulties: they mention feelings of annoyance or anxiety at not understanding or not being understood. Others do not demonstrate this level of insight and seem to be less aware of the difficulties with speech, language or communication that other people notice.

Communication task feedback (PDF, 367KB)

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