Further research will enable us to gather more extensive information and knowledge in this area of research, draw more informed conclusions as well as allow us to propose better recommendations to resolve this problem. We will also be able to make more informed recommendations on improvements or modifications to current communications modules in NUS or even propose new modules.
Methods of Research
In order to better evaluate the feasibility of our proposal, our group decided to gather information about the different communications-related modules taught in NUS and NIE to gain a better understanding of what is being done currently on the communications front. We also researched on other tertiary institutions as well as on theories of experts in this field to gain knowledge on what more can be done and what practices can be adopted from them and applied to NUS.
Since we may not be abreast with the current trends regarding communications or the curriculum in NIE, we interviewed Mrs Pelly Christine Parimala, an ELL staff at NIE to understand what the curriculum in NIE offers as well as her opinions on whether teachers needed to be better equipped on certain communications skills as well as an insight into what those skills might be. Interviews with Professors Mark Wilkinson and Tan Siew Imm from NIE also gave us valuable information to structure further research in the correct direction.
Separate interviews were also conducted with the Senior teacher in Marsiling Secondary school as well as Mr Amos from Beatty Secondary school to obtain the teachers’ point of view. The same issues were targeted such as re-establishing the importance of communications skills, finding out the skills that teachers experience the most problems in as well as how much exposure they have had to practice it before entering teaching and their suggestions for improvements.
In order to further substantiate our proposal, we conducted two separate surveys, one for those graduating from NUS and entering NIE soon and another for current teachers. This decision was made based on the need to obtain responses from the 2 groups so as to equip us with a better understanding of how the needs and abilities of the two different categories have changed from the point of graduation from NUS up to the point when they have started teaching.
The survey will be especially useful to us in gathering essential information on the following areas:
· Whether undergraduates feel they have not had enough exposure in communications skills and are thus feeling unprepared.
· To what extent the undergraduates consider communications skills important as well as which skills they consider important.
· Whether they are aware that communications-related modules are being offered in NUS.
· Reasons why they did not take these modules though they are aware they are present.
· Whether teachers feel they had enough exposure in communications skills in their universities and if NIE courses were helpful.
· To what extent the teachers consider communication skills important as well as which skills they consider important.
