AKTU B.Tech. Technical Communication Last Year Question Paper 2021-22

Getting ready for the Technical Communication examination for the AKTU B.Tech? Don’t miss this question paper from the previous year, 2021–2022. It’s a great tool for students who want to learn more about the kinds of questions that could be asked on the exam.

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Important Questions For Technical Communication : 
*Unit-01     *Unit-02    
*Unit-03    *Unit-04 
*Unit-05    *Short-Q/Ans
*Question-Paper with solution 21-22 

Section-A

a. Describe how clarity can be achieved in technical communication.

Ans. Clarity can be achieved in technical communication:

• 1. Consider your audience
• 3. Avoid jargon
• 4. Keep it short and simple
• 5. Ask for a playback

b. Explain devices to obtain coherence in writing. 

Ans: Devices to obtain coherence in writing:

• 1. Pronouns (P)
• 2. Repetition (with exact word or parallel term/synonym) (R)
• 3. Transitions (T)
• 4. Parallelism (PIIM): The use of similar grammatical forms and sentence structures

2. Say exactly what you mean

c. How will you differentiate between investigative and feasibility report?

d. What do you understand by theme clarity in expert technical lecture ? / Explain the role of theme clarity, analysis and finding in research papers.

• 1. Qualitative data analysis presents challenges in relation to the volume and complexity of data obtained using the research findings.
• 2.Theme clarity, analysis and finding play a significant role in research in order to provide clear and useful data to the audience.
• 3. A key task in conducting research integration studies is determining what features to account for in the research reports eligible for inclusion.
• 4. Qualitative analysis of content usually uses individual themes as the unit for analysis, rather than the physical linguistic units (for example, word, sentence, or paragraph) most often used in quantitative content analysis. An instance of a theme might be expressed in a single word, a phrase, a sentence, a paragraph, or an entire document.
• 5.For the sake of clarity and usefulness, what follows is a step-by-step guide to conducting historical research. It focuses on gathering sources, but also includes some advice on finding a subject and interpreting the evidence found.

e. Define interpersonal communication.
| OR |
What do you mean by barriers to communication? Illustrate.
| OR |
Discuss any three kinds of barriers to communication and substantiate your answer with one example for each.
| OR |
Discuss in detail various barriers to communication.

Ans  Barriers to communication are:

Barriers

Intrapersonal

Interpersonal

Organizational

1. Intrapersonal:

• i.These forms of barriers arise owing to reasons arising within the individual.
• ii.Each of us interprets the same data in different ways depending on the way we think.
• iii. A few causes of interpersonal barriers are: wrong assumptions, wrong inferences, varied perceptions, biased categories, differing backgrounds.
• iv. I know it-all attitude’. In order to overcome these barriers, one needs to be unbiased, be patient towards others, not assume anything, stick to the subject, listen, and above all summarize the thoughts well.

2. Interpersonal:

• i.These barriers arise due to an inappropriate exchange of words between two or more people.
• ii.The most common reasons for interpersonal barriers are limited vocabulary, mismatching of verbal and non-verbal messages, emotional outbursts, communicating selectively, cultural differences between the sender and receiver, poor listening skills, and noise in the communication channel.

3. Organizational :

• i. There are barriers that are not only limited to an individual or two people but exist in the entire organization.
• ii. Rigid and hierarchical structure usually restricts the flow of communication.
• iii. This is because there are numerous transfer points for communication to flow in the hierarchical systems.
• iv. Each of these points has the potential to disturb the communication flow.
• V.The reasons of organizational barriers are: too many transfer stations; fear of superiors; negative attitude; use of inappropriate media; information overload.

f. Determine the essentials of good public speaking.

Ans. Public speaking techniques to attract the audience are:

• 1. Say something right off the bat that connects to the audience.
• 2. Connect with emotion.
• 3. Tell the audience how good they are.
• 4.Link back to the opening during the speech.
• 5. Relate to the audience’s self interests.
• 6. Entertain the audience with stories.
• 7.Tell the audience exactly what they are going to gain.

g. Figure out the objective of group discussion. 

Ans. Objectives of a group discussion:

• 1.It produces a range of options or solutions, addressing a particular problem
• or an issue.
• 2. It generates a pile of ideas by examining issues in greater depth, looking at different dimensions of these issues.
• 3.It broadens the outlook of the participants through cross-fertilization and exposure to new, different experiences and ideas, enrich their understanding of the issues under discussion.
• 4.It develops their skills in interpersonal communication and in expressing their views in a clear and brief manner.
• 5.It is effective means of changing attitudes through the influence of peers in the group.
• 6.It is valuable means of obtaining feedback for the training team on verbal skills, motivation level and personal traits of the participants and characteristics of the group.

h. Define critical thinking with its importance.

Ans.

• 1. Critical thinking refers to the ability to analyze information objective and make a reasoned judgment.
• 2.Critical thinking involves the evaluation of sources such as data, facts, observable phenomenon, and research findings.
• 3.Good critical thinkers can draw reasonable conclusions from a set of information and discriminate between useful and less useful details to solve a problem or make a decision.
• 4. Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally, understanding the logical connection between ideas.
• 5.Critical thinking skills:
  • i.  Understand the links between ideas.
  • ii. Determine the importance and relevance of arguments and ideas.
  • iii. Recognise, build and appraise arguments.
  • iv. Identify inconsistencies and errors in reasoning.
  • V. Approach problems in a consistent and systematic way. vi. Reflect on justification of assumptions, beliefs and values.

i. Assess the importance of pronunciation etiquette during speaking.

Ans. Following are the importance of pronunciation etiquette during speaking:

• 1. Using good pronunciation helps others understand you more quickly.
• 2. Good pronunciation can help improve your social skills.
• 3. It can make you feel more comfortable when holding a conversation and increase your confidence while speaking.

j. Examine the definition of syllable ? Exemplify with two examples. Define Pitch?

Ans. Pitch: Pitch is a property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.

Syllable: A syllable is defined as a unit of sound (pronunciation) with one vowel sound and with or without consonant sound.

For example:

i. On: on (VC)

ii. Upon : up+on (VCVC)

iii. Syllable: sy+lla+ble (CVCVCVC)

SECTION B

a. List differences 10 between general and technical communication.
| OR |
What is the difference between general communication and technical communication? Describe features of technical communication briefly.
| OR |
Point out the difference between technical communication and general communication. Describe the role of brevity and objectivity in technical communication.
| OR |
Bring out the difference between technical and general communication.
| OR |
Technical communication and general communication are poles apart as they differ in all aspects. Elucidate.

Answer

Features of technical communication are:

• 1.Technical communication has specialized content i.e., specific subject matter. However, technical communication is not communication about a specific technical topic, but about any technical topic.
• 2. Technical communication is the receiver of the information, the audience. Technical communication is the delivery of technical information to a specific audience in a way which is adopted to the needs, level of understanding and background of the audience.
• 3. Technical communication has the specific purpose i.e., it is always purposive.
• 4. It provides organized information that aids in quick decision-making.
• 5.It disseminates knowledge in oral or written form.

Approaches or requisites of technical communication are:

1. Brevity: It should be brief and provide information in a concise manner.

2. Clarity: It should be clear without any ambiguity.

3. Simplicity: It should be written in a simple language.

4.Objectivity: It should be written in limited words.

5. Utility: It is done for some specific purpose.

6 Vocabulary: It uses specific technical vocabulary.

7. Informative: It should be used to give specific information.

8. Technical writing should display an understanding of the abbreviations, acronyms used in the field.

9. Use of active voice: Active voice should be used as it is easy to understand and emphasis is laid on the subject and not on the object.

10. Avoid redundant phrases (lengthy and incorrect expressions).

11. Avoid repetition: Repetition should be avoided as it can mark the beauty of expression.

b. Explain the structure of the Technical research paper.

Answer

a. A research paper is a piece of written communication organized to meet the needs of a standard, valid publication.

B. It is highly structured, with distinctive and clearly evident components.

C. Research paper includes the following components :

1. Title: The title of a research paper is defined as the fewest possible words that describe the content of the paper.

2. Authors, affiliations, and addresses: This section includes the full name of authors, their designations and the address in order to identify the author easily.

3. Abstract: It enables readers to identify the basic content of a document quickly and accurately in order to determine its relevance to their interest.

4. Introduction: The purpose of an introduction is to supply sufficient background information so as to allow the reader to understand and evaluate the results of the study.

5. Materials and methods: The main purpose of this section is to describe (and if necessary defend) the experimental design, experimental technique, or theoretical derivation, and then provide enough details so that a competent worker can repeat the experiments.

6. Results: This section forms the core of the paper- the data. There are three ways of presenting the data :

1.Text

2. Tabular form, and 

3. Illustration form.

A particular set of data should be given only in one of these forms.

Avoid duplication as far as possible.

7.Discussion: The main functions of this section are to interpret data and to highlight the significant features of the data and the possible causes of these features. It should also mention the limitations, if any, of the data and point out any sources of error.

8. Conclusions:  The major function of conclusions is to make recommendations based on the results of the study. If no recommendation emerges, this section can be avoided.

9. Acknowledgements: This section does not include scientific details, but is equally important as it conveys courtesy and gratitude for all the help received for the completion of the project.

10. List of symbols:  It is good practice to give full version followed by the abbreviation within parenthesis at the first occurrence. Thereafter, only the abbreviated form may be used throughout.

11. References or bibliography: The main purpose in citing references to the work of earlier researchers is to enable the reader to consult the original source.

c. Explore various factors of audience analysis. State some of the ways to retain audiences.

Answer: Audience analysis involves identifying the audience and adapting a speech to their interests, level of understanding, attitudes, and beliefs.

Factors of audience analysis:

1. Audience expectations:

a.When people become audience members in a speech situation, they bring with them expectations about the occasion, topic, and speaker.

b.Violating audience expectations can have a negative impact on the effectiveness of the speech.

2. Knowledge of topic:

a.Audience knowledge of a topic can vary widely on any given occasion, therefore, communicators should find out what their audience already knows about the topic.

b.Try to do some research to find out what the audience already knows about the topic.

C.Giving a brief review of important terms and concepts is almost always appropriate, and can sometimes be done by acknowledging the heterogeneous audience and the importance of putting everyone on the same page.

3.Attitude toward topic: Knowing audience members attitudes about, a topic will help a speaker determine the best way to reach their goals.

4.Audience size:

a.Many elements of speech-making change in accordance with audience size.

b.In general, the larger the audience the more formal the presentation should be.

C.Sitting down and using common language when speaking to a group of 10 people is often quite appropriate.

d.However, that style of presentation would probably be inappropriate or ineffective if we were speaking to 1,000 people.

e.Large audiences often require that we use a microphone and speak from an elevated platform.

5. Demographics:

a.The demographic factors of an audience include age, gender, religion, ethnic background, class, sexual orientation, occupation,education, group membership, and countless other categories.

b.Since these categories often organize individual’s identities and experiences, a wise speaker attends to them.

6. Setting:

a.The setting of a presentation can influence the ability to give a speech and the audience’s ability and desire to listen.

b.Some of these factors are: the set-up of the room (both size and how the audience is arranged), time of day, temperature, external noises (traffic), internal noises (babies crying, hacking coughs), and type of space (church, schoolroom, outside).

7.Egocentrism:

a.Most audience members are egocentric: they are generally most interested in things that directly affect them or their community.

b.An effective speaker must be able to show their audience why the topic they are speaking on should be important to them.

d. What personality traits are exhibited during group discussion? Discuss briefly.

Ans. Important personality traits should be exhibited during group discussion are:

1. Team spirit:

a. A GD is the most powerful tool to evaluate a person’s team skills.

b.Team skills are important simply because, in the present

C. knowledge economy, it is very essential to be a team player.

A manager will always work in teams. In the beginning of his career, a manager works as a team member and, later on, as a team leader.

2. Leadership:

a.A leader is a person who discusses the topic calmly, touching

b.upon all nuances, and tries to reach a conclusion.

A leader shows the group direction, whenever it moves away from the topic.

c.He or she inspires and motivates team members to express their views and also coordinates the effort of different participants.

3. Flexibility:

a.It means openness to another person’s ideas and also being open to the evaluation of one’s own ideas.

b.To stay flexible in a group discussion, try to create a framework and avoid taking a stand in the beginning.

4. Assertiveness:

a.Being assertive is all about being positive, confident and emphatic.

b.An assertive person has an inherent ability to put his point across the group in a friendly and confident manner.

c.His body language is positive and he has a friendly disposition towards fellow group members.

5. Initiative:

a.Initiating a group discussion is a double-edged sword. It can

b.make or mar your performance rating.

Starting well has huge benefits, but even the slightest mistake in the beginning gets highlighted and puts one in a bad light.

C.So, initiate only if one is well versed with the topic and is confident enough to take a lead by showing the group some direction.

6. Inspiring ability:

a.A good group discussion should incorporate the views of all team members.

b.If some members want to express their ideas but are not getting an opportunity to do so, giving them an opportunity will be seen as a positive leadership trait.

7. Listening:

a.This is a very important skill. It is said that humans have been gifted with two ears and one mouth.

b.Apart from being a good listener, there should be a balance between the expression of your ideas and imbibing the ideas of others.

e: Classify importance of various professional personality attributes.

• Personality of a person is defined as the combination of qualities and attributes which contribute to the person’s character and image.
• It arises from within and makes us who we are.
• The personality of an individual is determined and judged by his/her appearance, behavior, attitude, education, values and some more varying characteristics.

Be confident:

• Confidence is certainly the most important factor which adds to the personality of any individual.
• A person’s confidence might go down due to mistakes, failure, guilty or any other thing which is undesirable.
• Your confidence reflects your character, attitude and passion. iv. Being confident will help us to express yourself and stand amongst the crowd.

Improve your communication skills:

• The way you speak reflects who you are. Be polite and gentle with your words. Use decent words while interacting with everyone.
• Always think before you speak. English being globally accepted is preferred everywhere.
• Always use simple words general interactions.

3. Dress up well:

• Dressing sense means the general sense about how you should dress up for office, party or any other occasion
• A person should therefore wear according to the situation and according to how well the attire suits him/her.
• Good looks no doubt will add to your personality but what matters the most is how you are dressed up.
• Dressing sense plays a major role in personality and confidence development.

4. Do what you’re passionate about and be passionate about what

you do:

• Be passionate about your work.
• Always follow your passion and do what interests you.
• Make sure that you give your best in whatever you do.
• This will add to your growth and strengthen your self confidence. Never miss a chance to prove yourself.

5. Watch your body language:

• Body language plays an important role to judge a person’s confidence and personality.
• Try to make use of positive gestures while interacting with others.
• This shows that you are at ease while having a discussion. 
• Studies reflect that 75% of our communication happens non-verbally.
• Your gestures thus play a vital role while interacting with others.

6. Develop leadership qualities:

• A good leader is believed to have a good personality.
• Leadership skills do not mean how well you give orders to your subordinates.
• It means how well you can manage your subordinates to accomplish a particular task.
• Work harder to set an example to our subordinates.
• Express yourself and always do as you say.

7. Be optimistic:

• Have a positive outlook towards everything.
• Nobody wants to be around a person who is negative and complaining all the time.
• When you face a failure, let go of the assumption that you are the unluckiest person alive.
• Use positive statements like “I can do it”, “I always have a choice” etc. Expect good things from the future.

Be a patient listener:

• Be an enthusiastic listener.
• Listening is a very essential part of communication.
• This will help you to see things from the eyes of others.
• Mental presence is a must to be good listener.
• Try to get away from any possible distraction while talking to your family members, friends and co-workers.

Be a good learner:

• Good learning skills in an individual are highly desirable.
• You should always have the zeal to learn new things while at work.
• This reflects your enthusiasm.
• Do not let yourself repeat the same mistakes. Learn from them.

Section -c

a. “Language is the expression of ideas by means of speech. sounds combined into words.” Elucidate different features of language establishing as a tool.

Ans: The characteristics features of language are:

1. Language is artificial: Language is created by people. It does not exist outside the minds of people. It is basically created by humans and depend on their needs. Every symbol is attached to a particular thought or thing called referent.

2. Language is restricted: When we translate our thoughts into language, some meaning is lost in the process. No symbols or word can transmit out exact perception. This is because language is restricted.

3. Language is abstract: Language is abstract because it represents generalized ideas of things or thoughts. A word could represent different ideas at different times.

4. Language is creative: Language is creative because it has the ability to generate many words every day.

5. Language is redundant: Whatever language one uses it has the capacity for redundancy or repetition.

Language as a tool for communication:

1. Language is a well-established fact that effective communication is mode possible with the help of language.
2. A basic knowledge of the theory of language will certainly help to understand the intricacies of writing and speaking clearly.
3. Language employs a combination of words to communicate ideas in a meaningful way. By changing the word order in a sentence, we can change its meaning, and even make it meaningless.
4. It is very convenient to convey information from one person to the other, from one place to another through medium of language.
5. Human memory cannot retain things for a long time. Language keep things memorial for a long time.
6. Almost everyone learns how to speak and write from their childhood, so they can transmit their idea through language easily.
7. It is tough for everyone to understand the language of body movements. So, man takes shelter of languages at last.
8. Language develops through body language, space language, time language, symbols and signals.

b. Explain in detail the various directions in which communication flows.

Ans: 

Dimensions of communication:

1. Downward communication:

• Downward communication refers to the
  • Communication from the higher level in managerial hierarchy to the lower level.
  • Communication from decision makers to the workers.
  • Communication from seniors to their subordinate employees.

.

• It involves the transfer of information, instruction, advice, request, feedback and ideas to the subordinate staff.
• The main function of downward communication is providing direction and control.
• A communication from the General Manager of a company to the Branch Managers is an example of downward communication.

2. Upward communication:

• Upward communication refers to :
  • Communication from subordinates to superiors.
  • Communication from employees to management.
  • Communication from workers to decision makers.

• Upward communication involves the transfer of information, request and feedback from subordinates to their seniors.
• It promotes better working relationships within an organization by giving the subordinate staff opportunities to share their views and ideas with their supervisors.
• It facilitates employee involvement in the decision-making process.
• A business report from the Branch Manager of a company to the Managing Director of the company is an example of upward communication.

3. Horizontal or lateral or peer group communication:

• It takes place between professional peer groups or people working at the same level of hierarchy.
• It is the communication among workers at the same level. ii. The main objectives of horizontal communication are :
  • Developing teamwork within an organization.
  • Promoting group coordination within an organization.

4. Diagonal or cross-wise communication:

• It is the product of modern changes in information technology and management.
• It is a response to market needs that demand speed and efficiency.
• Diagonal communication flows in all directions.
• Diagonal channel occurs between people who do not have to follow rigid norms of communication protocol.

4(A) State different types of resume? Infosys invites application for the position of executive engineer, draft a resume to submit for the same with necessary details.

Ans: Different types of resume :

1. Chronological Resume :

• A chronological resume is a resume type that focuses heavily on your work history.
• Its key feature is that it lists the work history in order of when we held each position (in chronological order), with the most recent job listed at the top of the section.
• The chronological format is the most common type of resume, and is considered the standard for most industries.

2. Functional Resume :

• A functional resume is a type of resume designed to focus on the relevant professional skills rather than the chronological work history.
• The defining feature of a functional resume is its expanded “Relevant Skills” section, which takes up the majority of the resume and replaces a detailed work experience section.

3. Combination Resume:

• A combination resume mixes the most useful elements of the chronological and functional resume formats.
• It focuses on the skills, as a functional resume does, but also provides ample space to detail the work history usually in chronological order.

Resume:

Name:abc
Email:xyz@xyz.com
Address:xyz

Objective:

To associate myself with an organization that provides a challenging job and an opportunity to prove innovative skills and diligent work.

To be involved in providing software solutions to enhance network security.

Professional Experience:

Project Trainee (July 2001-December 2001)

Satyam Computer Service Ltd, Hyderabad 

Project: Metadata Management System

Description: Metadata Manager is a tool to create and maintain data marts.

It creates a centralized metadata repository to store all the details about data marts.

Databases, technologies & languages used : Oracle, Swing, JDBC, Java security, XML, PL/SQL, Java.

Responsibilities:

• Designed a database in Oracle to hold metadata.
• Designed an appropriate graphical user interface for the system.
• Led in the design and development of security system for this application.

Project Details:

Implementation of secure file transfer system (January 2001-May 2001) : It involves the design and implementation of kerberos for file transfer protocol in C language.

Kerberos improves the security of FTP by preventing replay attacks and I spoofing. It uses DES for encrypting the packet which reduces the processing time when compared with RSA. So, the performance of FTP is not degraded.

Learning Aids Development (January 2001-May 2001) : It involves the design and development of applets for BITS Virtual University. It includes the analysis of security vulnerabilities of applets.

Courses Done:

1. Network security

2. Computer networks

3. Network programming

4. Telecommunication switching systems and networks

4(b)Describe different types of reports. Discuss the style of a report.

Reports can be classified on various parameters such as:

Presentation: Oral and written reports

1. Length: Short and long reports
2. Nature: Informal and formal reports
3. Purpose: Informational and analytical reports
4. Time duration: Routine/periodic and special reports

Various types of reports are:

1. Oral reports:
   1. An oral report is a face-to-face communication about something seen, observed, experienced or investigated.
   2. It generally consists of impressions, observations and experiences.
2. Written reports:
   1. written report is accurate and precise.
   2. A written report provides a permanent record.
   3. There are no chances of distortion of facts while transferring information from one source to another.
3.  Short reports
   1. Short reports can be presented in the form of a letter or a memo.
   2. They are concerned primarily with day-to-day business problems as well as their solutions.
4. Long reports :
   1. Long reports describe a problem in detail.
   2. They include the process of preparing the outline of the topic, collecting data, making a rough draft, logical and organized presentation of facts, thorough revising, editing and preparing the fair draft, etc.
   3. These reports require a deep study of an issue.
5. Formal reports :
   1. A formal report is the result of thorough investigation of a problem or situation.
   2. Formal reports are generally detailed and elaborated.
   3. These reports follow a fixed format.
   4. The length of the report may vary according to the requirement.
   5. Formal reports include informational, analytical, routine, special, technical, project, research reports, etc.
6. Informal reports :
   1. Certain business reports can be short and informal.
   2. In current business dealings, informal reports are more frequent than the formal ones.
   3. Basically, informal reports perform the same function as the formal reports-transmitting information, facts of data to someone for taking decision. For example
      1. Memo reports
      2. Letter reports
7. Informational reports:
   1. An informational report presents facts, situations or problems required to take vital decisions.
   2. Informational reports record happenings such as conferences, seminars, tours, and so on and supply details for future planning.
8. Analytical reports :
   1. Analytical reports present data along with an analysis of it.
   2. Project reports, feasibility reports and market research reports fall in this category. For example,
      1. Project reports
      2. Feasibility reports
      3. Market research reports
9. Routine/Periodic reports:
   1. Routine reports also known as form reports are usually written on a prescribed performa.
   2. The main purpose of these reports is to record the progress of a task, evaluate the performance of its employees and to record the success or failure of a policy.
   3. All the organizations, institutions, companies and research establishments depend on routine reports for various decisions.
   4. Some of them are :
      1. Laboratory reports
      2. Progress reports
      3. Inspection reports 
      4. Production reports 
      5. Monthly sales reports
      6. Annual confidential reports
10. Special reports:
    1. Special reports are written to convey special information related to a single condition, situation, occasion or problem.
    2. These reports do not contain repeated information as they are written about the specific situations. For example,
       1. Inquiry reports
       2. Research reports

Style of report :

• Flowery language should not be used.
• The style of reports should be concise, giving precise detail.
• Data may be presented as charts, graphs or tables, if appropriate.
• Descriptions of methodology should be sufficiently clear and detailed to allow someone else to replicate them exactly.

5(a)Analyze factors responsible for effective public speaking? Discuss the essential techniques to make it influential.

Ans: Following are the factors responsible for effective public speaking:

1. Fit the Message to the Audience: 

• Matching subject matter and delivery style helps you make the best possible impression.
• When you know you’re speaking successfully, you’re able to present with more confidence.
• Before you speak, plan ahead by considering your target audience.
• If you’re presenting a research paper to academics, you can plan on a detail-heavy speech. But if you’re introducing a new idea to a casually-interested audience, it’s better to take a broader focus.

2. Be Interactive:

• You’re informing, inspiring, and engaging your audience. And talking at them isn’t enough
• The best public speakers build interactive elements into their speeches. You can too.
• Interactivity is one of the key public speaking skills. It can take many forms.
• It can be as simple as a quick, personal greeting at the start of your speech. Or you can even play interactive games like a trivia quiz.

3. Care About Your Topic :

• Passion goes a long way when it comes to being an effective speaker. The audience can tell if you’re apathetic.
• If you don’t care, they won’t care either. Even worse, you can come across as a fake.
• But if you sincerely care about your topic the audience will pick up on that too. They’ll view you as being more authentic and believable.
• They’ll listen more closely to discover why your subject is so important to you, And they’re more likely to forgive any minor mistakes you might make.

4. Remember Your Speaking Goal:

• We’ve all probably listened to at least one speaker who seemed to go on and on forever about nothing in particular.
• One reason why this happens is because the speech isn’t focused enough. The speaker is trying to cover too much and ends up boring their listeners.

5. Support Your Main Points :

• Every point you make in your speech needs to be supported with either an example, an illustration, or facts.
• When you’re supporting a point, it’s best to be as specific as you can be.

6. Tell a Story:

• People love a good story. So, if you want to be a more effective speaker, tell a story.
• Storytelling is a great way to make your material more engaging and to relate to your audience. Make sure your story is relatable and relevant.

7. Use a Professional Template:

• While we’re talking about presentation tools, let’s also talk about presentation design. Your presentation design affects how your audience perceives you.
• Even if you deliver your speech perfectly, your audience might still judge you if your slides are sloppy. The presentation visuals are just as important as your speaking performance.

8. Use Presentation Tools Wisely :

• Slide presentations often get a reputation for being dull.
• That’s because many speakers are unaware of what their presentation tools can do and don’t make the best use of all the features.
• To better engage your audience, learn how to use the more advanced features of your tool.

9. Practice Your Speech:

• One of the most important public speaking techniques is often one of the most overlooked-practices.
• If you expect that you’ll be an effective speaker without practicing your speech, you’d be wrong.
• One of the quickest ways to avoid public speaking failure is to try and give a speech you don’t really know and haven’t practiced.

5(b)b. Discover the devices used during argumentation skills.

Ans: Following are the devices used during argumentation skills:

Analysis:

1. When you “analyze an argument” you evaluate someone else’s argument.
2. The task presents a brief passage in which the author makes a case for a course of action or interprets events by presenting claims and supporting evidence.
3. Your job will be to examine the claims made and critically assess the logic of the author’s position.

Steps for analyzing the argument:

• Read the argument and instructions carefully.
• Identify the argument’s claims, conclusions and underlying assumptions. Evaluate their quality.
• Think of as many alternative explanations and counter examples as you can.
• Think of what specific additional evidence might weaken or lend support to the claims.
• Ask yourself what changes in the argument would make the reasoning more sound.

2. Cohesion: 

• Cohesion is the property of written text that provides a smooth flow to the text.
• Cohesion also refers to the grammatical and lexical links that connect one part of the text to the other, cohesion can be considered as a mechanical link at the language level (for example, first of all, after that, however, in addition to, similarly, for instance, etc.).
• Cohesion is achieved using the four basic mechanical considerations in providing transitions between ideas:

1. Use of pronouns.
2. Repetition of keywords or phrases.
3. Use of transitional tags.
4. Use of parallel grammatical structure.

3. Emphasis:

1. Emphasis is the stress given to a word or words when speaking to indicate particular importance.
2. Emphasis is extra force that we put on a syllable, word, or phrase when we are speaking in order to make it seem more important.
3. In writing and speech, the emphasis is the repetition of keywords and phrases or the careful arrangement of words to give them special weight and prominence.
4. In the delivery of a speech, emphasis may also refer to the intensity of expression or the stress put on the words to indicate their importance or special significance.

4 Critical thinking:

1. Critical thinking refers to the ability to analyze information objective and make a reasoned judgment.
2. Critical thinking involves the evaluation of sources such as data, facts, observable phenomenon, and research findings.
3. Good critical thinkers can draw reasonable conclusions from a set of information and discriminate between useful and less useful details to solve a problem or make a decision.
4. Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally, understanding the logical connection between ideas.
5. Critical thinking skills:

• Understand the links between ideas. 
• Determine the importance and relevance of arguments and ideas.
• Recognise, build and appraise arguments.
• Identify inconsistencies and errors in reasoning.
• Approach problems in a consistent and systematic way.
• Reflect on justification of assumptions, beliefs and values.

6a. Enumerate the factors to be emphasized upon while preparing for an interview?

Ans: Steps that should be followed to prepare for an interview :

• The first step is to do self-analysis, know our strengths and weaknesses.We should clearly understand the knowledge and skills that we possess.
• The second step is to find out how relevant our competence is to the job we are seeking, and how we would use it for performing the required duties.
• The third step is to gather information about the history, function and developmental plan of the organization and to visualize the role we could play in its growth and development.
• The fourth step is to imagine the kind of questions likely to be asked and their probable answers.
• The final step is to discuss, if possible, with a few employees of the company about its work culture, professional ethics and growth directions. It is also advisable to gather information from the published literature, if any.

6b. Discuss different types of effective business communication competencies.

Ans: 

1. Communicative competence refers to both the implicit knowledge of a language and the ability to use it effectively. It is also called communication competence.
2. The ability to understand and use language effectively to communicate in authentic social and school environments.
3. There are four ways used for effective business communication competence:
   1. Linguistic: Understanding and using:
      1. Vocabulary.
      2. Language conventions (grammar, punctuation and spelling).
      3. Syntax (for example, sentence structure)
   2. Strategic: Using techniques to :
      1. Overcome language gaps.
      2. Plan and assess the effectiveness of communication.
      3. Achieve conversational fluency. iv.
      4. Modify text for audience and purpose.
   3. Socio-linguistic : Having awareness of :
      1. Social rules of language (for example, formality, politeness, directness).
      2. Non-verbal behaviors.
      3. Cultural references (for example, idioms, expressions, background knowledge).
   4. Discourse: Understanding how ideas are connected through:
      1. Patterns of organization.
      2. Cohesive and transitional devices.

7a. Explain paralinguistic features of speech.

Ans. Paralinguistic features of speech:

1. Pitch:

• Pitch is the highness or lowness of the voice; it is similar to pitch on a musical scale.
• We associate higher pitches with female voices and lower pitches with male voices.
• We associate low-pitched voices with strength, sexiness, and maturity, and high-pitched voices with helplessness, tension, and nervousness.
• We also vary our pitch to reflect our mood and interest in conversing. Your pitch expresses your emotional state; or making a statement or asking a question.

2. Volume:

• The power of your voice, its loudness or volume, also affects perceptions of intended meaning.
• Some whisper or blast through their volume. An aggressive person is often very loud.
• In contrast, if you are soft spoken, others may take your behavior nervousness.
•  Effective Interpersonal Communicators Regulate Volume in an Effort to Promote Meaningful Interaction.
• Your volume should reflect the nature of your message.

3. Pace/Rate:

• Speaking rate is the third vocal signal affecting the communication of meaning. Most of us speak at an average rate of 150 words per minute.
• When we speed up our speech, exceeding 215 to 300 words per minute, it is difficult for others to comprehend what we are saying, and our message thus becomes virtually unintelligible.
• In contrast, if we speak too slowly, others may perceive us as tentative or lacking in confidence or intelligence.
• It quickens to relay agitation, excitement, and happiness, and it falls to convey seriousness, serenity, or sadness.

4. Articulation and Pronunciation:

• The sound attributes of articulation and pronunciation affect message intelligibility as well as perceptions of credibility.
• Articulation is the way you pronounce individual sounds.Ideally, even during person-to-person contact, the sounds of your speech are sharp and distinct.
• When you fail to utter a final sound (a final t or d, for example), fail to produce the sounds of words properly.
• When you mispronounce a word, you may suffer a loss of credibility, and those listening to you may find it more difficult to make sense of what you are saying.

5. Voice Modulation :

• Intonation refers to the tonal variation, modulation pertains to the way we regulate, vary, or adjust the tone, pitch, and volume of the sound or speaking voice.
• Modulation of voice brings flexibility and vitality to your voice, and you can express emotions, sentiments, impatience, careful planning, despondency and suspicions etc.
• If you do not pay special attention to the modulation of your voice, then your voice becomes flat.
• Word stress and sentence stress also play an important role in voice modulation.

6. Hesitations and Silence:

Knowing when to pause is a critical skill. When nervous or tense, we may exhibit a tendency to fill all pauses.

Sometimes we insert meaningless sounds or phrases such as uh, you know, or okay in the effort to fill voids.

These non fluencies, or hesitation phenomena, disrupt the natural flow of speech and adversely affect how others perceive your competence and confidence.

7b. Evaluate the steps involvyd in carrying out the process of communication.

Ans.

Process of technical communication consists of five stages:

Ideation:

1. It begins with ideation which refers to the formation of idea or selection of message. It consists of the what’ of communication and is concerned with the content of the specific message to be presented.
2. The scope of ideation is generally determined by the sender’s:
   1. Knowledge
   2. Experience
   3. Abilities
   4. Purpose of communication e.
   5. Context of the communicative situation
3. Messages generally have two kinds of content:
   1. Logical: These messages consist of factual information.
   2. Emotional: These messages consist of feelings and emotions,

Encoding:

1. It is the process of changing the information into some form of logical and coded message. It involves:
   1. Selecting a language: It is essential for effective coding, verbal messages need a common language code, which can be easily decoded by the receiver.
   2. Selecting an appropriate communication form: It form largely depends on the sender-receiver relationship, need and purpose of the communication.
   3. Selecting a medium of communication: It involves making the right choice out of many available options. There are three basic options for sending interpersonal messages i.e. speaking, writing and non-verbal signs and symbols (body movements,facial Expression, touching pattern speech mannerisms)

Transmission:

• It refers to the flow of message over the chosen channel.
• It involves choosing the :
  • Proper time (When to communicate)
  • Proper place (Where to communicate)
  • Proper way (How to communicate)

• Channels of transmission can be internet, fax, telephone, courier service, television, etc.

Decoding:

• Decoding is the process of converting a message into thoughts.
• The process of decoding involves interpretation and analysis of a
• message.
• Decoding involves reading and understanding of the written communication, listening and understanding of the oral communication.

Feedback/ Response:

• Response is the last stage in the communication process.
• It is the action or reaction of the receiver to the message.
• Response is the key to communication. It helps the sender to know that the message was received and understood.

Technical Communication Important Links:

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