Miss

Communication is important in the work place and affects all aspects of your work on a day to day basis. People use communication for many reasons such as: * To pass and receive information * Give and receive instructions. * Discuss situations. * Express a need to make a point. * To outline a concern. * To negotiate. * To develop learning. There are many ways in which we communicate with each other and these methods can include verbal communication (i.e. vocabulary, pitch or linguistic tone) and non-verbal communication (i.e. eye contact, body language, touch, physical gestures and behaviours). We can also use technological aids in forms of letters or memos to communicate. It is essential that we have effective communication within the setting to ensure that everyone is working together as part of a team and to provide the best quality of care for the children. Communication is only effective if it is a two-way process. It is important for the person communicating to be sending the right message, but also they need to make sure that the message is being correctly received and understood by the other person(s). In order to carry this out correctly it’s vital to ensure that you speak clearly, consider the other parties points of view, and where possible try to build a rapport with the child or adult/parent you are communicating with. Equally important when you are communicating to an individual is to observe their reaction as they are receiving the information. This is because some adults or children may be confident in expressing themselves verbally but on the other hand, others are not and so may use facial expressions or body language instead. Due to this it is vital as a practitioner that you are able to ‘read’ an individual’s reaction in order to get the true meaning of a conversation that is taking place. Understanding this will enable you to change your approach to deal with that individual effectively. Effective communication affects all aspects of my work as it is at the centre of everything I do within my role i.e. talking to colleagues, assessors and managers, to discussions with parents of the children in my care. It is effective communication that will enable me to develop my role as a practitioner when working with children and young people. An example of what could be discussed between the parents, practitioners and managers is that we could discuss the child’s learning progress and talk through the daily routine and activities. We also would use this opportunity to discuss if there had been any issues i.e. accidents or illnesses whilst in our care. Between managers and practitioners/students we may discuss performance and mentoring team members. We may also discuss with our colleagues and managers anything that may be a concern within the setting which we would then pass to outside agencies that may be brought in. This could be a matter affecting the safeguarding of a child or if we believe a child may have a learning disability. Other outside professionals could be brought in to communicate with managers to provide training. In communicating effectively you build a strong relationship with the children, their parents and your work colleagues and it encourages a positive environment, building trust, respect and openness. This, in turn, benefits the children as this will have a positive impact on their engagement in their learning and development. When working with children or young people, it is important to be able to identify and meet each individual’s communication and language needs, wishes and their preferences. In doing so, you not only build a positive relationship with both adults and children, but it can also help you to identify any barriers in communication that they may have. PYSICAL - Poor environment such as lighting or background noise. - Staff absence or shortage of staff meaning meetings may be cancelled or give a rushed and busy atmosphere. LANGUAGE - English may be a second language. - Inappropriate or complicated language. - Local dialect maybe strong and difficult to understand. DISABLED - Speech, sight or hearing impairment. LITERACY - Can people read and write' - Not everyone is computer literate. PERSONAL - Individual’s prejudices on people and practices. - Differences in personal views and opinions. BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION SOCIAL - Child may have several carers who pick and drop them off to the setting. - Working parents or possibly absent parents. - Parents could be young or new parents so lacking in confidence and parenting skills. ORGANISATIONAL - Unclear structure. - Inefficient information systems such as email. - Lack of clarification of what each person’s role is within the setting. CULTURE DIFFERENCES - Different interpretation of body language. - What is acceptable for us may not be acceptable for them. - Difference in forms or address or whom to address. If you are finding it difficult to communicate, whether that be that you feel you are not being understood or finding it difficult to understand an individual, or possibly just feeling apprehensive about approaching someone who’s culture is different from that of your own, then you should look to seek help and support from your colleagues or supervisor. They may have had a similar experience and so can share their knowledge and offer advice. It is important within your role to be able to overcome barriers and/or be able to seek support and advice when you are not sure or need to know more e.g. If you had a concern about a child’s communication/language development. Firstly you would discuss any concerns with your room supervisor who may be able to advise or work with you to seek support. Within your setting there will be a SENCO (Special Educational Needs Coordinator) who you can go through for help and they can put you in the right direction of external agencies or consultants if they are needed. Other outside services such as an interpreter or translator, a speech and language service or an advocacy service may be used for information and support to help enable effective communications. There are a lot of other sources of information that can be found on websites that offer support and guidance and you can even pick up leaflets from your local doctor surgery, schools or council. Confidentiality is ensuring that information is accessible and confined only to those authorised to have access and not intended to be made known public. Where the information is personal, this is protected under the Data Protection Act 1998. As a practitioner you have a duty to keep certain information confined to a circle of people and to respect each individual’s privacy and confidentiality. To ensure that the importance of maintaining confidentiality is understood and agreed we are required to sign a confidentiality agreement. Within the setting we demonstrate confidentiality in day to day communication by keeping observations of children using first name or initials only, all personal records are locked away in cabinets and development records stored away from general view. Parents will only have access to their own child’s records and any conversations that take place are done so in an appropriate place, only sharing information with the appropriate people. In some situations confidentiality may need to be breached and the information passed on, but only if it is justified or there is strong evidence either to suggest that a child’s safety is at risk or the child needs additional support from other professionals. Other situations may be that an outside body such as Ofsted has requested to see an adult’s or child’s records. In any circumstances, if it is in connection with a child, parental consent must always be sought before any information is passed on. If there is any doubt about an issue that is confidential, always seek the advice of your supervisor or manager. It is always better to seek advice verbally and in an area where nobody else can overhear what is being said to prevent anyone else having access to the information.