Printer-FriendlyWorkplace Skills > Communication Skills
Communication skills enable employees to successfully perform work tasks by communicating effectively with others in multiple formats. They include:
- Communicates verbally
- Listens actively
- Comprehends written material
- Conveys information in writing
- Observes carefully
The following initiatives identified communication skills as an important employability skill. Rollover the matrix content to see descriptions of the skills from primary sources.
View Complete Matrix.
| Resource | Communication Skills | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Communicates verbally | Listens actively | Comprehends written material | Conveys information in writing | Observes carefully | |
| 21st Century Skills for Workplace Success, NOCTI | X Demonstrates speaking skills |
X Demonstrates listening skills |
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| Arizona's New Workplace Skills, Arizona Department of Education | X Demonstrates mastery of listening skills |
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| Assessing 21st Century Skills, Board on Testing and Assessment, the National Research Council | X Communicates effectively |
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| Career Clusters Framework, National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium | X Employs verbal skills when obtaining and conveying information |
X Applies active listening skills to obtain and clarify information |
X Uses oral and written communication skills in creating, expressing, and interpreting information and ideas |
X Uses written communication skills to convey ideas and information |
X Interprets verbal and nonverbal cues/behaviors |
| Citizenship Foundation Skills and Knowledge Clusters, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services | X Speaks |
X Listens |
X Reads and understands |
X Writes |
|
| Comparative Analysis of Soft Skills: What is Important for New Graduates? U.S. Department of Agriculture | X Communicates orally |
X Listens effectively |
X Communicates effectively in writing |
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| Employability Assessment Rubric, Chicago Public Schools | X Communicates verbally |
X Listens actively |
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| Employability Skills 2000+, Conference Board of Canada | X Speaks so others pay attention and understand |
X Listens and asks questions to understand and appreciate the points of view of others |
X Reads and understands information presented in a variety of forms |
X Writes so others pay attention and understand |
|
| Employability Skills Blueprint, SkillsUSA | X Demonstrates effective public speaking skills |
X Practices active listening |
X Demonstrates effective reading skills |
X Demonstrates effective writing skills |
|
| Equipped for the Future, Center for Literacy Studies, University of Tennessee | X Speaks so others can understand |
X Listens actively |
X Reads with understanding |
X Conveys ideas in writing |
X Observes critically |
| Industry Competency Models, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor | X Listens and speaks |
X Listens and speaks |
X Understands written information in prose and documents |
X Attends to nonverbal cues and responds appropriately |
|
| Maryland Skills for Success, Maryland State Department of Education | X Constructs spoken messages in forms appropriate to purposes, audiences, and situations |
X Uses listening skills and strategies to gather and interpret verbal and nonverbal messages |
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| National Work Readiness Credential | X Communicates in spoken English |
X Listens actively |
X Reads and understands information printed in written form |
X Observes critically |
|
| O*NET, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor | X Talks to others to convey information effectively |
X Listens actively |
X Reads with comprehension |
X Communicates effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience |
|
| Partnership for 21st Century Skills | X Articulates thoughts and ideas effectively using oral communication skills |
X Listens effectively to decipher meaning, including knowledge, values, attitudes and intentions |
X Articulates thoughts and ideas effectively using written communication skills |
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| Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS), U.S. Department of Labor | X Organizes ideas and communicates orally |
X Receives, attends to, interprets, and responds to verbal messages and other cues |
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NOTE: These examples represent a sample of employability standards and assessments compiled during an inventory of employability skills conducted in 2012. They do not represent an exhaustive list of employability skills but rather include sources that are widely cited. The content of these sources may change over time to address skills that are not reflected in the above matrix.
