In the evolving landscape of education, integrating multimedia resources into traditional coursework can provide powerful learning experiences. One way to do this in a communications course is by incorporating Brené Brown’s Atlas of the Heart (Brown, 2021) alongside textbook materials, such as Interplay: The Process of Interpersonal Communication (Adler, Rosenfeld, & Proctor, 2018). This multimedia approach not only deepens students’ understanding of emotions but also enhances their communication competence by linking emotional experiences to core communication theories.

Connecting Emotions to Communication Theories: A Reflective Approach

Students often experience emotions in their daily interactions, but they may not always reflect on how these emotions impact their communication. By engaging with the emotions discussed in Atlas of the Heart, students can gain a more nuanced understanding of interpersonal communication theories, such as those explored in Chapter 9: Emotions of Interplay (Adler et al., 2018).

For example, one way to foster this reflection is by having students write about how vulnerability affects communication. Vulnerability is central to emotional expression and connection, which ties directly to the concepts of self-disclosure and emotional intelligence discussed in Interplay (Adler et al., 2018). By reflecting on vulnerability, students can explore the tension between openness and the fear of rejection, gaining insight into how these feelings influence their interactions with others (Brown, 2021).

Class Discussions: Exploring the Emotional Side of Communication

Using Atlas of the Heart as a springboard for class discussions offers a dynamic way to explore the emotional components of communication. Episodes or excerpts from the series can serve as powerful tools to introduce students to the complex relationship between emotions and communication theories like perception and cultural differences.

For instance, an episode focused on the emotion of belonging (Brown, 2021) could open up discussions about how different cultural perceptions shape communication in group settings. Students could compare their personal experiences with concepts from Chapter 3: Perception and Chapter 5: Culture of Interplay (Adler et al., 2018), analyzing how emotions affect intercultural interactions and communication patterns.

Interactive Activities to Deepen Understanding

Interactive activities are essential for applying theoretical concepts to real-life situations. One engaging activity is having students conduct case studies based on characters or scenarios from Atlas of the Heart (Brown, 2021). These case studies can be analyzed through the lens of communication concepts such as perception, culture, or conflict management—key ideas covered in Interplay’s Chapters 3, 5, and 12 (Adler et al., 2018).

For example, students might analyze a scenario where a character experiences shame, and then connect that to theories about self-concept and identity management (Adler et al., 2018). By making these connections, students will better understand how internal emotional experiences influence external communication behaviors, especially in moments of conflict or cultural misunderstanding.

Conclusion

Recap: Integrating Atlas of the Heart into a communication course offers students a valuable opportunity to connect emotions with interpersonal communication theories from Interplay (Adler et al., 2018). This multimedia approach not only deepens their understanding of key concepts like vulnerability, shame, and belonging (Brown, 2021), but also allows them to apply these insights to their real-world communication experiences. Ultimately, this enhances their ability to navigate the complex emotional landscape of personal and professional relationships.

Call to Action: I encourage educators to adopt multimedia tools like Atlas of the Heart to bridge communication theory with the emotional realities students face in their daily lives. By doing so, we can help students become more emotionally intelligent and communicatively competent, preparing them for success in both interpersonal and professional contexts.

Additional Elements

Visuals: Consider including visuals or clips from Atlas of the Heart alongside textbook content from Interplay to engage students visually and reinforce key concepts. Using multimedia alongside academic material can help students make deeper connections between theoretical ideas and their emotional experiences.

Reflection Questions:

1. “How do emotions like shame or belonging impact the way we communicate?”
2. “How can understanding our own emotional triggers improve our interpersonal relationships?”
3. “What role does storytelling play in enhancing our comprehension of communication theories?”

Encouraging students to reflect on these questions will help them think critically about how emotions influence their communication and relationships.

References:

• Adler, R. B., Rosenfeld, L. B., & Proctor, R. F. (2018). Interplay: The process of interpersonal communication (14th ed.). Oxford University Press.
• Brown, B. (2021). Atlas of the heart: Mapping meaningful connection and the language of human experience. Random House.

In my Audio Video Production and Professional Communication courses, project-based learning is critical for student success. With Class Companion, I can easily create and manage project-based assessments that align with course objectives and provide a real-world context for learning.

Project-based learning helps students develop problem-solving skills and encourages active engagement with the content (Blumenfeld et al., 1991). Class Companion’s project management features allow me to assign, track, and assess student projects, ensuring that every student has the tools and resources they need to succeed. Whether my students are working on video production or preparing professional presentations, Class Companion keeps them organized and on track.

For educators looking to incorporate project-based learning into their classrooms, Class Companion offers the structure and support you need. 

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References:

• Blumenfeld, P. C., Soloway, E., Marx, R. W., Krajcik, J. S., Guzdial, M., & Palincsar, A. (1991). Motivating project-based learning: Sustaining the doing, supporting the learning. Educational Psychologist, 26(3-4), 369-398.

Sometimes, rubrics need restructuring to match new learning objectives or adapt to unique assignments. Brisk makes it easy to adjust existing rubrics without starting from scratch, saving time and ensuring adaptability.

How Brisk Aids in Restructuring:

• Easy Reordering of Criteria: Brisk’s interface allows educators to move, add, or remove criteria as needed. If an assignment evolves, like shifting from written responses to multimedia presentations, the rubric can be easily adapted.
• Adjustable Weighting: Brisk enables educators to assign varying weights to rubric components based on importance, prioritizing specific skills or knowledge areas for different assignments.
• Focus on Skill-Specific Feedback: By restructuring rubrics with Brisk, educators can emphasize particular skills, such as “Critical Thinking” in writing assignments or “Technical Proficiency” in audio-visual projects.

Using Brisk to restructure rubrics allows for dynamic, flexible assessment that aligns with evolving course goals and project requirements, making evaluation a more responsive tool for student success.

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Enhancing rubrics with detailed descriptors helps students understand where they excel and where they need improvement. Brisk provides educators with tools to enrich rubrics and make feedback more impactful.

How Brisk Enhances Rubrics:

• In-Depth Descriptors: Brisk’s rubric enhancement tools allow teachers to add descriptive details to each criterion. For example, in a public speaking rubric, “Eye Contact” can be described in levels like “Maintains consistent eye contact throughout” or “Occasionally looks away.”
• Specific Examples: Including examples within rubric descriptors can provide clarity. Brisk helps integrate relevant examples, so students know what behaviors or qualities are expected at each level.
• Consistency and Objectivity: With Brisk, teachers can apply consistent standards across different sections or classrooms, ensuring fair assessment.

With Brisk-enhanced rubrics, students gain a clearer picture of their performance, making assessments more valuable to their learning process.

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In our Instructional Practices class, students are diving into foundational learning theories to better understand the philosophy behind effective teaching. We’re working through Chapter 1, Section 1 of Learning Theories Simplified by Bob Bates, focusing on nine classical learning theories ranging from Socrates’ emphasis on reflection to Freire’s concept of critical consciousness. This assignment encourages students to explore how great thinkers have shaped educational approaches, while also making connections to modern teaching practices.

Assignment Breakdown and Objectives

The assignment is designed to help students become familiar with classical learning theories and apply them to real classroom scenarios. Here’s how it’s structured:

1. Theory Selection and Research: Students select one theory, such as Dewey’s Pragmatism or Aristotle’s Self-Fulfilling Prophecy, and conduct in-depth research on the concepts, historical context, and applications of their chosen theory. This week-long research phase allows students to build a thorough understanding of key philosophical ideas in education.
2. Peer Teaching Presentations: Each student prepares a presentation to teach their chosen theory to the class. These presentations are interactive and include an overview of the theory, real-world applications, and a brief discussion or activity. This peer teaching aspect builds public speaking skills and fosters a collaborative learning environment where students can engage with diverse perspectives on education.
3. Theory-Based Lesson Plan Creation: Students create a mini-lesson plan incorporating their selected theory, complete with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) alignment, learning objectives, and an activity grounded in theoretical principles. This element reinforces the importance of aligning instructional design with pedagogical philosophy.

How We’re Applying These Theories in Class

To bring these theories to life, the class structure includes a mix of direct instruction, storytelling, and reflective discussions. Each day, students check in to share their progress, ask questions, and collaborate on ideas. This consistent feedback loop enables students to connect their research with practical classroom experiences.

As a core part of the course, students complete two weekly classroom observations, followed by reflective journaling. These observations are key to understanding the dynamics of classroom instruction and identifying examples of how these classical theories are applied in real time.

Why This Assignment Matters

Studying classical learning theories in depth helps students develop a critical understanding of educational philosophy, a skill essential for future educators. By blending historical insights with practical application, students can see how abstract ideas like Socrates’ method of questioning or Dewey’s focus on experience play a tangible role in shaping modern classrooms.

This assignment not only promotes a deeper appreciation for the field of education but also cultivates essential skills in research, lesson planning, and peer instruction.

Assessing student reflections requires a focus on both the content of the reflection and the depth of thought, while recognizing that reflection is inherently subjective. Here are some key ways to effectively assess student reflections:

1. Use a Rubric Focused on Depth and Relevance

A rubric provides clear criteria for evaluating student reflections. Here are some elements that can be included in a reflection rubric:

• Insightfulness and Depth of Analysis: Look for evidence that students are critically analyzing their experiences, connecting them to learning theories or specific goals, and demonstrating a deeper understanding of the material.
• Specific Examples and Details: High-quality reflections often include concrete examples from classroom observations or personal experiences, helping to ground their thoughts in real-world context.
• Connection to Theory or Learning Goals: Assess how well students connect their reflections to relevant theories, learning outcomes, or educational practices discussed in class.
• Clarity and Coherence: Reflections should be well-organized and clearly express the student’s thoughts and insights.

2. Provide Reflective Prompts for Guidance

Prompting students with specific questions can help them dig deeper. For example, you might ask:

• “What surprised you most about the classroom experience, and why?”
• “How does this observation connect to [specific learning theory]?”
• “What would you do differently if you were the teacher in this situation?”

Using these prompts as part of the rubric can guide students and standardize responses.

3. Focus on Growth Over Time

Reflections are tools for growth, so track how students’ reflections deepen over time. Look for changes in how they analyze situations, connect experiences to theory, and self-assess.

4. Encourage Self-Assessment and Peer Feedback

Including self-assessment or peer feedback as part of the reflective process can be a powerful way to encourage students to assess their own growth. You can have students review their earlier reflections to assess progress, or use peer reviews for additional insights.

5. Provide Constructive, Narrative Feedback

Instead of only assigning a score, offer narrative feedback on student reflections. Highlight where the student showed deep insight, asked valuable questions, or made strong connections to theory, and offer suggestions for how they might reflect more deeply in future assignments.

By assessing reflections with these strategies, you create a supportive framework that values personal insight and encourages critical thinking, guiding students toward more thoughtful and meaningful self-assessment.

Creating an effective rubric is crucial for transparent, consistent, and fair student assessment. Brisk offers educators an efficient way to design rubrics that provide clear expectations for student performance, aligning with specific learning objectives.

How Brisk Helps:

• Template Customization: Brisk allows teachers to select from a variety of pre-built rubric templates. You can modify these to suit different assignments, such as evaluating interviews or public speaking skills.
• Criteria Development: Teachers can specify learning criteria for each rubric. For example, for an interview assignment, you could assess students on criteria like “Professionalism,” “Question Response Quality,” and “Body Language.”
• Performance Level Descriptions: Brisk simplifies the process of writing specific descriptions for each performance level (e.g., Excellent, Satisfactory, Needs Improvement). This helps students understand the expectations clearly.

Brisk saves valuable time by providing a structured framework for building effective rubrics, enabling teachers to focus more on student growth.

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In my COMM 1311: Introduction to Speech Communication course, students don’t just learn how to speak—they learn how to listen, think critically, and refine their ideas through meaningful feedback. Recently, I led a multi-phase lesson centered around developing and strengthening persuasive speech outlines. To guide the process, I used two customized tools: the Pre-Peer Review Discussion Guide and the Persuasive Speech Outline Peer Review Workshop form.

This blog post outlines how these resources helped students in COMM 1311 improve their speech structure, deepen their arguments, and build collaborative communication skills—all while aligning with key course outcomes and TEKS for Professional Communications.

🧭 Planning the Lesson: Scaffolding the Persuasive Process

The lesson unfolded in three main phases:

1. Outline Refinement

2. Peer Collaboration and Feedback

3. Revision and Reflection

Students began by revisiting their persuasive speech outlines—originally built using Monroe’s Motivated Sequence or a problem-solution format. Their goal: improve clarity, coherence, and evidence use. I asked students to focus on refining:

• Thesis statements

• Logical organization

• Counterarguments and refutations

• Quality and diversity of sources (aiming for five unique ones)

To support peer exchange, I provided a structured review process through two resources.

💬 Phase 1: Framing the Conversation with the Pre-Peer Review Discussion Guide

Before reviewing each other’s outlines, students used the Pre-Peer Review Discussion Guide to spark meaningful dialogue. This step helped students articulate their persuasive goals, identify areas where they wanted help, and reflect on the audience’s role in their speech.

Key questions included:

• “What’s your topic and what side are you taking?”

• “What part are you unsure about or still working on?”

• “Do you want more help with structure, clarity, evidence, or something else?”

This created a sense of ownership over the feedback process, especially for students who needed scaffolding to engage in critique confidently. It also laid the groundwork for a feedback-rich classroom culture.

✍️ Phase 2: Deepening the Draft with the Peer Review Workshop

Once discussion was underway, students transitioned to the Persuasive Speech Outline Peer Review Workshop form (a revised version of our original speech performance rubric). This version was redesigned to focus solely on evaluating written outlines—not delivery.

Reviewers focused on:

• Clarity and strength of the introduction and thesis

• Logical organization of main points

• Integration of credible sources

• Inclusion of counterarguments and refutations

• Effectiveness of transitions and conclusion

Students were asked to identify two strengths and two improvement areas, then return the form to their peer for discussion. These conversations promoted critical thinking, clarified intent, and gave students fresh perspectives on argument structure.

🔁 Phase 3: Reflection and Revision

After receiving feedback, each student identified three specific improvements they would make to their outline. These were documented directly in Google Classroom, reinforcing accountability and providing a clear revision roadmap.

Some sample improvements included:

• “Rewriting my second main point to avoid overlap with the first”

• “Adding a personal story to strengthen emotional appeal”

• “Replacing two weak sources with peer-reviewed articles”

By closing the loop between feedback and revision, this process helped students see revision not as correction—but as growth.

🎓 Learning Outcomes: Alignment and Impact

This lesson supported several COMM 1311 objectives:

• Understanding audience analysis and adaptation

• Applying reasoning and evidence to build persuasive arguments

• Practicing collaborative communication and active listening

It also aligned with TEKS 130.113, particularly:

• (7) Delivering structured messages

• (8) Adapting for different audiences

• (9) Evaluating messages for clarity and logic

🧠 Why This Model Worked

Students were:

✅ Engaged in meaningful dialogue

✅ Given scaffolded feedback tools

✅ Encouraged to revise intentionally

✅ Able to connect classroom theory to real-world persuasive practices

Rather than treating peer review as a checkbox activity, this approach positioned it as a critical thinking and communication skill in itself—exactly what COMM 1311 aims to cultivate.

📌 Tips for Educators

If you’re teaching introductory speech or communication courses:

• Use a structured guide before peer review to promote purposeful conversations.

• Simplify evaluation rubrics to focus on one skill at a time—in this case, argument development.

• Make reflection part of the assignment, not an afterthought.

These small shifts can lead to big gains in how students approach persuasive communication.

🔄 Looking Ahead

This experience reinforced my belief that feedback is a form of communication—and one of the most important skills we can teach in COMM 1311. As we move toward final speech presentations, I’ve already seen stronger organization, clearer arguments, and more confident students.

And that’s what this course is all about: helping students use communication to inform, influence, and inspire.

In my Interpersonal Communication course, guided notes play an essential role in helping students follow along with lectures and discussions. With Diffit, I can create customized guided notes that emphasize the most critical aspects of the course, such as conflict resolution or active listening.

Research shows that guided notes improve student engagement and comprehension, particularly for complex topics (Boyle & Weishaar, 2001). By using Diffit, I can quickly generate notes that guide students through key concepts while allowing them space to apply their learning through class discussions and activities. These notes can be distributed digitally or printed for in-class use, providing flexibility for different learning environments.

Diffit has simplified my lesson planning, allowing me to focus more on student interaction and less on material preparation. Enhance your lesson planning with Diffit—automatically create differentiated learning materials in seconds! Sign up using my referral link here and experience the ease of personalized instruction.

References:

• Boyle, J. R., & Weishaar, M. (2001). The effects of strategic notetaking on the recall and comprehension of lecture information for high school students with learning disabilities. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 16(3), 133-141.