In any higher institution of learning, teaching is a core component of a lecturer’s work, in addition to research and community service. At the TNM Media Academy, Ibadan, one of the foremost institutions for media and journalism studies, when the Head of Department informed me that Psychology of Communication is one of the courses I will teach at the National Diploma level, I initially wanted to reject it because I felt that psychology is not my core area of interest and not closely aligned with my academic orientation. But my decision changed completely when he said, “We know you can handle it,” a statement that challenged my confidence and reshaped my perception of the assignment.
After our conversation, as I was going home, I kept thinking deeply about how to teach the students in a way that would have a lasting impact on them and enable them to replicate it in their profession and society in general, using the principles and techniques they would have gained from my teaching approach. This reflection extended beyond the classroom and became a personal intellectual responsibility. Arriving home, I still found myself not comfortable with the course, as I felt uncertain about my depth in the subject area. However, the doubt was gradually addressed when I went on a self-search mission to know which university, polytechnic or any other type of higher institution in Nigeria or outside the country is offering the course, for me to learn one or two things from the existing approaches and understand how it is structured in different academic environments.
Surprisingly, little information is available on the websites of most institutions in Nigeria. This gap limited immediate reference points and made comparative understanding difficult. This gap was addressed when I searched foreign institutions, where I found topics and practical tasks such as defining the psychology of communication and engaging in critical analysis of communication materials, as well as structured conversations in various contexts with the intent of revealing cognitive and neuroscience aspects of communication. These approaches appeared more applied, analytical and reflective in nature, giving students opportunities to connect theory with real communication experiences.
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Considering Nigeria’s context, the majority of techniques being deployed by most faculty members cannot deliver the expected and meaningful impact in our context, especially where learning often remains theoretical and less practice-driven. It is on this basis that I crafted topics that focus on verbal and non-verbal communication in relation to media and journalism studies, ensuring relevance to students’ professional development. In the last few weeks, since I started teaching the course, my attention has been on walking the students through the application of concepts such as perception, motivation, attitudes, personality, and behaviour, among others, using the “thinking about thinking” principle, which encourages them to reflect on their cognitive processes during communication.
To really deepen the students’ skills and knowledge, I taught a concept, and thereafter they worked on practical tasks using news, programme and advertising materials, allowing them to analyse communication from real media content. They also carried out practical tasks using observable human and non-human materials around them, ensuring that learning was not restricted to the classroom environment. For example, they were asked to take a picture of a dilapidated building around the campus premises and conduct a psychological image analysis. This task helped them to understand how a brownfield environment could shape their relationships and possible well-being, while also strengthening their ability to interpret visual and environmental cues in communication contexts.
In all, students examine how personality perception and social judgement affect interpersonal exchanges, alongside the role of human needs and motivation in shaping engagement. Beliefs, values, and attitudes are studied as drivers of communication choices. The course also introduces critical thinking and metacognition, encouraging learners to question assumptions and evaluate claims in academic enquiry.
