Listening Skills - Lecture notes 3 PDF

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LISTENING SKILLS Listening is the absorption of the meanings of words and sentences by the brain. Listening leads to the understanding of facts and ideas. But listening takes attention, or sticking to the task at hand in spite of distractions. It requires concentration, which is the focusing of your thoughts upon one particular problem. A person who incorporates listening with concentration is actively listening. Active listening is a method of responding to another that encourages communication

What does it mean to really listen? Real listening is an active process that has three basic steps. 1. Hearing. Hearing just means listening enough to catch what the speaker is saying. For example, say you were listening to a report on zebras, and the speaker mentioned that no two are alike. If you can repeat the fact, then you have heard what has been said. 2. Understanding. The next part of listening happens when you take what you have heard and understand it in your own way. Let's go back to that report on zebras. When you hear that no two are alike, think about what that might mean. You might think, "Maybe this means that the pattern of stripes is different for each zebra."

3. Judging. After you are sure you understand what the speaker has said, think about whether it makes sense. Do you believe what you have heard? You might think, "How could the stripes to be different for every zebra? But then again, the fingerprints are different for every person. I think this seems believable."

Listening is following and understanding the sound---it is hearing with a purpose. Good listening is built on three basic skills: attitude, attention, and adjustment. These skills are known collectively as triple-A listening.

Poor Listening Habits and Good Listening Habits Poor Listening Habits

Poor Listeners...

Criticize the speaker's voice, clothes, or looks. Therefore, they decide that the speaker won’t say anything important. become so involved in Finding fault disagreeing with something with the the speaker states that they speaker stop listening to the remainder of the lecture Use little distractions -Allowing someone coughing, a pencil yourself to be dropping, the door opening distracted and closing -- as an excuse to stop listening.

Criticizing a speaker

Faking attention

Look at the speaker but don't listen. They expect to get the material from the textbook later.

Good Listeners... Realize that a lecture is not a popularity contest. Good listeners look for the ideas being presented, not for things to criticize. Listen with the mind, not the emotions. Good listeners jot down something they disagree with to ask the speaker later, and then go on listening. Filter out distractions and concentrate on what the speaker is saying. Understand that speakers talk about what they think is most important. Good listeners know that a good lecture may not contain the same information as the textbook.

LISTENING PROBLEMS There are many mixed reasons for poor listening. Here's a list of problems that result from weak listening skills. Daydreaming is probably the most common listening problem because it affects everyone. Frequently a speaker will mention some person or thing that triggers an association in our minds, and off we go. When we return to reality and start listening again, we may find that the third point is being discussed, and we have no recollection of points one and two. Closed-mindedness is a fault that happens more outside the classroom, especially when we are arguing. We often refuse to listen to the other side of the argument, especially when we've already made up our minds. We think there's no use in listening since we know all there is to know! Anytime you fail to listen with an open mind, you may lose valuable information.

Closed-mindedness interferes with learning and relationships! False attention is a protection technique that everyone uses from time to time to fake out the speaker. When we're not really interested in what someone is saying, we pretend to listen. We nod our heads and make occasional meaningless comments and eye contact to give the impression that we're listening. Usually our minds are a million miles away.

How can listening skills be improved?  Listen carefully so that you will be able to understand, comprehend, and evaluate. Careful listening will require a conscious effort on your part. You must be aware of the verbal and nonverbal messages.  Be mentally and physically prepared to listen. Put other thoughts out of your mind. Your attention will be diverted from listening if you try to think of answers in advance.  You can't hear if YOU do all the talking. Don't talk too much.  Think about the topic in advance, if possible. Be prepared to listen.  Listen with empathy. See the situation from the other's point of view. Try to put yourself in their shoes.  Be courteous; don't interrupt. Take notes if you worry about forgetting a particular point.  Avoid stereotyping individuals by making assumptions about how you expect them to act. This will bias your listening.  Listen to how something is said. Be alert for what is left unsaid....