11. How can we help learners listen
more effectively?
• Games and activities
• Encourage
• Clarity
• Enthusiasm
• Eye contact
• Environment
12. So……in conclusion
“ To listen well is as powerful a means of
communication and influence as to talk
well ”
John Marshall ( Founder of Constitutional Law and
the Supreme Court in America )
Editor's Notes
For my presentation I have chosen Understanding and Improving Listening skills..why? I wanted to achieve personally evaluate my own listening skills but also to examine the techniques of effective listening, listening which is active and is essentially empathic. It is a skill I have had to concentrate on quite substantially in my counselling practice, the context of this situation relies on effective reflective listening taking place, it is interesting then to stop and think and consider the benefits of listening activities in my teaching. Firstly, I did an active listening skills check – to see how good a listener I am and to highlight improvements. Ok, what have I learned? Background / rationale
Why should you listen???, its not just about being polite, there is a lot we gain from listening to others……heres some reasons why listening is a purposeful thing…
Credibility - If you listen first to others and more to others, then your credibility with them will go up – why? – well because Listening to others can help a person to see themselves as competent and capable, if this is the case their view of you is likely to be a positive one.
Support – The other person may feel appreciated, supported, especially true if the person is upset, has concerns or has a good point to make about something specific. Listening shows respect and empathy, it can help us build trust. We might even say listening can boost a persons sense of identity.
Information – It might seem basic, low tech even, but simply listening can give us plenty of information that can be useful, both now and in the future. David Straker 2009, states that ‘you can achieve much with very little talk’.
Exchange - If you listen to other people, they are more likely to listen to you. Your support of them obliges them to return support to you, which you can then use to achieve your goals, this is what Cialdini ( 1994 ) referred to as the ‘exchange principle’
Before we look at the elements of good listening lets just have a peek at what it takes to be a poor listener……….
Listening if often represented as sitting and doing nothing, a passive rather than active approach, this couldn’t further from the truth, attentive, true listening is a much more skilled area than you might imagine . CARDS!!
Games and activities - Introduce games and activities that reflect listening skills, for example, a listening role play or a Cooperative activity, for example, you could have one learner report to the group on how another student went about solving a specific problem Show activities!! Encourage - Encourage questions, discussion, debate, remembering the active listening skills we looked at earlier!! Clarity - It is vital that the teacher speaks in a clear voice so everyone can hear easily. Enthusisam – It is my opinion that learners switch off if they feel the teacher is not interested in what they are speaking about, so enthusiasm is also key. Eye contact – Look at the learners when speaking, maintain that eye contact. Environment – A good conducive learning environment will improve the listening skills of learners, discouraging interruptions, making the setting free from distractions, think about environment in terms of layout, seating etc
In studying and researching this topic I have learnt some valuable information, this knowledge will help contribute to me delivering more effective teaching sessions and importantly that the teacher has the control to change his or her behaviour and approach through listening in order to develop the listening skills in others
