To Listen Is To Pay Attention
How many times are we asking students to really hear us? We talk at students on a daily basis, when are
they tuned in and when are they checked out? Sometimes we try to capture their attention with phrases like
"pay attention to this" or "listen closely" but the most effective phrase for getting their attention is, of
course, "this will be on the test."
Much of the challenge of teaching revolves around just this issue: engaging students. Classroom
management, achieving goals and objectives, and high-stakes accountability are the big concerns for
teachers... but if students would just listen this would all work so much better!
The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to
understand people is to listen to them. — Ralph Nichols
To Listen Is To Show Respect
When we really listen or are listened to- this is a gift of time and energy. Teachers and administrators who
listen to their students are always listed as "most influential" and "favorite;" it doesn't take long for students
to learn, word-of-mouth, who they can go to for help or to just unload. Students who attend are among our
favorites... it is affirming to look out into the room and meet the eyes of th student who is following the
lesson and nodding in agreement.
Someone who listens is receptive and focused. It is a great complement to say "He is a good listener." We
acknowledge the gift of the listener's time when we respond gratefully with "Thanks for listening." Even if
the conversation didn't really accomplish much, sometimes we "...just need to be heard."
Despite the importance of listening, to both the student and the teacher, listening is not often taught or
evaluated. Listening is key to reacting, through discussion or written response, to lessons or assigned
readings.
Learning Requires Listening
Like reading and writing, listening is a skill that can be taught and assessed.
Oh, listen a lot and talk less. You can't learn anything when you're talking. — Bing Crosby
Have you ever reminded someone to listen? Could you do with some reminding yourself? My favorite
reminder is when someone says "listen with your ears, not your mouth!" What a clear image that conveys...
if you don't stop to listen you cannot really hear.
What can you do to create and maintain a listening environment in your classroom? The following ideas
and links will help.
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Minimize distractions: if your students are easily distracted, don't take it personally. Try to set
your space up to be as least distracting as possible.
Teach listening: Less than 2% of us have had "... formal educational experience with listening."
For more factoids about listening check out the International Listening Association website.
(http://www.listen.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=43&Ite
mid=74)
Create a Cooperative Learning Environment: if you have established a cooperative learning
environment, you will observe students listen carefully to presentations, take notes, but do not
interrupt. Being a good listener is an important interpersonal skill that is taught and rewarded in a
cooperative learning environment (http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~art297h/environ.html)
Active listening or dialogic listening are concepts that may be familiar to you. Responding to another
person in a conversation using statements like "What I hear you saying is..." which indicates understanding
through restatement, or "I gather you felt... when..." which indicates interpretation in terms of feelings. This
sort of listen and respond approach is designed to promote mutual understanding.
Training exercises in active listening always felt contrived or fake to me. I certainly was not comfortable
responding with restatement or trying to figure out how someone else felt about the topic being discussed!
This aversion is based upon a really essential fact: I was not (and still struggle to be) a good listener. I am
impatient and assertive, often quick to move on without hearing out the other people in the conversation.
As a result, I have misunderstood the point being made by others, and I have most likely missed out on
ideas and perspectives that would have been valuable to the conversation. I have missed out on a great deal
from other people- once it is evident you are not being heard, most people simply stop talking.
Active listening is not only respectful, but validates the speaker and builds toward collaborative solutions.
Active listening makes you stop moving past the speaker's points while formulating your next point and
makes you attend to that speaker more fully. These are important skills for group work, class discussions,
and success in social and work situations outside of school.
Want more? Check out the following links.
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Active Listening for the Classroom (secondary)
(http://712educators.about.com/cs/activelistening/a/activelistening.htm)
Study Guides and StrategiesActive Listening (http://www.studygs.net/listening.htm)
Active Learning: creating excitement in the classroom (http://www.ntlf.com/html/lib/bib/919dig.htm)