Q: The International Listening Association (ILA) http://listen.org
is a rich resource for learning more about listening and networking
with others who recognize its importance in everyday life. Its website
features exercises to test and improve listening, factoids about
listening, Internet discussion groups, quotes about the nature and value
of listening, and a bibliography for those who want to read more.
Review "Listening is a 10 part skill", and report on what you learned: http://listen.org/Resources/Documents/Nichols10PartSkill.pdf
A: I love how straight forward this book is. (At least I think it was a book...or a pamphlet) I once again reviewed the different ways of nonlistening, how to change those habits, and the consequences of not listening. I love how the author tells us that we should engage in conversation and keep thoughts and important information in our mind. Sort of like how we would annotate a book as we read. If we find anything interesting or anything that toggles a question, write it down or keep it in your mind. When you actually engage in the conversation and find a way to make it interesting you are more likely to listen get the most out of the conversation or lecture. I once again will reference my monotone professor whom everyone has trouble focusing on sometimes. I absolutely love him, but there are days where I get distracted but I find ways to engage in the class by pretending he is speaking in a cool foreign accent. Another great reference I have are huge lecture halls where everyone around you is either taking notes by hand, typing away on their laptop, texting, playing games, etc and you are trying your best to pay attention. There are times I really wish I was back in the high school or middle school setting where the teacher would find activities for us to do to learn the material rather than just lecture, so, in order to get myself to engage in the lecture and not drift into my own thoughts, I would do mind maps. Especially for those that are more visual or a bit scatted mind maps really help organize everything and keep you in check. It provided visual appeal so I'll be more likely to pay attention and take pretty notes for me to refer back to. I was taught most of these "skills" as a child such as hold your tongue, and even if someone isn't interesting listen to them because they will always know at least one thing you don't know, it doesn't hurt to spend a few minutes listening to something you already know over again. Listening is really a great skill that is not stressed enough. Most people focus on public speaking rather than it's opposite "listening". Sometimes if you just open your ears to listen and your eyes to watch you learn so much about a person and almost everything that is able to be offered by the world. It is a necessity skill that is so often overlooked it pains me when I have to repeat myself several times.
Hey Wishlist! I enjoyed reading your post. You said it very right that it hurts when you have to repeat yourself many times because others are not listening to or paying attention to your say. At the same time it is extremely hard to not waiver and keep your focus at one point for long time but again listening is a skill. One way of practicing to listen is to read a page without wandering around and then write about it. This exercise is a self-evaluating tool to check how much did we absorb from the reading assignment. Definitely college is intense in comparison to high school because you are expected to be an adult and focus on your work for your benefit. It takes time to adjust as we all go through this change, so good luck to you and your listening!
ReplyDeleteI had a class in high school called A.V.I.D. It was one of those college prep classes that helped us deal with note taking for lectures and presentations. Did your school happen to offer something like that? I know often,AP english classes tend to do the same thing. Were you into those as well? If any of these apply to you, just think back on how you focused and was able to get notes in high school, just apply the same concept to college -the only difference is that college is overrated :) Good luck building a habit in your lecture class.
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