Chapter 1. Listening
Effective Listening Strategies
Listening is an integral part of developing oral communication skills. To be able to communicate successfully, we first need to learn how to understand the other speakers. Developing strong listening strategies allows us to accurately understand the speaker’s message, respond thoughtfully, and build stronger relationships. Using these strategies can help us actively participate in conversations, avoid misunderstandings, and learn from others (e.g., understand important lectures or conference presentations).
In this section, we will help you develop effective listening strategies through various group and individual activities. The group activities can be used with a large or small group of learners while the individual activities can be used for individual, self-directed learning or as homework activities.
Listening to Pay Attention: Focusing on the Speaker
1-2: Discussion
Instructions: Read the questions and discuss them with your classmates. If working alone, answer the questions in the form of an audio/video journal.
- Do you consider yourself a good listener? Share examples of your perception of what makes good or bad listeners.
- Hearing Vs Listening: Discuss the quotes below:
- “Everyone can hear, but not everyone listens.”
- “Listening requires concentration, while hearing requires no effort.”
1-3: Listening with different goals
Instructions: Listen to the conversation in the video and answer the questions below.
Reflection Question: Focus on humor
- How do Monica and Phoebe use humor in their conversation? Can you identify any specific jokes or wordplay?
Listening to Receive: Receiving as a Nonverbal Process
1-4 Active listening & nonverbal communication
Instructions: Follow the instructions to observe and analyze active listening strategies and nonverbal communication.
Listening #1:
Watch the video with the sound off and focus solely on Amy’s body language and facial expressions. Can you guess Amy’s emotions (nervousness, excitement) when she speaks?
Listening #2:
Mark the strategy in the table below each time you observe the corresponding active listening behavior in the video.
| Strategy | Description |
| Nods in Agreement | Leans head slightly and nods up and down |
| Maintains Eye Contact | Keeps eye contact with the speaker most of the time |
| Asks a Clarifying Question | Asks a question to better understand the speaker |
| Uses Verbal Affirmations | Says things like “uh-huh,” “okay,” or “I see” |
| Offers Encouragement | Smiles or says something positive to show support |
| Summarizes Key Points | Briefly restates what the speaker has said |
| Leans Forward | Shows physical interest in what the speaker is saying |
| Avoids Interruptions | Lets the speaker finish their thought before speaking |
| Repeats Back Key Words | Repeats a key phrase or word for confirmation |
| Takes Notes | Marks down notes while listening |
1-5 Discussion
Instructions: Read the prompts and discuss them with your classmates. If working alone, answer the questions in the form of an audio/video journal.
- Discuss how some nonverbal cues might be considered universal (e.g., a smile expressing happiness), while others can vary greatly depending on culture (e.g., eye contact, personal space).
- Explore how some nonverbal cues are intentional and used strategically (e.g., a handshake), while others are unconscious and can reveal hidden emotions (e.g., fidgeting).
- Discuss situations where nonverbal communication might contradict verbal messages. How do we determine the true meaning in such cases?
- Discuss the importance of effective nonverbal communication in professional settings (e.g., job interviews, presentations, meetings).
- Explore how nonverbal cues can enhance or hinder communication in personal relationships.
- Analyze the challenges and opportunities of nonverbal communication when interacting with people from different cultures
Listening to Interpret: Checking Understanding
1-6 Summarize the language
Instructions: Listen to a video twice. For the first round, listen actively and try to internalize as much as you can. Feel free to stop it and replay certain parts if you had trouble hearing what was said. On the second round, do your best to take notes on key themes and ideas.
1-7 Paraphrasing & asking questions in active listening
Instructions: Listen to the video about using Artificial Intelligence in teaching and research or listen to an academic talk relevant to your research. After each slide or paragraph, imagine yourself in a conversation with the speaker by pausing to summarize (i.e., paraphrase) what the speaker has said as well as to ask clarification questions on anything you don’t (yet) understand.
Here are some helpful phrases to include:
- You mean that… You’re saying that …What you’re saying is ….
- If I understand correctly… If I’m understanding you correctly…
- If I’m hearing you correctly…
Do this activity for 10-15 minutes every day until you can also paraphrase well in live conversation. (You will probably be surprised at how quickly this happens!)
1-8 Paraphrasing Practice
Instructions: Looking at your notes from activity 1-7, summarize the key themes and ideas from the video lecture. Record your answer, then listen to your speech, and reflect on your response by responding to the questions below:
- Did I capture the main points of the video lecture in my summary?
- Would my summary be helpful to someone who hadn’t watched the video?
- Did I use clear and concise language in my summary?
- What are my strengths in paraphrasing and summarizing information?
- What areas can I improve on when actively listening and summarizing lectures?
Once done with the bullet points above, swap recordings with a partner and listen to each other’s summaries. Compare what your partner included/excluded with what you did in your own summary. Give feedback to your partner.
Listening to Respond: Being Engaged
1-9 Is it my turn now? Discussion
Instructions: Read the questions and discuss them with your classmates. If working alone, answer the questions in the form of an audio/video journal.
- What is turn taking?
- What are your strategies to give the floor to another speaker?
- Are there cultural differences in turn taking?
| Strategy | Description | Examples |
| Backchanneling | Indicating active listening and encouraging the speaker to continue. | “I see,” “Right,” “Uh-huh,” “Really?” “Makes sense, Interesting” |
| Signaling the end of a turn | Giving the floor to another speaker. | “That’s all I wanted to say,” “What do you think about that?” “I’d like to hear your thoughts.” |
| Holding the floor | Maintaining a turn if a speaker is not finished. |
Using fillers (“uh, um”), rephrasing, or summarizing points. |
| Interrupting politely | Taking over the floor in a polite manner when you need clarification or have something important to add to the conversation. | “Excuse me, could I add something?” “Sorry to interrupt, but…” |
| Encouraging participation | Inviting others into the conversation with phrases like | “What are your thoughts on this?” “Do you have any ideas about…?” |
| Non-verbal cues | Using non-verbal cues to signal the end of a turn or to indicate a desire to speak. | Body language: softening body posture, turning towards the next speaker. Facial expressions: slight smile, making eye contact with the speaker. |
1-10 Managing dominant speakers: Discussion
Instructions: Read the prompt and discuss with your classmates. If working alone, respond to the prompts in the form of an audio/video journal.
- Discuss strategies for dealing with dominant speakers in a group, such as gently redirecting the conversation or setting rules for equal participation.
- Discuss what strategies work for you, which don’t, and why.
1-11 Debate
Instructions: Organize a debate where you can practice turn-taking strategies
Debate topic: “Rise of the Machines”
- Group 1: Automation will displace more jobs than it creates in the coming years.
- Group 2: Automation will create more jobs than it displaces.
the decision to focus on one source of sound.
the process of acquiring information the speaker is disclosing to you including nonverbal action.
the task of decoding the message that requires the listener to give meaning to the verbal and nonverbal symbols used by the speaker.
the listener’s reaction to the speaker’s message.
