Listening

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 159
26 Understanding Listening

stening
bove, is a voluntary act where we
tryand
eingCanbe ormed an acquired skill, as we transform to interpret
understandtheandreceived we hear.
of whatmeaningful
make sounds
sense into
[Link] mostinportant distinction between listening and hearing is that listening requires attention and
,CNTalion. listening happens at the
As
conscious
hatseWIshtoremennber or know more about. level,isweals0areanableactive
Listening process of the brain that requires focus
to pay attention to those aspects of?fspeech
ordertodray meaningfrom words and sentences.

iamples ooflistening: Alecture given in a classroom, a song,

Nther
persontalking announcements and instructions and listening to
ypesoflistening
Listeningcan broadly
be classified into two
types: Active listening and passive
listening.
Activelistening
whilelisteningactively,the listener is entirely engaged and involved with what
words,active listening involves listening and giving suitable responses to the the speaker is saying. In other
ekpressed have been mutually understood, An active speaker to confirm that the ideas
recal, paraphrase, repeat or reflect on the listener not only understands the
speaker but
sbleto
abien to the word content but also message being conveyed. Not only does the active he/she is
engages himself with the non-verbal cues sent learner
ore the active listener listens, out by the speaker.
comprehends, analyses and evaluates the content delivered by the speaker.
Heprovides feedback and articulates his own opinions and ideas as well.
Fsmnle Listening to relevant announcements at a
railway station when vou are about to board a train

Passive listening
The passive listener does not engage with or react to
the ideas expressed by the speaker. He merely
msve listener superficially listens to the listens. If a
word-content
ihen passive listening is almost the same as hearing. without paying much attention to the non-verbal cues,
wiSh to interrupt or provide feedback on the ideas thatSometimes, the passive listener might listen, but he may not
have been presented. Very often, when presentations are
given in large seminar halls, the listeners are mostly passive, as
the number of listeners are more in number and it
is practically impossible - and even inadvisable - for all the
listeners to get involved in a two-way communication
with the speaker.
Example: Listening to a speech delivered by a college Principal at an Annual Day function

Barriers to listening
Lommunication is effective onlv when there is adesired outcome at the end of the interaction. Sometimes.
despite the best efforts of the speaker, the message either does not reach the listener or reaches him/her in a
Ustorted form. This happens due to various reasons and the factors that impede communication in such cases
detaled barriers to communication. Let us now examine a few such barriers to listening:

Ue ot jargon: Complicated words or bombastic and pompous expressions may sometimes go over the
head of the listener and the speaker may fail to communicate the intendedI message.
atention span: If the listener has a very short attention span or if he/she is distracted and inattentive,
then effective listening cannot take place.
160 Communicative English: A
Workbook
speakerris
. Uninteresting or irrelevant content: If the topic/content delivered by the irrelevant or
to the listener then listening might become superficial.
4. Physical impediments: Physical barriers suchas hearing impairments or speech problems can uni ter sun
to listening.
2. Poor acoustics: Other physical barriers could be problems
room that allows noises from outside to be heard inside the
related to the acoustic set up of
room due to poor
beimpe
insulation, room,
dimet
thore
a
larg TlUikMTe
with a large audience and no microphones et.
intonation
6. Cultural and linguistic differences:Unfamiliarity with the accent, rhythm and of the
adversely affect listening. speaker can
7. Prejudices, stereotypes and preconceived notions about the speaker/subject: False
also make the
assumptions about the speaker or the subiject being delivered can listenernotioapatns handetic wrong
speaker and consequently affect the listening
8. Emotional barriers:: Sometimes, listening may not take place effectively due to certain
the topics discussed may be sensitive issues, or tab00 subjects that
embarrass the listener emotional barriersa
9. Sense of dressing and style of the speaker: The sense of dressing and style of the speaker can
distract the listener, especially if the speaker is groomed in agaudy or inappropriate manner. sometimes
10. Monotonous or low voice: If the speaker is inaudible or speaks in a monotonous voice,
effective.
,listening may not be
The ten commandments of listening
Here are a few tips to remember while listening:
1. Dont interrupt the speaker.
2. Donot be verbose or indulge in circumlocution. Stop talking and listen to the other person.
3. Do not be impatient and jump to conclusions.
4. Be relaxed and prepare yourself mentally to listen and stay focused.
5. Maintain eye-contact and use body language that puts the speaker at ease and encourages him to speak
6. Do not be judgmental or prejudiced; rather be receptive while listening to new ideas.
7. Listen to the ideas and concepts and do not get carried away by bombastic words.
8. Avoid alldistractions like doodling, texting et cetera that interrupt the listening process.
9. Notice facialexpressions, body language and eye movements.
10. Be aware of the changes in intonation, pitch and voice modulation.

Exercise1 Read these statements and mark true or false.

1. Active listening involves reacting to the ideas of thespeaker.
2. Nursing prejudices towards the ideas delivered by the speaker does not impede listening.
3. Passive listeners do not gain anything as they don't listen at all.
4. Body language is also an important aspect of listening.
5. An unfamiliar accent is not a problem to listeners.
6. Listening is an unconscious act.
7. The sound of the alarm or of asiren is an appropriate example for hearing.
8. Listening to specifhc details is called intensive listening.
9. Hearing is a consciousact.
10. Extensive listening can improve one's fluencv.
27 Listening Techniques

Exercise 1 Read this passage and attempt the

exercise below.
Cniay got up early that day. When the alarm rang, he couldn't turn it
his room, clearly out of his reach! The morning newS off as he had left it on the other side of
reported a nearing cyclone and the possibility of a heavy
Aownpour later that day. As he was leaving for work, his wife complained, whiningly, of the leaking tap and
reminded him to call the plumber at least that day. Toavoid further arguments, he
hark. He started his motorbike and the brakes squealed and Sanjay said to himself, Idecided to fix it once he was
should take it for servicing.
Saniay entered the offhce and his phone rang. It was his manager asking him to arrange an
an hour's time. emergency meeting in

Asales representative who had fixed an appointment with Sanjay earlier entered his cabin for abrief presentation.
Sanjay absently noted down just the main features of the new product. He could not focus on the issue at hand,
as the emergency meeting was looming large. Atelemarketing executive called Sanjay, asking if he needed any
personal loans, which he politely refused. When the salesman left, Sanjay's friend peeped in, calling him out for
acup of coffee, to discuss something important. Obviously, Sanjay could not accept the offer as he new he just
had half an hour to arrange the meeting, but promised to join him in the evening.
In the meeting, the manager called attention to instances of poor responses from their staff when customers
alled in to make complaints. He also announced the dates for aspecial training programme arranged for the
staff on "The Importance of Efective Listening:
Answer these questions briefly.
voice and spoken communication. ldentify the situations
1. We usually assume that listening involves the human
communication which do not invoBve the use of human language.
in the passage which involve instances of

have evaluated and interpreted more from the words that he listened
2. Are there situations where Sanjay should
to? List any two.

information from the speaker.

was listening to get
3. Identify situations where Sanjay

Dnthe speaker's words? When?

4. Was there ati

why not?
5. Do ye