Listening Skills
What to do
Developing effective listening skills will require you to work on a number of areas such as:
- Positive expectations
- Open mind
- Focus on the message
- Identify the main ideas
- Focus on the main ideas
- Questions
Positive expectations
Go to each lecture/tutorial/practical expecting to learn something.
In every lecture/tutorial/practical there is always some new interpretation or angle of understanding to be discovered - even if you have already heard some or all of the material.
Open mind
At university it is essential that you keep your mind open to new ideas.
- Listen to what is being said before making judgements about it
- Allow the presentation to unfold so that you can get the full picture.
Focus on the message
Most lectures/tutorials/practicals will contain a lot of detail that need not be recorded word for word. With practice you should be able to tell the difference between:
- The main ideas: These are the key points that the lecturer will expect you to know in depth
- Examples of those main points: These are examples that you will be expected to reproduce in an exam
- Minor points: These are points that help you to understand the main ideas
- Asides: These are incidental comments made by the lecturer to help make the lecture interesting. Asides, like anecdotes, need not be directly related to the lecture material
- Anecdotes: Usually these are examples or stories drawn from the lecturer's own experience in the field related to the lecture material.
Identify the main ideas
Surprising as it might seem, it is relatively easy to identify the main ideas in any given lecture or tutorial. Even if the person giving the presentation does not say explicitly, 'this is a main idea', they telegraph that information in various ways.
- Verbal cues: Certain words signal that a key point or main idea is about to be elaborated. For example, the speaker might say, 'there are three main issues. First… Second… Third…'. Listen for verbal signposts such as 'first', 'second', 'next', 'in conclusion', 'on the other hand', 'contrariwise', 'importantly', 'significantly', 'It is important to realise', 'in summary', and so on.
- Repetition: Presenters often repeat main points - a number of times. The repetition may not be word for word, but near enough so that it is clear that the point is of sufficient importance for the lecturer to say it a number of times. Lecturers will say important points more than once.
- Pace of delivery: Speakers will usually vary the pace of the lecture or tutorial delivery to provide some variety. In particular, main points might be stated v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y. Some speakers use pauses to punctuate or emphasise when a main point has been made; this is a cue that is often used in conjunction with repetition.
- Volume of delivery: Speakers also vary the volume of their delivery to maintain listener attention. Main points might be emphasised by raising or lowering their voices at appropriate moments.
- Body language: Pay attention to the presenter's visual signals. Many people give bodily signals when they are discussing a main idea. For example, lecturers might wave their arms about, poke the air with their finger, pound the lectern or the palm of their hand with their fist, make direct eye contact with the audience, and so on.
- Audio-visual aids: Many lecturers provide audio-visual cues for main points. For example, they might list the main points on an overhead projection sheet, or write them on the board as they occur during the lecture.
Focus on the main ideas
Look for the main ideas rather than individual words and so-called facts. Once you identify a main idea, look for the deeper meanings.
- What evidence is being presented to support it?
- What evidence might there be against it?
- What connections might there be between the main points and what you already know?
- How does what the speaker is saying match up with what you have read in the relevant literature?
Questions
Asking questions about the content can be an effective way of clarifying main points. You can direct questions to:
The speaker: During the lecture (if the lecturer has suggested that that is appropriate) or tutorial. Some lecturers prefer to allow space at the end of a lecture for questions, while others prefer to deal with questions at tutorial sessions
Yourself: Asking yourself questions is a good way of clarifying for yourself whether a point should be noted. For example, 'what point is being made?', 'do I understand?', 'Is there an alternative point of view?', and so on.