Page 201 - Effective Communication Soft Skills Strategies For Success by Nitin Bhatnagar, Mamta Bhatnagar

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Communication: Spoken English | 189

vi. You can ask yourself some questions as you listen: ‘What is the key
point the professor is making?’, ‘How does this fit with what I know
from previous lectures?’, etc.
vii. Be focused: All the above suggestions will help you keep your mind
occupied and focused on what is being said. You can actually begin
to anticipate what the professor is going to say as a way to keep your
mind from straying. Your mind does have the capacity to listen, think,
write and ponder at the same time, but it does take practice.

Some Listening Strategies for the Teacher
A teacher must concentrate on what the student is saying, and have an open
mind to receive and listen to information. The teacher needs to understand
the students’ background and let them know that he/she understands how
they feel strongly about the issues being discussed. Their intense emo-
tions must be acknowledged and affirmed before serious solutions can be
discussed.
The teacher should encourage the students to ‘let off steam’ and explain
their concerns by using certain phrases such as: ‘I see’, ‘I understand’, ‘Yes, I
know’

Some Listening Strategies That Can Be Followed by the Teachers
• Demonstrate that they are listening by
− body language

− making eye contact
− echoing words
− nodding of the head
− leaning toward the speaker.
• Some students need an invitation to talk. The teacher needs to
patiently elicit a response and gradually draw the student into a con-
versation discussion.
• Students can tell whether they have a teacher’s interest and attention
by the way the teacher replies or does not reply. Avoid cutting students
off before they have finished speaking. It is easy to form an opinion or
reject student’s views before they finish what they have to say. It may
be difficult to listen respectfully and not correct misconceptions, but
respect their right to have and express their opinions.
• Listen to nonverbal messages that are often communicated by
students. The tone of their voice, their facial expressions, their energy
level, their posture, or changes in their behaviour patterns can often

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