This study implemented a training exercise using listening circle as a learning method, aiming at helping inexperienced listeners (university students) enter the dimensions of listening and raise their listening awareness. Theoretical framework of this study draws upon previous research that show listening circle is suitable as a learning strategy (Bommelje, 2012; Itzchakov & Kluger, 2017), and theories of active (Bodie et al., 2015; Floyd, 2014) and attentive listening (Wolvin & Coakley, 1996).
Results revealed very low initial listening awareness, and that each training exercise using listening circle, led to rise in listening awareness regarding being silent while listening, listen with an open mind, be in the moment, not plan what to say, and to handle the silence itself.
Listening circle training contributes to raising listening awareness in inexperienced listeners and to building their understanding of what listening is all about.
Listening to Learn is an introduction to listening through the lens of reentry programs. It summarizes the findings of a study done on women returning home from long-term incarceration (10+ years). It discusses the challenges they faced as returnees and how listening supported their reentry journey.
The authors explore the question “How does improving listening skills contribute to student empowerment?”. Authors argue the key to empowering students is investing in improved listening and communication skills. The focus group conducted in the study demonstrates an urgent need for effective listening, the importance of intrapersonal listening, and the positive impact active listening skills have on all facets of students' lives. To successfully “sustain best listening practices” we must turn the tide as we create a listening revolution.
For the last several years, we have watched politicians give very little evidence of listening to each other or wanting to work together. Executive orders, threats of government shut-downs, Covid-1 restrictions, tensions surrounding several issues (the southern border, financing for the war in Ukraine, funding police, the Israel/Hamas war) that threaten democracy. I plan to draw on scholarly sources which describe the problems for our form of government presented by the lack of open listening, for example, Steven Levitsky and David Zimblatt (How Democracies Die), Naomi Wolf (Facing the Beast), Ed Brodow, (Tyranny of the Minority), and more. I plan to look at both political sides in controversies, especially indicating how particular use of language tends to shut down conversation. Furthermore, there seems to be a refusal by some to even examine some problems.
The situation is similar in the media where programs that are “fair and balanced” are hard to find. I will provide several instances the media landscape—both liberal and conservative. For example, one does not need to listen to “The Five” on Fox News channel very long to see that only one political is presented (or 4 on side and 1 on the other). MSNBC’s perspective is not only opposite of Fox News, and seems to be even more strident in its tone as it presents its perspective. One can predict that CNN will carry stories about the troubles of Donald J. Trump nearly every day apparently ignoring the challenges facing President Biden. Just the opposite is true in Fox News. It appears to me that there is less balance of news in the evening programs compared to the daytime presentation of news.
If time permits, I would like briefly to examine how universities shut down listening, particularly after seeing the political point-of-view challenges since the beginning of the Hamas/Israel war that began October 7, 2023.
After describing the problems, I hope to present some signs of hope—of people who listen and how they do it. We can find a few examples of politicians who I believe listen to people who hold different positions. I will point them out and examine their practices. I want to look at groups which aim for reconciliation, for example, Musalaha which has been working for several years to bring Palestinians and Israelis together.
One of the questions I want to deal with is this: How can and should we listen to those who are shouting? I raised that issue at the Dublin convention, and it has not been resolved. I believe there is an issue of narcissism that pervades our society and solving that will require some strenuous work. Perhaps John Gottman’s “5 to 1” rule for marriage (on positive versus negative messages) might be another starting point. My point will be that we need to be creative in not only looking at successful techniques for listening that have been used in the past but also in trying new things that will help break patterns of turning backs on one another.
In an attempt to gain insight into how the state of organizational listening and response to customers may have changed, we conducted in-depth interviews with ten (10) subject matter experts representing both academic and practitioner communities.
This paper presents detailed findings from our interviews with these organizational listening thought leaders and subject matter experts regarding where organizations are having success – and where they continue to struggle – when it comes to capturing and leveraging the “voice of the customer,” and more generally, listening and responding to external stakeholders.
In the current age of anxiety, with mental disorders and suicides happening in all ages from children as young as 14 to men and women in the prime of their life, the candle of mental peace and clarity is dimming by the hour.
We need to listen to the sound of silence (Simon and Garfunkel lyric) and cultivate the art of thinking and observing our thoughts in this noisy world.
I practice being a good listener when no one is talking, except the silence of the nature and the universe.
The basic premise is this: We the humans, the nature and the universe are one.
The little man sitting in my head tells me that I am separate from the source energy and the universe, but I know better. I am not separate from the persons around me nor from the planets and everything else in the universe.
There is art, poetry and music in the patterns of nature. The rhythms and rhymes of sea waves, the winds blowing over the forests, the birds singing in the forests and the clouds towering over the mountains and valleys are talking to me, only if I can become quiet and learn to be still.
My thoughts are influenced by the sages and the saints, the thinkers and philosophers, poets and prophets, musicians and artists, scientists and physicians and the technology innovators.
I am inspired by the writings and research of Alan Watts who has travelled extensively in the East and presented his research in the wisdom of silence and the puzzle of consciousness in an easy-to-understand words for the chaotic modern world and suffering humanity.
The presentation aims to address the nuances of early listening development and identifying milestone stages. It covers developmental stages from prenatal to toddlerhood, advocates for recognizing and understanding developmental listening milestones, proposing a normalized categories teaching system, and explores empathetic listening milestones, tracing its development from infancy to early school years. Two effective learning strategies for acquiring listening skills are introduced: teaching effective listening and engaging with audiobooks. The presentation serves as a comprehensive guide for educators, parents, and policymakers to better support children's language acquisition and cognitive growth through understanding and fostering early listening development.
Effective listening skills are essential in both educational and professional settings. However, American universities often place little emphasis on developing these skills. To address this gap, a study was conducted to explore the availability of standalone courses dedicated to the art and science of listening in higher education institutions across the United States. The study conducted a comprehensive survey of American universities by examining their course catalogs, websites, and departmental offerings. The aim was to identify institutions that offer standalone courses in listening as part of their curriculum, exploring the nature and content of these courses. Additionally, the study examined factors that influence the inclusion of such courses, such as institutional size, type, and location. Preliminary findings suggest that while universities recognize the importance of listening as a communication skill, standalone courses specifically devoted to listening are rare. This study provides insights into the potential benefits of expanding the availability of dedicated listening courses and sheds light on the current state of listening education in American higher education. These research findings have significant implications for educators, students, and employers, highlighting the need for a more comprehensive approach to communication skill development that includes a greater emphasis on listening.
This project targets medical students and interns seeking to enhance their clinical communication skills and deepen their understanding of the pivotal role of listening in healthcare practice.
Through a series of ten posts, I plan to share my journey on LinkedIn, with additional dissemination through platforms such as Instagram and Twitter to engage a broader audience and facilitate discussions on the importance of listening in healthcare. Monitoring audience engagement and feedback will allow for evaluation of the project's effectiveness in promoting awareness and interest in listening-centered clinical communication skills.
My questions for the audience are: 1. How can the project be enhanced to maximize its impact in promoting awareness about listening-centered clinical communication skills? 2. What strategies can be implemented to engage and involve medical students and junior doctors in meaningful discussions regarding the importance of listening in healthcare practice? 3. How can the reach and influence of the project on medical students and interns be effectively measured? 4. In what ways can the International Listening Association (ILA) assist in promoting awareness about listening-centered clinical communication skills among medical students and junior doctors? 5. How can ILA collaborate with healthcare institutions and organizations to advocate for the integration of listening-centered communication in medical education and practice?
The session presents a study-in-progress focusing on the relationship between ethical listening as defined by Parks (2019) and the role of listening during instruction addressing the Model Code of Ethics for Educators (2015). During the 2024–2025 school year, I will apply a mixed methods research approach utilizing surveys and interviews of teacher candidates. Data generated from these methods will be analyzed through line-by-line coding, and emerging implications will address best ethical listening practices.
Considering the connection between narrative identity and listening offers rich opportunities to better understand people in deeper and more pluralistic ways. The practice of narrative listening can also help many in vocations of healing, teaching, serving, leading and more. So developing a set of practices on how to proactively listen for personal narratives would be helpful. This presentation reports what themes emerge from an analysis of scholarship on narrative and listening, and how such research can help us develop a theory of practice of listening for narratives in specific contexts.
Like many journalists, I am most passionate about the power other people's stories and what it takes to listen to them. As a teacher and scholar, all those interests stayed as relevant as ever.
