How to enhance the listening skill, How to be a good listener, How to take notes

Listening Skills

            Listening refers to a conscious, deliberate activity which assigns meaning to aural stimuli. Difference between hearing and listening:

Listen

•  Hearing is a physical response whereas listening. is semantic and mental response of sound.
• Hearing involves processing sound, while listening means processing meaning.

Listening is a complex activity that can be defined as ‘the process of receiving, interpreting and assimilating ideas from verbal messages involving literal and critical 'comprehension of ideas / information. 

Advantages/ Benefits of active listening

• Avoids misunderstanding and hence conflicts. 
• Save time, as the speaker need not repeat the things /data. 
• Works out better relationship.
• Identification of problems becomes easier. 
• Ensures better learning in classroom.

           For good listening one needs positive attitude attention, openness to new ideas and different points of view and lack of bias or prejudice.

Do's and Don'ts of good listening

Do's:

• Give time and effort to listen.
• Remove all distractions and give proper attention ( Focus / Concentration).
• Notice both verbal and body language of speaker (use Ears and Eyes).
• Give feedback and use reinforcement. 
• Ask questions, clarify details, attitude, Recall 'and rephrase what is said before evaluation.
• Acknowledge feelings and attune to them.
• Notice the contradiction and discrepancies Both verbal and non-verbal clues.
• Effect on key point and understand.
• Listen out, don’t select.
• Decide the purpose of the speaker.

Don'ts:

• Don't advice 
• Don’t misunderstand 
• Don’t interrupt

Notes taking

• While attending any lecture or speech one must be habitual to Write down the notes from the speech. One must keep in mind that if you want to use whatever knowledge or information you are going to receive through lecture you must be a good listener as well you must know good techniques of writing down the notes too. Here are some tips of writing down the notes from a speech or lecture. 
• The purpose of notes is to get key points from reading and the lectures. Generally‘in normal lecture or speech of one hour duration there are five'to ten key points. However you also mention other points, which are emphasized by the speaker.
•  Try to design your own questions from the key points so that you will be able to explore your understanding and you may ask relevant question to the speaker so that your doubts or difficulty regarding the topic can be cleared by the speaker. 
•  Phrases, anecdotes, thoughts or quips and quotes are very helpful to understand . various aspects of the topic. It also adds to 'our knowledge. Sometimes idioms and phrases help us to understand the topic in more easy way.
•  Try to write down the notes as short as possible. It should be Outcome of understanding. 
• Read and rewrite the class notes as soon as possible after class or session. Try to explore the matter or points discussed.
•  Arrange the notes in such a way that at any time you will be able to access any point from your notes at the earliest. Leave big margins, skip lines, underline words if necessary. 
• For reviewing your notes try to remember key words and key points. Just thirty to thirty five minutes are better than'pouring over them for two hours at a stretch.