Improving Listening Skill

Do you know how much time do you spend listening? It is estimated that half of our time
is spent listening. Most beginners get difficulty in listening practice. Some of them cannot catch
the dialogue due to their lack of vocabularies, pronunciation and grammar
Good listening is an essential part of active communication and makes us better person.
And maybe I don't have a good listening skill, yeah so far, however, listening is a skill that we
can always improve. So I have some tips to improve our listening skill.
I got them from some websites that I had read. Here are some tips to improve our
listening skill :

1. Select a book with the cassette, which is suitable for your level. It will help you practise
the listening easily and you can anticipate the level of difficulty.

2. Listen to the cassette without reading the text/ dialogue once or twice. When you find
difficulty in grasping the meaning, listen again while scrutinizing the text/ dialogue.

3. Pay attention carefully to the pronunciation and intonation. If you want to improve your
pronunciation, listen and repeat the dialogue/ text by pausing each sentence.

4. After listening to the text/ dialogue, do the exercise and check your answer with the
answer-key or with your teacher.

5. If you watch TV, select the English program/ film. Listen to the dialogue carefully without
reading the translation (text).

6. Listen to English songs and learn the words. If you like singing, memorize the words and
sing them.

7. Practise the above tips everyday although only half an hour. By practising the listening
exercises many times, your listening will improve faster.

Talking with others by using English is important. So, here I included 10 ways to be a better
listener when we are talking with the others.

Here are 7 ways to be a better listener By : Sheila Dicks :

1. Focus on the speaker and let them know you are listening by giving verbal cues such as,
'yes', ' I see' and non-verbal cues such as, nodding, leaning forward and smiling. Give the
speaker your full attention
 2.Make eye contact, look at the person you are speaking to or who is speaking to you.
Looking in another direction or distracting glances appear as though you are not listening.
3.Avoid interrupting. It's rude and you cannot talk and listen at the same time. If you assume
what people are going to say before they say it and then interrupt to respond to your
assumptions, you will annoy the person you are talking with and you will miss the real
message.
4.Ask questions and try to see the other person's point-of-view. Don't assume that you know
what the person saying if things are not making sense for you. If you are unsure of the
meaning ask for clarification and then if you are still not sure repeat it back to them.
5.Acknowledge the other person's feelings; make them feel like you understand and that it
is okay to feel the way they do.
6.Be patient when you don't understand; getting upset won't solve any problems but will
only create more.
7.Express your point-of-view and make a conscious choice about your response.

To complete my assigment, I also included the ways to improve our listening and
remembering skill when we are studying in the class. Here 7 steps to improve our listening skill
in college by Paul McDanie :

•Be prepared - Prior to going to class make sure to do the required reading for that day and
review notes from previous lectures.

•Concentrate on the lecture itself, not the lecturer - Try not to let your self become
distracted by the lecturer's or instructor's mannerisms, voice quality, or delivery technique.
You should concentrate on what is said, not on how it is said.

•Listen with an open mind - Everyone has their own opinions about things and you don't
have to accept everything that is said in a class. But you should maintain an open-minded
attitude. Don't let your opposition to a subject or issue block out the message being
discussed before the point is fully developed.

•Keep physically alert - Attempt to minimize any visual or hearing difficulties by sitting near
the front of the classroom, near the person speaking, and maintain a comfortable but alert
posture.

•Keep mentally alert - Try to think of likely test questions as the material is presented. Also
compare content in the lecture with that in the textbook. Active participation in class
discussions is also important. Try to keep yourself from becoming distracted by the floor,
ceiling, stuff going on outside through the windows (if there are windows in the classroom),
or others around you.
 •Use the listen-think-write process - Practice listening attentively to the material that is
being presented. Then evaluate critically its importance and any evidence to support it.
Finally, select what is the most appropriate content for your notes. Record that in your own
words.

•Be flexible - You might try taking fewer notes if you are struggling to get it all in or using
different note taking systems depending on the type of presentation and the style of the
speaker.

So there are many ways we can improve our listening skills. And I hope I can smart like
my sweet lecturer, Miss Husna. Since your academic success relies on listening, begin today
putting these simple techniques together. I also would like to hear others ways you have
improved your listening skill.

References :
www.elti.co.id
www.sideroad.com
www.ehow.com

AGUSTININGSIH
08.0004.I
CLASS B
my.ter3nce@gmail.com