A RESEARCH PAPER ON EFFECTIVE LISTENING

By
Eden Grace A. Sison
BSCE 1-1

College of Engineering
Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Sta. Mesa, Manila
September 2016

i.
TITLE: EFFECTIVE LISTENING

ABSTRACT

The principal objective of this research is to discuss some topics about effective
listening. It includes the definitions of listening, ten principles of listening, the parts of
listening which we take for granted, and how to achieve a succesful listening. This
article first explores the strong empirical evidence that listening is an important skill to
be effective and successful in study, but education gives little attention to helping
students develop listening skills. There is a great need for the required curriculum to
include educational engagements to help students develop this critical skill, but no
scholarship on what engagements might be effective. The article outlines some criteria
to assess which listening exercises might be most effective. It then proposes ten
principles that meet the criteria.
 ii.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract .................................. ii
Introduction .................................. 1
Chapter 1: Listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Two Facts about Listening
1.2 Parts of the Process which we take for granted
1.3 Step-by-step picture of the various element that might we take to make
the process of listening in face-to-face conversations

Chapter 2: Issues in Listening

2.1. Models of Listening
2.2. Types of Listening
2.3. Processes of Listening
2.4. Listening Skills
2.5. Listening Strategies
 INTRODUCTION

This research paper provides a listening study that is suitable for all especially
students.
The aim in writing this is paper is to present the different ways in improving
listening skills in the easiest possible way. Basic ideas are studied by means of listening
books and thesis papers about listening.
Chapter 1 deals with the definitions of listening that is found in books, internet
and dictionary.
 CHAPTER 1
Definitions of Listening

LISTENING
- To pay attention to someone or something in order to hear what is being said,
sung, played etc. (MWD)
- To hear what someone has said and understand that if is serious, important or
true. (MWD)
- Listening involves making sense of spoken language, normally accompanied by
other sounds and visual input, with the help of our relevant prior knowledge and
the context in which we are listening. (Listening, Tony Lynch)

Listening is receiving language through the ears. Listening involves identifying the
sounds of speech and processing them into words and sentences. When we listen, we
use our ears to receive individual sounds (letters, stress, rhythm and pauses) and we
use our brain to convert these into messages that mean something to us.

Listening in any language requires focus and attention. It is a skill that some people
need to work at harder than others. People who have difficulty concentrating are
typically poor listeners. Listening in a second language requires even greater focus.

Like babies, we learn this skill by listening to people who already know how to speak the
language. This may or may not include native speakers. For practice, you can listen to
live or recorded voices. The most important thing is to listen to a variety of voices as
often as you can.

1.1 TWO FACTS ABOUT LISTENING

1. It shows their listening skills are as important as speaking skills; we cannot

communicate face-to-face unless the two types of skill are developed in tandem.
2. Under many circumstances, it is a reciprocal skill. We cannot practice listening in the
same way as we can rehearse speaking, or at least the part of speaking that has to do
with pronunciation, because we cannot usually predict what we will have to listen to.

1.2 PARTS OF THE PROCESS WHICH WE TAKE FOR GRANTED.

1. Dividing an unfamiliar speaker's utterances into words, identifying them, and at the
same time interpreting what the speaker meant and then preparing an appropriate reply.
2. Even if we have carefully rehearsed a particular utterance and manage to produce it
to a native speaker, it may well result in a torrent of language from the other person.

1.3 STEP-BY-STEP PICTURE OF THE VARIOUS ELEMENT THAT MIGHT BE

THOUGHT TO MAKE-UP THE PROCESS OF LISTENING IN FACE-TO-FACE
COVERSATION

1. The spoken signals have to be identified from the midst of surrounding sounds.
2. The continuous stream of speech has to be segmented into units, which have to be
recognized as known words.
3. The syntax of the utterance has to be grasped and the speaker's intended meaning
has to be understood.
4. We also have to apply our linguistic knowledge to formulating a correct and
appropriate response to what has been said.