Listening and Speaking

Listening and Speaking Skills

Listening and speaking skills allow us to communicate effectively with others. Communication involves more than the ability to simply talk and hear other people. It is essential to have good listening and speaking skills, as this will allow you to adapt your language to suit certain situations and improve your ability to successfully share your thoughts while also considering the views of others.

Listening and speaking skills also prepare you for the 'outside' world. For example, in an interview, you should show the interviewer that you are attentive and can confidently express yourself. Having good listening and speaking skills will definitely help with this!

Fig. 1 - Good listening and speaking skills can help in professional settings, such as interviews.

Listening and Speaking Topics

In this listening and speaking study set, there are five main topics:

1. Presentation skills

2. Group discussion

3. Address counterclaims

4. Active listening skills

5. Presentation technology

Let's look at an overview of each:

Presentation Skills

Presentations are an excellent way for you to show that you have an understanding of a topic. If you have good presentation skills, you can confidently share your knowledge with others. Presentations may seem daunting at first, but there are a couple of things you can do to make sure your presentation runs smoothly:

Try to speak clearly so the audience can understand you.

Although you may want to rush through a presentation to get it over with, it is important the audience can follow along with what you are saying. Make sure you aren't speaking too fast; it is okay to take your time, as this will keep you calm and collected. Also, try to make sure you are speaking at a decent volume, as you want the audience to be able to hear you well.

Use confident body language (such as eye contact and good posture)

Use eye contact to establish a connection with your audience. In turn, this will keep the audience interested and make them more likely to pay attention. A good posture will also help you to appear confident and relaxed.

Group Discussion

Being able to discuss a topic in groups effectively depends on a good balance between spoken conversation and listening to others. For example, if one person talks too much, they may not allow others to voice their opinions. Or they may not always pay attention to what others are saying if they talk over them and don't stop to listen!

One crucial thing to bare in mind is turn-taking. This refers to when one person in a conversation speaks at a time. Turn-taking ensures that there are no interruptions and allows everyone to voice their opinions one at a time. It also gives others the opportunity to stop and listen carefully to the person speaking, allowing them to properly pay attention to what they are saying.

It may help to sit around a table like this when having a discussion:

Fig. 2 - Group discussions often address differing points of view.

This way, you will be able to see everyone's reactions clearly (both verbal and non-verbal) and maintain eye contact to show that you are paying attention.

You should also be aware that group discussions often address differing points of view. It is highly unlikely that everyone will share the same views! This leads us to our next topic...

Address Counterclaims

Although having a clear point of view is important, it is also equally essential to be able to address opposing arguments. This shows that you can justify your own opinion while also considering and respecting the views of others. You don't always have to agree with others, but you should be aware that your opinion is not the only one that matters! Try not to hold too much judgment on others, as this may make your argument seem too biased.

Active Listening Skills

When listening to a conversation, it is important that you are attentive and focused on what the speaker is saying. Active listening is a way of listening that improves mutual understanding between people in a conversation. If you listen well, you will be able to interpret the speakers' intentions more clearly and have a better idea of how to respond to them.

Presentation Technology

You should be aware of different types of presentation technology as they can help you to create an eye-catching and interesting presentation. Visual aids can be used alongside spoken words to help get your message across. This includes presentation software such as:

• Powerpoint

• Google slides

• Prezi

• Keynote

Listening and Speaking Strategies

"What are some good strategies to use when doing a listening and speaking exercise?" I hear you ask. Well, here are a few tips that may be helpful:

• When talking in groups or pairs, make sure you are turn-taking. This allows everyone to speak and ensures there are no unnecessary interruptions.

• Listen carefully to what others are saying and pay attention to their views. You should also consider non-verbal language, such as body language and gestures, as this conveys how someone feels. Maintain eye contact to show that you are interested in what others have to say.

• Show that you are willing to participate in the conversation. You can do this by ensuring you are contributing to the discussion and expressing your views instead of only listening!

• When you do speak, make sure you speak clearly so others can understand you well.

Listening and Speaking Activities

We recognize that high school can be stressful and challenging at times. You may want to do some activities to keep things interesting and fun!

Listening and Speaking Practice

How can you practice your listening and speaking skills? Here are a few things you can do to practice your listening and speaking skills:

• Have a casual conversation with someone (this could be a friend, classmate, family member, etc.)

• Listen to a podcast (you could also take notes while listening)

• Practice speaking in a mirror - it may seem strange to talk to yourself, but it can help prepare you for conversations with other people or presentations

• Read aloud - this will help you to pace yourself and speak clearly

• Listen to famous speeches to examine changes in tone, pitch, and intonation