THE ART OF LISTENING

MARISA F. WANIWAN

What is listening? How important is listening to our everyday life especially in the classrooms?

Listening is not merely the act of hearing a sound but paying close attention to what someone is saying and trying to understand the message. Some said that they are listening but they are merely hearing and not understanding the message being conveyed.

People should be taught from childhood the importance of learning how to listen. Even in the classrooms, the importance of listening is evident to pupils. Those who listen attentively got a higher scores during tests compared to those who don’t listen or not understanding what they are hearing. Teachers should motivate and teach students how to listen attentively with understanding.

The act of listening entails in-depth processes that elude a majority of people’s knowledge. The act of listening involves four main parts: hearing, attention, understanding and remembering. These should be taught properly to students, give them exercises and activities for them to master the skill of listening attentively with understanding. They should understand the benefits of listening attentively.

As what a famous saying says that “we have two ears and one mouth, so we should listen more than we say”.

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The author is Teacher III at Sindalan Elementary School