UNIT 10 Connections

We spend roughly 60 percent of our communication time listening, but we’re not very good at it. - Julian

Treasure Author and blogger, TED speaker

WARM UP

10.1 Watch part of Julian Treasure’s TED Talk. Answer the

questions with a partner.

1. Treasure says, “We retain just 25 percent of what we

hear.” Do you agree with him?

2. Do you know anyone who is a good listener? What makes

them a good listener?

10A Our listening

 VOCABULARY Collocations with listen

A 10.2 Complete the sentences. Highlight the correct words. Then listen
and check your answers.
1. The students all listened ( carefully / sympathetically ) as the teacher explained
what to do.
2. All the voters listened ( anxiously / politely ) as the winner of the election was
announced.
3. Despite the fact that the speech was much too long, everyone listened
(patiently / anxiously ).
4. The children listened ( effectively / with great interest ) to the storyteller.
5. A good doctor should listen ( sympathetically / with half an ear ) to patients'
complaints.
6. We are often told to respect our elders and to listen ( politely / reluctantly ) to
what they have to say.

B Work with a partner. Take turns asking how you would listen in the
following situations. Choose from the collocations in A, and give reasons
for your choices.

1. You are at an airport and there is an announcement

about a delay to your flight.

2. You are at a soccer match and the national anthem is

being played.

3. A close friend is giving you relationship advice even though

you didn’t ask for it.

4. You are at a conference and the speaker is using technical

jargon that you don’t understand.

If you’re at an airport and there’s an announcement about a delay,

how would you listen?

I’d listen really …, because …

LISTENING Mediation

Paraphrasing details

It’s a good idea to repeat in your own words what someone has said so
that you can be sure your understanding is correct.

It sounds like … So you’re saying that … So you mean …

A 10.3 Watch David Walker talk about the kinds of issues he deals
with as a mediator. What specific example does he give? How did
he resolve the dispute?

B 10.4 Watch and list three tips Walker gives to improve our
listening skills.

1. ........................................................................

2. .......................................................................

3. ......................................................................

C CRITICAL THINKING

Reflecting Do you think you would be a good mediator? Why or why not? Discuss
with a partner.
SPEAKING Staying focused

A 10.5 How does Speaker B stay focused in meetings?

A: Can I borrow your notes from today’s meeting?

B: Sure. But why do you need them? Weren’t you there too?

A: Yeah, but I was a bit distracted. I find it very difficult to concentrate in long
meetings like that. My mind’s always wandering.

B: Well, it’s not always easy to stay focused. When I’m in a meeting, I find it
helpful to turn my cell phone on “silent” and then put it somewhere I can’t see it.

A: I tried that, but it didn’t work. I still got sidetracked thinking about other
things.

B: Hmm. Maybe you should join in the discussions more. Whenever I find myself
getting distracted, I try to stay engaged by asking questions. You were pretty
quiet in today’s meeting.

A: You’re right. I’ll try to speak up more in tomorrow’s session. Hopefully

that’ll help me stay focused and listen carefully.

B Practice the conversation with a partner.

C Work with a partner. How do you stay focused when listening to your teacher
in class? Use the expressions in blue above to help you.

Whenever I get distracted in class, I look at the teacher and try to make eye contact
with her.

That’s a good idea. I find it helpful to …

 10 B Sound facts

LANGUAGE FOCUS Learning to listen

A10.6 Read the information. Which fact do you find most surprising?

B 10.7 Listen to the conversation. What was Tom’s problem? What does
Jane suggest?

C 10.8 Watch and study the language in the chart.

D 10.7 Listen to the conversation in B again. Using reported speech, write what the
speakers said.

1. “How did your presentation go this morning?” She asked him _____________________________________

2. “I’ll try to use more visual aids and slides tomorrow.” He said that _____________________________________
3. “Don’t worry.” She told him ___________________________________________

E Complete the information with the words from the list. Two options are extra.

suggested explained according to were

promised called said are

______________________ Richard Branson—the founder of Virgin Group—the best

leaders___________________ great listeners. In an interview with Forbes,

he _____________________ why listening was important for good leadership, and shared

anecdotes from his own business dealings. He ______________________ that business

leaders need to listen carefully to feedback from staff and customers, which

requires effort and focus. Unfortunately, many people think of listening as a passive

activity; Branson even ______________________ it a "dying art." In order to improve

people's active listening, he __________________________ that we pay close attention not

just to what someone says, but the way in which they say it—their body language

and facial expressions.

SPEAKING A survey

A Work in pairs. The graph below shows the results of a survey. Tell your partner about it. Take turns

reporting each statement.

 Fifty percent of people said that ...

According to the survey, 85 percent of people …

B With your partner, discuss whether each statement in the graph helps
or prevents effective listening. Give reasons for your conclusions.

10C The lost art of listening?

Mobile devices are changing the way people interact, and can negatively affect our
listening ability.
PRE-READING Predicting/Skimming

A Who do you think are generally better listeners: high school students or
younger kids? Predict and discuss with a partner.

B Skim the first two paragraphs. Check your prediction.

Do you think you’re a good listener? Chances are you do. But studies show
that most people seriously overestimate their ability to listen. The truth is
we are generally not good at listening, and our listening comprehension
declines as we age.

This was proven by Dr. Ralph Nichols, a pioneer in the scientific

study of listening behavior. With the help of school teachers in
Minnesota, he conducted a simple experiment to test students’
listening skills. He had teachers stop what they were doing mid-
class, and then asked students to describe what their teachers had
been talking about. You might assume that older kids, with more
developed brains, would be better listeners. The results, however,
showed otherwise: While 90 percent of first- and second-graders
gave correct responses, this percentage dropped rapidly as the
students got older. A little under half of junior high students could
remember correctly, and only 25 percent of high school students
got the answers right.

So why aren’t we good at listening? One reason concerns the speed

at which we think. The adult brain can process up to around 400
words per minute, more than three times faster than the speed
an average person speaks. This means that we can easily think
about something else while someone is talking to us, allowing our
mind to wander or get sidetracked. Thinking about how you will
reply while someone is still talking is one of the most common
barriers to effective listening. The younger students in Dr. Nichols’s
experiment were better listeners partly because their brains were
less developed—they lacked the extra brain power to be distracted.
Another factor that contributes to our poor listening is our ever-
decreasing attention span. According to a study conducted by
Microsoft, the age of smartphones has had a negative impact here.
In 2000—around the time the mobile revolution began—the
average human attention span was 12 seconds; by 2013, it had
fallen to 8 seconds. Even a goldfish—with an average attention
span of 9 seconds—can hold a thought for longer!

Our mobile devices also provide constant distractions, which can

be very disruptive to listening. Test results have shown that being
interrupted by a cell phone message (or even just expecting a
message) lowers listening comprehension by 20 percent. Similar
results were observed even before the age of digital technology.
According to a 1987 study, people could remember only about 10
percent of a face-to-face conversation following a brief distraction.

Interruptions and other distractions, whether digital or more

traditional, can cause a dramatic decline in listening ability—but
they don’t have to. More and more people now realize that
listening is a skill that can be developed through practice. Learning
to observe a speaker’s body language and emotions, for example,
can improve our active listening. Even the simple act of note-
taking or making eye contact can help us stay focused while
listening.

Many schools and businesses now provide courses in effective

listening, as it has been proven to enhance teamwork and
build rapport. Research also suggests that people who are good
listeners make better leaders. A study in the Academy of
Management Journal indicated that employees who don’t believe
their bosses are listening to them are less likely to offer helpful
suggestions and new ideas.

The fact is that listening plays a central role in everything we do—

both socially and professionally—so the rewards of effective
listening are many. As Dr. Ralph Nichols once said, “The most basic
 of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood.
The best way to understand people is to listen to them.”

UNDERSTANDING MAIN IDEAS

Answer the question.
Which sentence is the author most likely to agree with?

a. There are many techniques we can use to help us stay focused while listening,
but the best way to improve our listening skills is to limit our use of modern
technology.

b. Effective listening is something we all do automatically, although most of us need

to be taught the proper tools and techniques in order to be good at it.

c. The mobile revolution has had a negative impact on our ability to listen, but
there are various techniques we can use to improve our listening skills.

IDENTIFYING CAUSE AND EFFECT

Complete the information showing causes and effects.

CAUSE: Adults have _________________ brains and are more likely to be distracted.

EFFECT: Our listening ability__________________ as we age.

CAUSE: The brain can process information three times _______________

than the speed an average human speaks.

EFFECT: We tend to multitask while listening and get _______________
CAUSE: Many people today own __________________ and other mobile devices.
EFFECT: We have a shorter ___________________ and have to deal with
many ___________________.
CAUSE: Many companies now provide training in _________________.
EFFECT: Bosses who undergo this training are more likely to become
better ________________________.

BUILDING VOCABULARY
A Match the words in blue from the passage to their definitions.
one who is first or among the earliest to do something
to make something better; improve
causing trouble and therefore stopping an activity from continuing as usual
To judge too highly or favorably
a good relationship or understanding among a group of people
overestimate

pioneer

disruptive

enhance

rapport

10E Conscious listening

COMMUNICATE How good are your listening skills?

A Are you a good listener? Read the questions below and check (✓) your
answers.

B Work with a partner. Take turns asking and answering the questions. Circle your
partner’s answers.

C Look back at the answers. With your partner, discuss whether you are
each good at conscious listening, and give reasons for your conclusions. You
may ask follow-up questions to get more information if necessary.

I think I’m a good listener because I ...

That’s true. But you also sometimes ...

 Asking follow-up questions

Can you elaborate on that, Can you give an

please? example?

WRITING A survey report

Look at the results above. Write one or two paragraphs summarizing the
results of the survey, and include details about what makes a good listener.

The survey showed that while I’m generally a pretty good listener, there
are still some things I can work on to improve my listening skills. In
particular, I tend to keep an eye on the clock during conversations. This is
a bad habit because ...

According to the survey, David is good at conscious listening

because ...