Case Study - Poor Listening Skills

Introduction

The case study approach of this module has been designed to create an awareness of the general classroom behavioral problems that may be encountered on a day to day basis. The examples here are generalised and may be applied to situations other than the ones given here.

Description of the problem

Mrs Hart gave instructions to her fifth-grade class on their daily seatwork. During the morning, seven students interrupted Mrs Hart to ask questions about their seatwork. Each question was answered with information Mrs Hart had already presented to the class in her initial instructions. Later, Mrs Hart began a spelling test by telling students to put their name in the upper right-hand corner of the page and to number the paper from one to twenty. She had to repeat the instructions about numbering, four times. When she collected the papers, she noticed that three students did not put their name on the paper and two students put their name in the upper left-hand corner of the page.

Causes

Often, students aren't held accountable for listening and remembering information that's presented to them orally. In most cases, a student can get the teacher to repeat the instructions. The student may have forgotten the directions, or simply not have listened to the directions. And, although the teacher may express exasperation, he or she will frequently give the student the information that's necessary to listen carefully the first time information is presented.

Some students my have developed poor listening skills as a way of getting out of tasks. They may have been able to avoid difficult or uninteresting tasks by pretending not to have heard the instructions. This behavior becomes firmly established after years of not listening to parents and teachers. The result? Students who can tune out nay oral instruction.

Goal

Students will listen carefully to instructions and will improve heir ability to listen and to remember information that is presented orally.

The Plan:

Step 1:
Conduct practice sessions. Give instructions and other information that they will be expected to remember. Then, ask the students questions to determine whether or not they remember the information. Questions can be asked of the entire group and answered in unison by training students to respond to a hand signal. For example. you might present an instruction like 'Write your name in the upper right-hand corner of the paper. Where are you going to write your name?' (Hand signal and unison response.)

As you ask the question, hold out your hand as if you were requesting someone to stop. At the completion of the question, pause from one to three seconds to give the students time to think. The say, 'Get ready.' Pause one second, then use an up-and-down motion of your hand to indicate that the students should respond. The signal you use should look much the same as the gesture a conductor uses to signal the orchestra to begin.

The purpose of the signal is to get all of the students responding together. Unison responses give each student practice in repeating important information. By asking all students to respond, the teacher indicates that the information being presented important. Furthermore, questions directed to the entire group teach students to pay attention to the presentation because they may be asked to respond at any moment. The teacher should present the questions until he or she is reasonably certain that the students have digested the information.

This type of questioning strategy can be used for many instructional activities. Below are examples of questions the teacher might ask to help teach students to listen and to remember what they've heard:

• 'Which door do we use if there is a fire drill?'
• 'Where do you turn in your reading paper when it's completed?'
• 'While I'm working with a small group, what should you do if you have a question?'
• 'Which assignment should you complete first?'
• 'What rules are in force during independent work times?'

Step 2:
When students have practiced repeating information, hold them accountable for remembering the information. For example, if you told students which assignment to work on after the reading assignment is completed and they have practiced repeating this information, you should not answer any question concerning what to do after reading. You should respond by saying something like the following:

• 'We went over that information this morning. You'll have to find out by asking someone else because I only go over the instructions one time.'

Step 3:
Praise students as they improve their listening and recall skills. Let students know that you are pleased with their efforts. Most students do not realize that listening is an important skill to develop. If you praise students for listening and remembering, you help them understand that listening is a skill worth trying to improve.

Step 4:
Occasionally play listening games with the students. Choose a short story to read to the students. The story should have a fair number of details. Before reading the story, divide the class into two teams. Tell students that you are going to read a story and that they should listen carefully because there will be a contest afterwards to see which team can answer the most questions about the story. Read the story and begin asking questions. The format of the questioning period can be much the same as a spelling bee.