Active Listening

Early in the school year, ample opportunities are presented to collaborate with peers on committees, enforce new policies and procedures, and most importantly, build relationships with students and their families.  Their common theme: effective communication. 

As I continue to read and discuss qualities of successful, effective leaders, one characteristic repeatedly stands out:  Be an active listener.  Why?  Active listeners enhance the effectiveness of communication.  In this busy world, pause for a moment and really attend…

 Tips on Active Listening

*Focus on the speaker.

*Position body language so it reflects openness and attentiveness.

*Increase awareness on the speaker’s responses.

*Ask questions to clarify or obtain more information.

*Paraphrase to check that you understood the speaker’s message.

I will end by leaving you with one quote for reflection that I read in Peter Johnson’s book, Choice Words which I believe connects so well to this topic in relation to our students: 

“Children learning to control their own attention and the attention system is in many ways

a gatekeeper of knowledge acquisition.”  (Gauvain, 2001) 

Think how much a student is missing when he/she is not attending actively and how can we engage that student?    And….how may we engage our families?

 

Sources: 
Green, R. (2013).  Practicing the Art of Leadership:  A Problem-Based Approach to Implementing the ISLLC Standards. 

Johnson, P. (2004). Choice Word:  How Our Language Affects Children’s Learning.

Toll, C. (2004).  The Literacy Coach’s Survival Guide.