I found the text The Importance and Difficulties of Listening Skill: A Description (Gultom, Utari, and Rahmawati, 2023) interesting, as listening is the focus of my PhD research. The text positions listening as a skill, implying that it can be learned, taught, and refined to an expert level (p.9). This does not align well with the scholarship I’ve been engaging with, which moves away from the idea of an ideal listener and instead emphasizes aural diversity (Drever and Hugill, 2022) and barriers to listening—factors that cannot simply be unlearned (Carlyle and Lane, 2013).
The first section outlines various models of listening, citing scholars who propose four, seven, or even twelve different types. My own research has identified 120 distinct listening types, as articulated by both artists and researchers. These definitions are often discipline-specific, with listening explored in fields such as film studies, decolonial discourse, and music theory. In contrast, this paper limits its discussion to pedagogical frameworks.
The authors reference a study on second language acquisition by Nabiyev and Idiyev (2022), which identifies three causes of listening difficulties: lack of effort, laziness, and misunderstanding pronunciation (p.30). This struck me as particularly harsh language, and I wondered how a teacher within the field of critical pedagogy might respond. Rather than blaming students, I would argue that a lack of motivation often stems from complex, context-dependent factors—both long-term (such as an inability to envision a future where the language skill is useful) and short-term (such as stress or hunger, which can distract from learning).
This discussion also made me reflect on the role of listening in the classroom. The focus is often on students as listeners, but how much space is there for teachers to listen? Sara Ahmed’s concept of feminist ears (2022) suggests that listening is not a passive act—it is a precursor to action. Listening without action may retraumatize the speaker. As an associate lecturer with limited power beyond the classroom, I might question whether creating space for listening is meaningful. However, even when immediate action isn’t possible, listening can still foster solidarity. Simply hearing a student and responding with empathy can, in itself, be a form of support.
Refs:
Ahmed, S. (2022) Feminist Ears [blog post] Available at: https://feministkilljoys.com/2022/06/01/feminist-ears/ (Accessed: 23rd March 2025)
Carlyle, A. & Lane, C. eds. (2013) On Listening. London: Uniformbooks.
Drever, J. L. & Hugill, A. eds. (2022) Aural Diversity. New York: Routledge
Gultom, Q., Utari, P. & Rahmawati, W. (2023). THE IMPORTANCE AND DIFFICULTIES OF LISTENING SKILL: A DESCRIPTION. EXCELLENCE: Journal of English and English Education. 3. 28-31. 10.47662/ejeee.v3i1.584.
Nabiyev, A. I., & Idiyev, A. R. (2022) The importance of listening in learning English. Innovative Developments in Sciences, Education and Humanities, 12-13.