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7/30/2019 Listening & Learning Skills

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Learning and Listening Skills


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Skill 1 Using Encouraging Non Verbal

Communication

Non-verbal communication means showing

your attitude through your posture, your

expression, your emotional response without

speaking.

(Note All four types will be demonstrated

through role play)


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Skill 1- Using Encouraging Non Verbal

Communication - 1

Four types:

1. Posturekeep your head level.

2. Physical Barriers

Remove barriers3. Eye Contact- pay attention

4. Take timedont rush


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POSTURE

Good morning, Madam. How is breastfeeding

going for you and the baby?

HINDERS: stand with your head higher than

the mothers head.

HELPS: sit so that your head is at level with

the mothers head.

NOTE: KEEP YOUR HEAD LEVEL .


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EYE CONTACT

Good morning, Madam. How is breastfeeding going foryou and the baby?

HELPS: look at her and pay attention as you speak.

HINDERS: look away at something else, or down at

your notes. NOTE: PAY ATTENTION

(Note: eye contact may have different meanings indifferent cultures. Sometimes when a person looks

away it means that he or she is ready to listen. Directeye contact between opposite sexes may also beinappropriate. If necessary, adapt this to your ownsituation)


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PHYSICAL BARRIERS



HINDERS: sit behind a table, or write notes

while you talk.

HELPS: remove the table or the notes.

NOTE: REMOVE BARRIERS


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TAKING TIME



HELPS: make her feel that you have time. Sit

down and greet her without hurrying; then just

stay quietly smiling at her, watching her breast

feed, and waiting for her to answer.

HINDERS: be in a hurry. Greet her quickly, showsigns of impatience, and look at your watch.

NOTE:TAKE TIME .


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Skill 2 Asking Open Questions

To start a discussion with a person or with agroup, you need to ask some questions.

It is important to ask questions in a way whichencourages people to talk to you freely and towillingly share information.

This saves you from asking too many questions,and enables you to learn more in the timeavailable.

We learn by listening, not by talking ( this is thereason why communicators have two ears andone mouth).


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Open questions are usually the most helpful. To

answer them, the person must give you some

information.

Open questions usually start with How? What?

When? Where? Why? For example, How are

you feeding your baby?.

Closed questions are usually less helpful. Theyoften tell a mother the answer that you expect,

and she can answer them with a Yes or No.


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Closed questions usually start with words likeAre you?, Did he?, Has he? or Does she?

For example: Did you breastfeed your last

baby? Ifa mother says Yes to this question, you still

do not know if she breastfed exclusively, or if shealso gave some artificial milk.

You can become quite frustrated, and think thatthe mother is not willing to talk, or that she is nottelling the truth.


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Practice - Asking Open and Closed Questions


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Demonstration-

Closed ended questions

Communicator: Good morning Madam. I am Eno, a healthcommunicator.

Is your baby well?

Mother: Yes, thank you.

Communicator: Are you breastfeeding him? Mother: Yes.

Communicator: Are you having any difficulties?

Mother: No.

Communicator: Is he breastfeeding very often? Mother: Yes.

Comment the HW received yes and no for answers and didnot learn much. It can be difficult to know what to say next


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Demonstration-

Open ended questions

Communicator: Good morning Madam. I am Eno ahealth communicator. How is your baby?

Mother: He is well, and he is very hungry.

Communicator: Tell me, how are you feeding him?

Mother: He is breastfeeding. I just have to give himone bottle feed in the evening.

Communicator: What made you decide to do that?

Mother: He wants to feed too much at that time, so I

thought that my milk was not enough. Communicator: What do you put in the bottle?

Mother: Rice water with sugar.


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Group Practice

My baby is six months old and has lost weightduring the last 2 months

My baby has diarrhoea

I am pregnant My child has a terrible cough

each group make up open-ended questions whichthey might ask someone in response to the above

statements, share their questions in the plenaryand other participants listen and decide if thequestions were in fact an open question.


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Skill 3 Using responses and gestures

If you want a person to continue talking, youmust show that you are listening, and that

you are interested in what they are saying.

Important ways to show that you are listeningand interested are:

with gestures, for example, look at her, nod

and smile; with simple responses, for example, you say

Aha, Mmm, Oh dear!


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Demonstration

Communicator: Good morning Madam. How is yourbreastfeeding of your baby going for you these days?

Mother: Good morning. It is going quite well, I think.

Communicator: Mmm (nods, smiles).

Mother: Well, I was a bit worried the other day, becausehe vomited.

Communicator: Oh dear! (raises eyebrows, looksinterested).

Mother I wondered if it was something that I ate, so that

my milk did not suit him. Communicator: Aha! (nods sympathetically).


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Skill 4 Reflect back what the mother

said

Communicators sometimes ask mothers many factualquestions.

However, the answers to factual questions are oftennot helpful. The mother may say less and less in replyto each question.

For example, if a mother says: My baby was crying toomuch last night, you might want to ask: How manytimes did he wake up?, But the answer is not helpful.

It is more useful to repeat back or reflect what amother says. It shows that you understand, and she ismore likely to say more about what is important to her.


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Skill 4 Reflect back what the mother

said

It is best to repeat what the mother says in a slightlydifferent way, so that it does not sound as though youare copying her.

For example, if a mother says: My baby was crying toomuch last night, you could say: Your baby kept youawake crying all night?.

If you continue to reflect back what a mother saysevery time, it can begin to sound rather rude. It is

better to mix up reflecting back with other responses.

For example: Oh really? or Goodness, or an openquestion.


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Demonstration

Communicator: Good morning Madam. How areyou and your baby k today?

Mother: He wants to feed too much-he is taking my

breast all the time! Communicator: Your baby is feeding very often?

Mother: Yes. This week he is so hungry. I think thatmy milk is drying up.

Communicator: He seems hungrier just for about aweek?

Mother: Yes and my sister is telling me that I shouldgive him some bottle feeds

as well. Communicator: Your sister sa s that he needs


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Demonstration 2

Communicator: Good morning. Madam. How are you and yourbaby today?

Mother: He wants to feed too much-he is taking my breast all thetime.

Communicator: Your baby is feeding very often?

Mother: Yes. This week he is so hungry. I think that my milk isdrying up.

Communicator: Oh dear!

Mother: Yes, it is exhausting. My sister tells me that I should givesome bottle feeds and get some rest.

Communicator: Your sister wants you to give some bottle feeds? Mother: Yes she says that I am foolish to struggle on like this.

Communicator: How do you feel about that?

Mother: Well, I dont want to give bottle feeds.


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Understanding Rumour -

Role Play

The Chinese Example

This exercise teaches the following lessons: The person who starts the game has to give the message clearly.

Clarity and brevity in messages is very important.

The person who receives the message must listen carefully.People should pay attention to what is being said andunderstand it. This is part of the ability to listen.

Messages when they go from one person to another getdistorted and this is how rumours begin. It is difficult topoint out where the message distortion began.

Similarly it is difficult to pin down the person responsiblefor beginning a wrong message or rumour.


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Session wrap up Listening and

Learning Skills

Listening and learning skills are something notnecessarily known to all. They are skills that can belearnt and improved.

Communication includes both verbal and non verbal

communication. Gestures, looks, facial expressions all communicate and

therefore communicators must be conscious of allmethods of communication.

The way a person speaks, tone, manner and method ofinteractions all make a difference in communication.

Development workers must be aware of all thesepersonal behaviours and how they impact on people.