Critical thinking is a desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to mediate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider; carefulness to dispose and set in order and hatred for every kind of imposture.
Fransis Bacon (1605)
Every day we listen to many different things in many different ways. Whether it is conversation with a colleague, the TV news, or a new music CD, we listen. In our native language at least, we seem to automatically know «how to listen» and «what we are listening for». To language learners, listening is far more challenging.
Listening is more active, purposeful process of making sense of what we hear. Language skills are often categorized as perceptive or productive. Speaking and writing are the productive skills. Listening, along with reading, is a receptive skill. That is, it requires a person to receive and understand incoming information (input). Because listening is receptive, we can listen to and understand things at a higher level than we can produce. For this reason, people sometimes think of it is a passive skill. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Listening is very active. As people listen, they process not only what they hear, but also connect it to other information they already know. Since listeners combine what they hear with their own ideas and experiences, in a very real sense they are «creating the meaning» in their own minds. As Buck (1995) points out, the assumption that listeners simply decode messages in mistaken, «(M) eaning is not in the text (text = whatever is being listened to)-but is something that is constructed by listeners based on a number of different knowledge sources» [1].
Among those sources are knowledge of language of language, of what has already been said, of context, and general background knowledge. Listening is meaning based. When we listen, we are normally doing so for a purpose. You might even say we don’t listen to words, we listen to the meaning behind the words.
Listening is often compared to reading, the other receptive skill. While the two do share some similarities, two major differences should be noted from the start. Firstly listening usually happens in real time. That is people listen and have to comprehend what they hear immediately. There is no time to go back and review, look up unknown words, etc. Secondly, although listening is receptive, it very often happens in the midst of a conversation-something which requires productive, spoken responses.
If to speak about background of the teaching of listening, historically, learning a foreign language meant learning to read and write. Listening was virtually ignored. Then in the late 1800s, interest in using children’s learning of their first language as a model for foreign language teaching grew. One of the results was Gouin’s series method. It featured action and oral presentation of new language in which the teacher would make a series of statements (Thus the name of the method), and would carry out the actions so that students could map what they saw on to what they heard.
«I walk to the door. I walk.
I draw near to the door. I draw near.
I draw nearer to the door. I draw nearer. I get to the door. I get to.
I stop at the door. I stop.» [2].
This is important since it represents the first time listening played a key role in language teaching methodology. Later, the reform movement promoted ideas such as the teaching of spoken, as opposed to written form. Still later, the direct method, often associated with Charlez Berlitz, promoted the teaching of listening comprehension and the idea that new teaching points should be introduced orally.
In the years following World War II, the audio lingual method came to dominate foreign language teaching. The method, which was heavily influenced by the behavioral psychology of the day, emphasized MIM/MEM (mimicry/ memorization) of new structures. As in the direct method, these were presented orally, before the learner saw the written form. The popularity of the audio lingual method paralleled the establishment of language laboratories for dialogue and pattern practice drills.
In the 1970s and early 1980s, the introduction of communicative language teaching-the idea the student learns though the act of communication-increased the role of listening. During this period, Stephen Krashen’s input hypothesis made a major impact on language teaching. The input hypothesis says that,
«for language learning to occur, it is necessary for the learner to understand input language which contains linguistic items that are slightly beyond the learner’s present linguistic competence. Learners understand such language using cues in the situation»[3]. Put simply, we acquire language by meeting language that is a bit higher than our current level. Listening was seen as a major source of comprehensible input. Language learning textbooks began including listening activities that were not simply presentation of language to be produced. They were listening activities for input, the beginning of the kinds listening tasks common in books today.
In recent days language teachers have focused on the role of the learner as an active participant in the teaching-learning process. Focusing on the learner is a natural outgrowth of a change in orientation from behaviorist to cognitive theories of learning. That change has highlighted what the learner does and how the learner processes information during the lesson rather than focusing on what the teacher does.
The outgrowth of the cognitive approach has been perceived in language teaching together with reflection about the relationship between thinking and language. Teachers who want to promote thinking should try to observe how students produce knowledge rather than how they merely reproduce knowledge. Producing knowledge requires the use of a number of thinking skills such as analytical, lateral, problem solving and critical, creative thinking (Roze and Nicholl 1997) [4].
Because thinking and language are closely connected, teachers of English have always been told that one of their main duties is to teach students how to think. Thinking skills, involved in the study of all disciplines are inherent in the reading, writing, speaking, listening and observing involved in the study of English.
The ability to analyze, classify, compare, formulate hypothesis, make inferences and draw conclusions is essential to the reasoning processes of all adults. The capacity to solve problems, both rationally and intuitively, is a way to help students cope successfully with the experience of learning within the school testing and outside [5].
Although thinking skills can be learned by practicing, like playing tennis and swimming, they require more effort than many teachers realize. To emphasize thinking skills, a teacher must organize course objectives well and must be aware of his or her own values, perceptions, assumptions, and judgments as well as those of the learners as these are closely related to thinking.
Various definitions of critical thinking exist. All include many of the same concepts. Scriven and Paul (1996) define critical thinking as «the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing and synthesizing, evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action.» [6].
Lipman defines critical thinking as skillful, responsible thinking that facilitates good judgment because it relies upon criteria, is self-correcting, and is sensitive to context. He also argues that we as teachers must begin with the raw subject matter of communication and inquiry and cultivate all the skills that the mastery in such processes entails (1988) [7].
Critical thinking occurs when students construct meaning by interpreting, analyzing, and manipulating information in response to a problem or question that requires more than a direct, one-right-answer application of previously learned knowledge [8].
Critical thinking is one of the thinking skills that should be highlighted in designing and improving language curriculum because the world we live in is getting more complicated to understand, and how we process information has become more important than specific facts. Taking this idea into consideration, we language teachers can encourage our students to go beyond surface meaning and to discover the deeper meaning instead of merely using basic literacy skills (Van Duzer and Florez 1999) [9].
Critical thinking consists of mental processes of discernment, analysis and evaluation. It includes possible processes of reflecting upon a tangible or intangible item in order to form a solid judgment that reconciles scientific evidence with common sense. In contemporary usage «critical» has a certain negative connotation that does not apply in the present case. Though the term «analytical thinking» may seem to convey the idea more accurately, critical thinking clearly involves synthesis, evaluation, and reconstruction of thinking, in addition to analysis. Critical thinkers gather information from all senses, verbal and/or written expressions, reflection, observation, experience and reasoning. Critical thinking has its basis in intellectual criteria that go beyond subject-matter divisions and which include: clarity, credibility, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, significance and fairness.
How critical thinking can be improved in language classes.
Critical thinking skill is not likely to develop spontaneously. On the contrary, teachers must take a directive role in initiating and guiding critical thinking. Language classes are particularly appropriate for teaching critical thinking owing to the richness of material and the interactive approaches used. Of the many concepts related to acquisition and improvement of critical thinking, self-awareness is one of the most important. Through critical thinking and self-awareness, one can understand the relationship between thoughts and emotions. Although it is assumed that they are independent, the truth is that feelings are based on some level of thought, and thoughts generate from some level of feeling. Emotions play an important part in learning because learners may bring learned indifference, irrational fears, acquired hostility, and inflexible ideas into the classroom so their learning is limited to the surface (Paul and Elder 2002) [10].
Language teachers can activate critical thinking in the classroom by highlighting self-awareness; that is, they can help the learners have and show understanding of themselves and their surroundings. By means of interactive approaches and materials, teachers cam help students be aware of their perceptions, assumptions, prejudices, and values and can help students break old habits to construct a new point of view. It will take effort, but students will enjoy discovering themselves as they learn a language.
We hear, see, taste, or feel stimuli by means of our senses. This process occurs so spontaneously that we tend to think of perception is an active rather than a passive process. It enables us to construct, interpret, and make conclusions about information we receive, rather than simply to record «reality». Perception is a process of making inferences. Through inferences we construct our own version of reality. However, our version of reality may be distorted by our past experiences, education, cultural values, and role requirements (Heuer 1999).
Part of the knowledge needed to comprehend oral discourse is the ability to separate meaningful units from the stream of speech. Although listening may be seen as a « receptive» skill, it is by no means a passive act. According to the sociocognitive approach to learning listening is an act of constructing meaning. Listeners draw on their store of background knowledge and their expectation of the message to be conveyed as they actively work at understanding a conversation or oral presentation. The role of the teacher is to set up situations in which students can develop their own purposes and goals for listening, acquire the English that is the most useful in their daily lives, feel a sense of purpose, and engage in real communication.
One of the most frequent applications of critical thinking is critical listening. Studies shows that students spend 70 percent of their waking day communicating; 14 percent of that time is spend writing, 17 percent reading, 16 percent speaking, and 53 percent listening [11]. A large part of our listening time requires evaluation. Decisions concerning what to buy, for whom to vote, and what to do with our time are just a few of the situations in which an oral message must be critically evaluated and an appropriate verbal or behavioral response determined.
High school and college students, who are frequent targets of persuasive techniques, are also inexperienced at making adult decisions. Cognitively they are moving from concrete to abstract thought and adults are increasingly able to see implications, understand hypothetical situations, and view issues as multifaceted. A unit on critical listening at this stage of development could be essential to developing cognitive complexity.
Effective critical listening requires students to begin by evaluating the speaker or source of the message. Three considerations determine the judgment made about a speaker: credibility, purpose, and bias. The following activities can be used to teach these three concepts in the high school or college classroom.
Determining the Speaker’s Credibility.
Speaker credibility is determined by five components: competence, character, intent, dynamism, and likeability [12]. After students define and discuss these concepts, give them a list of names such as the one below. You might want to include people currently in the news and local figures.
How do you view the following people as speakers? Mark each name favorable (+), neutral (√), or unfavorable (-) in each of the five components of credibility.
Competence Character Intent Dynamism Likeability
Ronald Reagan Jimmy Connors Ann Landers Joan Collins Diana Ross Billy Graham Dan Rather
After the form is completed, ask students to indicate how they rated these people on each of the five components. Explore why one person is seen as likeable and another not. The lack of agreement on judging competence will make it clear to students that the evaluation of a speaker’s competence is personal. When discussing competence, ask students to list the topics on which each of the people listed would be competent. Discus the halo effect used in advertising which results in football players selling panty hose and actors selling coffee.
The final idea requiring elaboration is the effect the rating of competency would have on listening to a speaker’s ideas. Students should learn from this lesson that they should critically examine each source of information and that this examination should play a role in their acceptance or rejection of the speaker’s message.
Determining the Speaker’s Purpose
Offer students practice in determining the purpose, whether stated or implied, of a message. Point out that speaker sometimes state the purpose clearly in a thesis statement early in the message, or they may use an inductive approach which states the purpose in the conclusion, or they may never state the purpose.
The reason someone is speaking is an important factor in evaluating a message. A football player who is paid $100,000 to make a commercial is motivated by different forces than a friend who tells you a certain brand of panty hose is the best. This, in turn, should influence the evaluation of the message and your response to it.
Read students brief passages which exemplify the three strategies. Three sample paragraphs are reproduced below.
- If any of you needed a kidney or other vital organ to live, would you be able to get one? Would you know where to begin searching for information which would lead to obtaining this needed organ?
These are questions many of us have never even considered. Yet, each year, in America alone, many people die with kidney disease because donated kidneys are not available. Now wouldn’t it be nice-no; fantastic-to have a major role in curbing some of this tragic and needless dying? You can do just that. I’d like to show you how today. (Philip Doughtie, «The Gift of Life», in Adler and Rodman 1985, 369–371) [13].
Here the purpose (To encourage listeners to donate kidneys) is made clear in the speaker’s introductory remarks.
- «I’m useless until I’ve had my morning cup of coffee!» Does that line sound familiar? Most people realize that drinking coffee gives them a lift-it alleviates drowsiness and acts as a general pick-me-up. These effects are the result of a drug found in coffee known as caffeine; and what most people don’t realize when they drink that morning cup of coffee is that they are ingesting a
Yes, caffeine is a powerful stimulant, found not only in coffee, but also in tea, chocolate, soft drinks, an a number of over-the-counter drugs, including wakeup tablets, diet pills, and headache and cold remedies. It is one of the most widely consumed mind-affecting substances in the world, and the effects of consuming too much caffeine are given the name caffeinism. In the past, caffeine has been regarded as a minor drug that does no real damage. However, accumulating evidence indicates that this belief is a misconception and that caffeine can be injurious to our health.
In the next few minutes, I’d like to take a closer look at the effects of caffeine, at its consumption in our society, and at some solutions to the caffeine problem. (Christine Murphy, «The Caffeine Concern,» in Lucas 1983, 381–384) [14].
In this speech, the purpose is not stated explicitly at the outset but is revealed in the speaker’s conclusion: « I urge you to access and monitor your caffeine intake…»
- I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous degree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we’ve come here today to dramatize a shameful condition. (Martin Luther King, Jr., «I have a Dream,» in Lucas 1983, 373–376) [14].
King’s purpose is not stated explicitly. He speaks of coming to Washington «to dramatize a shameful condition» but does not state the actual purpose of this speech. Most critics agree that the speech was designed to inspire the audience to continue to fight for equal rights.
After students have discussed brief passages like those above, have them read and discuss a longer message, such as a speech from Vital Speeches of the Day or from a college speech textbook, which will often label such components as the thesis, purpose sentence, main ideas, supporting materials, etc. A passage from a work of literature could also be examined from this perspective, using the dialogue to determine the speaker’s purpose.
Determining the Speaker’s Bias
A third consideration when listening critically to a speaker is identifying speaker bias. Typical sources of bias include personal experience, educational background, position or job, and self-interest. Ask students to cite instances where these factors influenced what they said. Then give students the following assignment to explore the concept of bias from the listener’s perspective.
For each of the following claims, list a speaker who you feel would be biased and one who would be relatively unbiased.
Claim
Biased Unbiased
Speaker Speaker
The Academy Awards are meaningless.
You should have a dental checkup every year. The well-dressed man of today wears an earring.
Michael Jackson has had a greater effect on music than did the Beatles. You should smoke pot.
Conclude the assignment by discussing with students how they should listen differently to a biased speaker than to an unbiased one. Point out that a biased speaker may still be honest and credible, but than the listener should listen carefully for supporting evidence for the speaker’s ideas and should verify the message with his or her own experience. Encourage students to seek out various opinions on a topic, thus lessening the impact of a particular speaker’s biases.
To help the learner become aware of his or her perceptions and how they may differ from those of others, language teachers can use different activities in class.
Although the current emphasis is on communicating for authentic purposes, a number of guided listening techniques have come from more traditional language-teaching methodologies. Long (1987) separated the act of listening into two sets of factors: message factors and medium factors. Message factors entail understanding the propositions that the message contains-the semantic information, the intention of the speaker, and the background knowledge of the listener through which the message can be interpreted. Medium factors include provision for the constituents of speech (usually clauses) and the efficiency of speech (perhaps featuring reduced and elliptical forms); the possibility of ungrammatical forms; provision for pausing, errors, pace of speech, rhythm, and stress; inclusion of cohesive devices; and provision for construction of meaning among interlocutors. The most important factor to bear in mind when designing lessons to develop listening comprehension skills is that students need to be motivated and to stay motivated. We hope that the information outlined in this article about critical thinking help teachers design successful lessons that motivate their students to improve their listening skills and become more communicatively competent.
Teaching language through critical thinking enables learners to recognize a wide range of subjective analyses, to develop self-awareness, and to see linkages and complexities they might otherwise miss.
Students need mental flexibility and critical thinking skills to survive in such a rapidly changing world with a future that is by definition, uncertain. This involves engaging students in discovering how to analyze, synthesize, make judgments, create new knowledge, and to apply those skills to real-world situations.
Exposing learners to a variety of tasks as well as different types of listening is helpful in enabling them to become more skillful listeners. To that end, examples of how to incorporate these ideas into the classroom and ways to modify textbook tasks are provided. If we do these things, our learners can become more effective, active listeners.
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