Page 181 - Keys To Community College Success

comes next. Or, you may focus on only certain points and shut out everything else.
Either way, you may miss valuable information and not gain much reward for your
time spent.

Fix #2: An I-can-do-it attitude
■ Start with a productive mindset. If the class is hard, you have more incentive to
pay attention. Instructors are generally more sympathetic to, and eager to help,
students who’ve obviously been trying even when the subject matter is difficult.
■ Concentrate. Work to take in the whole message so you can later review with your
textbook notes and think critically about what is important. Making connections
between ideas can reduce both the difficulty of the material in some cases, and bore-
dom if you’re familiar with the concepts.
■ Refocus. If you experience a listening lapse, try to get back into the lecture quickly
instead of worrying about what you missed. After class, look at a classmate’s notes
to fill in the gaps. VERBAL SIGNPOSTS
■ Be aware. Pay attention to verbal signposts. These are words or phrases that call Spoken words or phrases
attention to what comes next, help organize information, connect ideas, and indi- information that follows.
that call attention to
cate what is important and what is not. See Key 6.2 for examples.
Issue #3: Rushing to judgment
It’s common to stop listening when you hear something you don’t like, don’t agree
with, or don’t understand. Unfortunately, that type of emotional reaction may cause
you to miss important information, which can hurt you at test time. Judgments also
involve reactions to speakers themselves. If you do not like your instructors or have
preconceived notions about their race, ethnicity, gender, physical characteristics,
or disability, you may dismiss their messages and miss out on your opportunity
to learn.

Fix #3: Recognize and correct your patterns
Emotions are very powerful. They can warp what you hear or prevent you from hear-
ing completely. College is about broadening your horizons and looking for what differ-
ent people can teach you, even though their beliefs may differ from yours. So, what do
you do if you react emotionally to a speaker or a message?

KEY 6.2 Pay attention to verbal signposts.

SIGNALS THAT POINT TO KEY CONCEPTS SIGNALS THAT SUPPORT

A key point to remember … A perfect example …
Point 1, point 2, etc. … Specifically, …
The impact of this was … For instance, …

The critical stages in the process are … Similarly, …
SIGNALS THAT POINT TO DIFFERENCES SIGNALS THAT SUMMARIZE
On the contrary, … From this you have learned …

On the other hand, … In conclusion, …
In contrast, … As a result, … Listening and Note Taking
However, … Finally, …

143