2.1.2 Listening – Listening to Personal Experiences

 

Listening – Listening to Personal Experiences

Professional English 

Introduction

Listening is one of the four essential language skills and plays a crucial role in effective communication. In Professional English, listening to personal experiences helps learners understand real-life situations, emotions, perspectives, and values shared by speakers. Such listening activities enhance comprehension, empathy, vocabulary, and critical thinking, which are essential for academic and professional success.

According to English for Science & Technology (Cambridge University Press, 2021), listening to authentic spoken texts such as personal experiences enables learners to connect language learning with real-world contexts and improves communicative competence.

Meaning of Listening to Personal Experiences

Listening to personal experiences refers to the process of attentively hearing and understanding real-life stories, incidents, or events narrated by individuals based on their own lives. These experiences may include:

  • Childhood memories

  • College life experiences

  • Workplace incidents

  • Challenges faced and lessons learned

  • Success or failure stories

Such narratives are usually informal, emotional, and reflective, making them ideal for developing listening skills.

Objectives of Listening to Personal Experiences

The main objectives of this listening activity are:

  1. To develop active and attentive listening skills

  2. To understand the speaker’s emotions, opinions, and attitudes

  3. To improve vocabulary and sentence patterns used in real-life communication

  4. To identify key ideas, supporting details, and conclusions

  5. To enhance empathy and interpersonal communication skills

Features of Personal Experience Narratives

Personal experience listening texts generally have the following features:

  • First-person narration (I, we)

  • Chronological sequence of events

  • Emotional expressions and reflections

  • Simple and conversational language

  • Real-life context and authenticity

Listening Process in Personal Experiences

1. Pre-Listening Stage

Before listening, learners should:

  • Predict the topic from the title or visuals

  • Recall similar personal experiences

  • Learn key vocabulary related to the topic

2. While-Listening Stage

During listening, learners should:

  • Identify the main idea of the experience

  • Note important events and emotions

  • Observe tone, stress, and intonation

  • Focus on cause-and-effect relationships

3. Post-Listening Stage

After listening, learners should:

  • Summarize the experience

  • Answer comprehension questions

  • Discuss the moral or lesson learned

  • Share their own related experiences

Importance of Listening to Personal Experiences

Listening to personal experiences is important because it:

  • Builds emotional intelligence and empathy

  • Improves real-life listening comprehension

  • Helps learners understand diverse perspectives

  • Strengthens interpersonal and professional communication

  • Encourages reflective and critical thinking

As stated in Communicative English (Dr. J. Anbazhagan Vijay, 2017), listening to personal narratives prepares students for workplace interactions such as meetings, interviews, and team discussions.

Sample Listening Task (Exam-Oriented)

Listening Passage:
A speaker narrates their first-day experience at college, describing nervousness, meeting new friends, facing challenges, and gaining confidence by the end of the day.

Possible Questions:

  1. What was the speaker’s initial feeling?

  2. What challenges did the speaker face?

  3. How did the experience change the speaker?

  4. What lesson can be learned from the experience?

Benefits for Professional Communication

Listening to personal experiences helps professionals to:

  • Understand colleagues and clients better

  • Respond appropriately in conversations

  • Improve teamwork and leadership skills

  • Handle workplace challenges empathetically

Conclusion

Listening to personal experiences is an effective and meaningful way to develop listening skills in Professional English. It connects language learning with real-life communication, enhances emotional understanding, and prepares learners for academic and professional environments. By practicing such listening activities, students become confident, empathetic, and effective communicators.

References

  1. Veena Selvam, S., Sujatha Priyadarshini, Deepa Mary Francis, K.N. Shoba, & Lourdes Joevani. (2021). English for Science & Technology. Cambridge University Press.

  2. Anbazhagan Vijay, J. (2017). Communicative English. Global Publishers, Chennai.

  3. Raman, M., & Sharma, S. (2019). Professional English. Oxford University Press, New Delhi.

  4. Chellammal, V. (2003). Learning to Communicate. Allied Publishing House, New Delhi.

  5. OER – Authentic Open Educational Resources.

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