The Language of Listening
Grammar: Verb + preposition collocations in communication contexts
A Level 5 English lesson exploring media.
What's in this lesson
A Level 5 (advanced) ESL lesson on media, practising verb + preposition collocations in communication contexts. The worksheet has a reading, target vocabulary, a grammar reference with practice and discussion questions.
From the reading: The Language of Listening
In 2015, the linguist Deborah Tannen pointed out something that communication researchers had long suspected but rarely stated plainly: most people do not listen to understand — they listen to reply. The distinction sounds trivial. It is not. Tannen, whose career at Georgetown University has focused on how people talk across difference, argues that the gap between hearing words and engaging with their meaning accounts for more professional and personal breakdown than almost any other single factor. What she called rapport-talk versus report-talk has since been cited in boardrooms from São Paulo to Seoul.
Vocabulary
- about
- for
- from
- on
Grammar
- Verb + preposition
- The study focused on listening habits in global teams. — use on after focus
Discussion questions
- Do you think most people are better at talking or listening?
- Has technology changed the way we communicate at work?
- What makes someone a genuinely good communicator?
The Language of Listening
Grammar: Verb + preposition collocations in communication contexts
What's in this lesson:
Full lesson plan with reading, grammar, vocabulary, and discussion.
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