Active Listening

Final Reflection Due Monday, March 5


Everything in writing begins with language. Language begins with listening.
                                                                          – Jeanette Winterson

Part One

Exercise: Active Listening (Response)
Monday, February 29, 2021, Conducted In Class

The purpose of this exercise is to harness the wisdom and intuition of your colleagues. Today, you will each present your Locating Territories assignment to the class, and you will also listen carefully to your colleagues’ presentations. Actively listen to each of your classmates’ presentations, and write responses for each of them based on the prompts below in the document provided :

1
The interests that you presented could also be associated with:

  • Topic X, in graphic design history / theory / practice

  • Topic Y, in the broader culture

2
Ideas that might connect to your thesis interests include —

3
An important reference or reading that you might want to consult is —

4
A path of inquiry into these topics that you hadn’t mentioned might be —

Include your name and your colleagues’ names on each card, and give the appropriate cards to each of your colleagues at the end of class.

Part Two

Assignment: Active Listening (Reflection)
Due: Monday, March 5th

Please reflect on the active listening comments you received, and write a short reflection (roughly 250 words) on this feedback. Compare what you meant with what was heard: What was mentioned that you had not considered? Does this feedback help sharpen your path of inquiry? How might you take these responses into account this semester?  

Note for this and future assignments

A PDF should be saved to Google Drive before class starts. While you may share a Google Doc-, please consider the format of your writing assignments as an opportunity to experiment with your Compendium style. This is frequently a place where students get ahead on the work of Compendium. Text should be legibly sized.