The art of listening in the age of AI

Abstract

Listening is essential to student learning. But how can instructors build practices of listening into their courses? This article makes the case for adopting a listening-centered approach to university instruction to subvert the dominant “transmission model” of education. It also provides an example of how such an approach can be implemented in practice. Specifically, I present the “plague narrative,” a reflective writing assignment modeled after Thucydides’ account of the plague of Athens in 430 BCE. The plague narrative gives instructors the opportunity to listen to students’ experiences and to learn about their needs and situations. The exercise also offers students a relatively “low stakes” opportunity to engage in political theorizing and critique. Instructors, if properly focused on listening, can use this assignment to better understand their students while helping them make sense of contemporary political life. I conclude by considering how this assignment can disrupt the forces that might push a student to rely on generative AI tools and instead encourage them to use their own critical thinking and writing skills.