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The
History of the International Listening Association*
The
International Listening Association (ILA) is the professional
organization whose members are dedicated to learning more
about the impact that listening has on all human activity.
The International Listening Association promotes the study,
development, and teaching of listening and the practice of
effective listening skills and techniques. The ILA promotes
effective listening by establishing a network of professionals
exchanging information including teaching methods, training
experiences and materials, and pursuing research as listening
affects humanity in, for example, business, education, and
intercultural/international relations.
Any history
of listening would be remiss if it didn’t start with
“The Father of Listening,” Dr.
Ralph G. Nichols. All listening roads led to the University
of Minnesota for over 25 years prior to the formation of the
International Listening Association. Dr. Nichols pioneered,
popularized and parlayed the missing “L” back
into learning the world over.
The International
Listening Association has met as a body every year since its
founding in 1979. On August 23-24, 1979, Dr. Nichols’
successor, Lyman K. “Manny” Steil, hosted the
“State-of-the-Art of Listening” symposium at the
University of Minnesota in St. Paul. Twenty-seven people from
eight states with diverse backgrounds ranging from elementary
school teacher to business and industry consultants met for
the symposium and decided to establish the International Listening
Association. At this symposium, there was extensive discussion
of the need for developing a listening network. Unanimous
agreement of the need for a listening network led to the birth
of the International Listening Association. The established
general purpose of the ILA was “To promote the study
and development of effective listening”. Steil was elected
President Pro-Tem and with the help of others, began the history
of the ILA.
The first order
of business for the new organization was to construct a constitution.
Dr. William M. Gering at Indiana University at South Bend
constructed the first draft of the ILA constitution. He modeled
the constitution and bylaws of the ILA after the constitution
and bylaws of the International Reading Association. Gering’s
draft went through several revisions, with the final one being
completed by the ILA Steering Committee for review and reaction.
The constitution and bylaws were officially approved on February
17, 1980.
The 1980
First Annual International Listening
Association Convention was held in Atlanta, Georgia at
the Terrace Garden Inn. This convention was a cornerstone
event. It set precedent for officer elections. It also established
membership responsibilities such as offering suggestions for
program speakers and topics, providing summaries and recordings
of meetings, providing information through publicity sent
to local newspapers, and such. At this time, officer responsibilities
were also established, such as setting times and dates for
the next meeting, establishing immediate priorities and goals
for the association, and informing the membership of ways
in which they can assist in accomplishing these goals (Erway,
1980).
The convention
was a hit. The first convention of the ILA set a trend that
has continued for over 20 years. Robert Denlinger, Director
of Federal Programs and Special Services, highly commended
the conference. He said, “Of all the conferences I’ve
attended that deal with topics in education, the ILA session
in Atlanta on February 17-19 has to rank at the top from the
aspect of information gathering and from the point of useful
social interaction” (Denlinger, 1980). He also commented
on the diversity of the group:
The group assembled,
though varied in background and in educational settings, operated
as a unit interested in striving toward a common goal. It
is a rare occasion that one finds elementary school people,
high school people, guidance counselors, college staff members,
and business world representatives able to talk the same language
and be understood by each other (Denlinger, 1980).
Early listening
pioneers who have made unique contributions to the field of
listening have been recognized in the ILA’s Hall of
Fame. Some of these pioneers include James I. Brown, Sam Duker,
Paul Rankin, Wesley Wiksell, Sara Lundsteen, Miriam Wilt,
Carl Rogers, Seth Fesenden, Harry Goldstein, Charles T. Brown,
Carl Weaver, Larry R. Barker, Ella Erway, Paul Bagwell, Lyman
K. Steil, and Andrew Wolvin. And of course, the list continues.
Two companies,
Sperry Corporation (now UNISYS) and Telstar of St. Paul, MN,
graciously donated early corporate assistance. A big boost
was given to the awakening of the importance of listening
worldwide by the Sperry media blitz of the early 80’s.
Sperry’s electronic and print ads affirmed, “We
Understand How Important It Is, To Listen.” Sperry also
provided financial assistance and sent seminar representatives
to the Denver Conference in 1981. Telstar of St. Paul donated
time and financial assistance thanks to Bob Miller (president
in 1983) and his staff. ILA was housed at Telstar for the
first four years of its existence providing free administrative
and technical help.
In order
to inform members of ILA who could not make it to the annual
conventions, The Listening Post was established as the official
newsletter of the ILA in 1982. Originally, the newsletter
was called simply, the International Listening Association
Newsletter but it was renamed the Listening Post in 1982.
This newsletter has been printed ever since reporting on topics
such as membership and convention proceedings, as well as
featuring brief articles and reviews. This newsletter also
serves as a channel to send out the call for papers and programs
for upcoming conventions. It also provides a means by which
the board keeps in touch with the other members.
The annual convention
has thrived and grown. As a supplement to the annual meeting
there have been preconference sessions and summer conferences.
The first summer conference was held at Northwestern College,
St. Paul, Minnesota. The conference lasted two days, July
12 and 13, 1984. The first pre-conference meetings preceded
the 1995 convention. The proposal for a Business Pre-Conference
that year suggested the business pre-conference was needed
in order to promote the special professional needs of the
business and training community. The first North American
meeting was in Montreal in the summer of 1987 and the first
international meeting was also a summer conference in Aomori,
Japan. The Japanese Communication Association co–sponsored
the Japan conference. The first annual meeting outside of
the U.S.A. was in Haninge (Stockholm), Sweden, in 2003.
The history of
the International Listening Association shows what an extremely
devoted group of people can do. The founders believed that
listening was an important aspect of learning, teaching, counseling,
culture, and the business world. These advocates of listening
joined together as a small group in 1979 and developed into
an organization that now includes annual conventions, pre-convention
conferences, committee meetings, task forces in various areas,
and included over 600 members in the year 2000. The members
of ILA continue to put forth great effort to reach out to
the national and international community to expand the awareness
and improve the practice of listening.
*Originally
authored by Harvey Weiss and Nanette Johnson-Curiskis, parts
were also excerpted (with permission) from “A stroll
down memory lane: A historic look at ILA” by Margaret
Fitch-Hauser and Sarah Kirchhoff. (ND, actual date 2001).
The Earpiece 1 (1). Final editing done by Michael Purdy.
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