Learning processes that promote listening comprehension

Listening to repeat

The audio-lingual method method helps to practice prosody (e.g., intonation, stress, etc.), but has limitations when it comes to communication and comprehension. Using jazz chants is a common way to practice listening to repeat.

Jazz Chants - Hi! How are you?Jazz Chants - Hi! How are you? - Notes

Listening to understand: A task-based approach

Listening to understand requires the English language learner to take some kind of action based on what they heard: respond correctly, answer a question, listen to a specific aspect of language (syntax, semantics, pragmatics, discourse, purpose, emotions, etc.). Listening to understand relates to Total Physical Response (TPR), the natural method, the direct method, and task-based learning (TBL). Listening to understand allows for a variety of sources: 1) prerecorded conversations with speakers of the L2 (native and non-native speakers, speakers with different dialects, etc.) - for examples refer to Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab; 2) lectures, 3) authentic situations (e.g., gameshows, news broadcasts, etc.), etc. Source material that supports listening to understand may support basic interpersonal communication skills (BICS) and cognitive academic langauge proficiency (CALP).

Richard’s (1983) listening micro-skills for listening to lectures

identify purpose and scope of lecture
identify topic of lecture and follow topic development
identify relationships among units within discourse (e.g., major ideas,
generalizations, hypotheses, supporting ideas, examples)
identify role of discourse markers in signaling structure of a lecture (e.g.,
conjunctions, adverbs, gambits, routines)
infer relationships (e.g., cause, effect, conclusion)
recognize key lexical items related to subject/topic
deduce meanings of words from context
recognize markers of cohesion
recognize function of intonation to signal information structure (e.g., pitch,
volume, pace, key)
detect attitude of speaker toward subject matter
follow different modes of lecturing: spoken, audio, audio-visual
follow lecture despite differences in accent and speed
familiarity with different styles of lecturing: formal, conversational, read, unplanned
familiarity with different registers: written vs. colloquial
recognize irrelevant matter: jokes, digressions, meanderings
recognize function of non-verbal cues as markers of emphasis and attitude
knowledge of classroom conventions (e.g., turn-taking, clarification requests)
recognize instructional learner tasks (e.g., warnings, suggestions,
recommendations, advice, instructions)

Listening for communication

LISTENING & UNDERSTANDING in 3 Easy Steps LISTENING & UNDERSTANDING in 3 Easy Steps - Notes

Beyond repetition and understanding, listening for communication helps learners to develop fluency and accuracy by integrating listening, speaking, and pronunciation practice while helping them to anticipate questions, understand suggestions, and taking better notes (Díaz-Rico, 2004).

Contrast the following activities for listening comprehension (Díaz-Rico, 2004)

Repetition

To hear sound patterns: rhyming poems, songs, tongue twisters, etc.; to listen to sentences: jazz chants, dialogues, skits

Understanding

Listening to answer factual questions orally or in writing: dialogues, tasks, lectures, arguments; Listening to make notes: support an argument, persuade

Communication

Playing games: twenty questions, pictionary, Simon Says, etc.; open-ended questions; conversation starters; cooperative problem-solving activities: riddles, logic puzzles, brain teasers

Richard’s (1983) listening micro-skills for conversational listening

💡 For a simplified list of micro and macro-skills related to conversational listening, refer to Brown’s (2007) micro-macro-skills for conversational discourse.

retain chunks of language of different lengths for short periods
discriminate among the distinctive sounds of the target language
recognize the stress patterns of words
recognize the rhythmic structure of English
recognize the functions of stress and intonation to signal the information
structure of utterances
identify words in stressed and unstressed positions
recognize reduced forms of words
distinguish word boundaries
recognize typical word order patterns in the target language
recognize vocabulary used in core conversational topics (high frequency)
detect key words (i.e., those which identify topics and propositions)
guess the meanings of words from the contexts in which they occur
recognize grammatical word classes (parts of speech)
recognize major syntactic patterns and devices
recognize cohesive devices in spoken discourse
recognize elliptical forms of grammatical units and sentences
detect sentence constituents
distinguish between major and minor constituents
detect meanings expressed in differing grammatical forms/sentence types (i.e.,
that a particular meaning may be expressed in different ways)
recognize the communicative functions of utterances (speech acts), according to
situations, participants, goals (pragmatic competence)
reconstruct or infer situations, goals, participants, procedures
2
real world knowledge and experience to work out purposes, goals, settings,
procedures
predict outcomes from events described
infer links and connections between events
deduce causes and effects from events
distinguish between literal and implied meanings
identify and reconstruct topics and coherent structure from ongoing discourse
involving two or more speakers
recognize markers of coherence in discourse, and to detect such relations as main
idea, supporting idea, given information, new information, generalization, exemplification
process speech at different rates
process speech containing pauses, errors, corrections
make use of facial, paralinguistic, and other clues to work out meanings
adjust listening strategies to different kinds of listener purposes and goals
signal comprehension or lack of comprehension, verbally and non-verbally

Before, during, and after listening

Take a look at Receptive strategies for building language proficiency to see a list of strategies and suggestions related to before (into), during (through), and after (beyond) the listening.

Notice that strategies and suggestions apply to three key aspects of the English language learning classroom experience: 1) culture and content schemata, 2) text-processing, and 3) linguistic and grammar schemata. When planning and implementing a lesson, consider any combination of the three based on the course objectives, student profile, school culture, and preferences of the instructor. The three phases that occur during the planning and implementation of the lesson are meant to help learners 1) get into the text (i.e., before), 2) get through the text (during), and 3) think beyond the text (after).

Top-down and bottom up theories of listening

The top-down and bottom-up theories are two different approaches to understanding the process of listening comprehension.

Top-down processing is a top-down approach to listening comprehension that relies on the listener’s prior knowledge and expectations to make sense of what they hear. The listener uses their knowledge of the topic, the context, and the speaker’s intentions to predict what will be said next. This allows them to fill in gaps in their understanding and to make inferences about the meaning of the message.
Bottom-up processing is a bottom-up approach to listening comprehension that focuses on the individual sounds and words of the message. The listener pays close attention to the way the words are pronounced and the way they are put together to form sentences. This allows them to build up a mental representation of the message, which they can then use to understand the meaning.

Both top-down and bottom-up processing are important for listening comprehension. Top-down processing allows us to make sense of the message even if we don’t understand all of the words. Bottom-up processing allows us to identify the individual sounds and words of the message, which is essential for understanding the meaning.

The pros of top-down processing are that it is efficient and allows us to understand messages even if we don’t understand all of the words. It is also helpful for understanding complex messages and for making inferences. The cons of top-down processing are that it can lead to misunderstandings if our prior knowledge is inaccurate or incomplete. It can also be difficult to use top-down processing if the message is very noisy or if the speaker is speaking quickly.

The pros of bottom-up processing are that it is accurate and allows us to understand the meaning of the message even if we don’t have any prior knowledge of the topic. It is also helpful for understanding messages in noisy environments. The cons of bottom-up processing are that it can be slow and inefficient. It can also be difficult to use bottom-up processing if we are not familiar with the sounds and words of the language.

In reality, most listening comprehension is a combination of top-down and bottom-up processing. We use our prior knowledge to make sense of the message, but we also pay attention to the individual sounds and words to confirm our understanding. The relative importance of top-down and bottom-up processing will vary depending on the situation. For example, we are more likely to rely on top-down processing when we are listening to a familiar topic or when the speaker is speaking clearly. We are more likely to rely on bottom-up processing when we are listening to an unfamiliar topic or when the speaker is speaking in a noisy environment.

Here are some strategies that can be used to improve listening comprehension:

Activate your prior knowledge. Before you listen to a message, take a few minutes to think about what you already know about the topic. This will help you to make sense of the message and to fill in gaps in your understanding.
Pay attention to the speaker’s nonverbal cues. The speaker’s facial expressions, gestures, and tone of voice can provide clues about the meaning of the message.
Take notes. This will help you to keep track of the main points of the message.
Ask questions. If you don’t understand something, don’t be afraid to ask the speaker for clarification.
Practice listening regularly. The more you listen, the better you will become at it.

💡 Scrivener (2005) favors the top-down theory of listening in the classroom because it mimics what most individuals do in the real world (p. 180). Refer to figure 8.4 on page 181 for an example of sequencing for a listening lesson along with helpful listening ideas: news headlines, jigsaw listening, jigsaw task ideas, the tape gallery, home recording, live listening, and guest stars (pp. 181-184).

Teaching techniques for promoting listening proficiency

💡 Consider when the following techniques are being used (into, through, or beyond) and how (e.g., bottom-up or top-down). See also Receptive strategies for building language proficiency.

Pausing

Before or after a word you want students to identify. You may ask for repetitions, writing, matching, tagging, check marking, selecting, etc. Re-run along a longer segment according to students´ level, so that they listen to it/them in use.
Segment . You may ask open/closed questions, ask for paraphrasing, describing, complementing information, picking words or phrases, etc.

Stop and go

Include a visual/auditive signals to indicate “target engaged”. They may be edited in the audio or video, or you can do it with your voice, a bell, a buzzer, a sign, a flashcard, etc. while listening.

Alerts

Repeat a word, sentence, segment, or the complete text over and over again, monitoring students progress to decide when to stop.

Timeline

Match pre-listening items with specific seconds for “target engagement”.
Indicate seconds of “target engagement” with no chronological order of pre-listening items.
Indicate a time gap for “target engagement.”
Prepare support for students with quick comments, questions, indications, etc. in specific silent periods of the audio.
Identify landmarks to stop, loop, fast forward or locate “targets”.

Interactive

Have students follow the lead from a video or from your performance while listening in when the “target engages.”
Audio or video edition to make students to it (Dora The Explorer)

Respond

Prepare students to react by performing an action beyond identifying “targets”.
Students select the order of listening from a set of audios/videos which in conjunction complete a whole message.

Benjamin L. Stewart

Explorer