Exploring listening skills in pre-intermediate students

Context: This study takes place in Akhaltsikhe Public School No.5 in Georgia, which serves a diverse student population. The teacher recognized that students faced significant challenges with listening tasks due to limited interaction with native speakers, leading to issues with understanding specific information and maintaining engagement during listening activities. Aims: The inquiry aimed to explore the difficulties students encountered during listening tasks and the strategies the teacher employed to support them. The focus was on identifying students' feelings and perceptions about listening exercises, as well as gaining insights into effective teaching practices that could enhance listening comprehension. Methods: To achieve these aims, qualitative methods were employed, including a focus group, a reflective journal, and an anonymous questionnaire directed at eighth-grade students. The questionnaire included 12 questions designed to gather input on students' experiences, while the focus group consisted of 12 students from various English proficiency levels to facilitate open discussion regarding their listening experiences. Findings: The findings indicated that students benefited from various support strategies such as pre-, during-, and post-listening activities, which made tasks easier to comprehend. Despite these efforts, many students experienced anxiety when tackling listening tasks, reporting difficulties with vocabulary and the speed of recordings. It was noted that familiarity with the speaker could enhance motivation, while students also indicated a preference for circumstances that allowed greater control over the listening pace. Implications: The outcomes of this study reveal the need for tailored listening tasks that consider student interests and provide varied levels of difficulty suited to their proficiency. Educators might learn the importance of fostering a safe learning environment that addresses emotional barriers related to listening comprehension, suggesting that adjustments to pacing and task formats could lead to improved engagement and understanding in similar classroom settings.

Keywords (free text)

English language learning, listening skills, diverse backgrounds, student anxiety, teaching strategies, exploratory action research

Permanent link to cite this item

https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14069/922

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Teachers Researching their Practice: Explorations in the Georgian Classroom