As an ESL teacher in Thailand one thing I learned after conducting both formal and informal assessments on numerous students was the low level of "Listening Skills" that a vast number of students exhibited. Often overlooked, in terms of traditional academic approach or an equal percentage of class time, listening *and speaking practice) are the ways which all of us learned our mother/native tongue (or L1) languages.
Almost no one ever started out reading and writing from the get go. And yet these parts of acquiring English as a Second Language are frequently neglected in terms of the amount of time and energy focus on them compared to reading and writing..Based on personal observations, it appears there are a number of factors that seem to dovetail together to create this trend.
First and foremost, traditional lecturing and rote memorization class structures tend to give the teacher more control over the students in terms of classroom management and delivery. But it is important for teachers to remember to maintain student needs and a student centered classroom in order to improve teaching effectiveness.
Students in Thailand for example, begin learning English in grade 5 in Thai public schools, but a vast,percentage cannot not understand or respond appropriately in a conversational setting. This can be directly linked to a lack of confidence because of a lack of opportunity and requirements to do so both formally and informally in class.
In the international school environment in Asia, I have observed the same trends in students from Korea, China, Japan, Taiwan, Lao and other nationalities in part not only because of their cultural atonement toward teachers as authorities, but because of limited formal learning opportunities to do so in a classroom setting. These same students often will interact and discuss contemporary topics much more readily in a social setting.
No one wants to appear inept or foolish, so breaking the mold on what makes a passive student is sometimes difficult and it becomes necessary to make appropriate academic risk taking rewarding and fun. Also, many times the same students prefer to use cultural pronunciations over those of the correct English pronunciation due to societal reinforcement and societal norms which is understandable, but sometimes prevents comprehension in a Native English Speaking setting. It's fine to say the word differently when they are around others who understand and accept alternative pronunciations, but ultimately, if they are going to need to use English in a global setting, using the conventional pronunciation will be key.
Often students are not given proper guidelines into how or what to listen for. They are not assigned specific listening tasks or expected to show consistent comprehension in this skill the way it is demanded in say reading. This is unfortunate, and often misunderstood by most beginning ESL teachers who constantly check for comprehension by asking, "Do you understand?" Or does anyone have any questions? When silence proceeds they tend to not delve any further and conclude with a statement such as "Good!" and then continue on to the next topic without even being aware that they have left half the class in the proverbial "linguistic dust."
Specific strategies of how to incorporate listening activities and assignments for ESL students are provided in the course book for TEFL Chiang Mai. One passage I particularly find useful is as follows:
Of the 'four skills,' listening is by far the most frequently used.
Listening and speaking are often taught together, but beginners, especially non-literate ones, should be
given more listening than speaking practice. It's important to speak as close to natural speed as possible,
although with beginners some slowing is usually necessary. Without reducing your speaking speed, you
can make your language easier to comprehend by simplifying your vocabulary, using shorter sentences,
and increasing the number and length of pauses in your speech. There are many types of listening
activities. Those that don't require learners to produce language in response are easier than those that
do. Learners can be asked to physically respond to a command (for example, "please open the door"),
select an appropriate picture or object, circle the correct letter or word on a worksheet, draw a route on
a map, or fill in a chart as they listen. It's more difficult to repeat back what was heard, translate into the
native language, take notes, make an outline, or answer comprehension questions. To add more
challenge, learners can continue a story text, solve a problem, perform a similar task with a classmate
after listening to a model (for example, order a cake from a bakery), or participate in real-time
conversation.
Good listening lessons go beyond the listening task itself with related activities before and after the
listening. Here is the basic structure:
· Before Listening
Prepare your learners by introducing the topic and finding out what they already know about it.
A good way to do this is to have a brainstorming session and some discussion questions related
to the topic. Then provide any necessary background information and new vocabulary they will
need for the listening activity.
· During Listening
Be specific about what students need to listen for. They can listen for selective details or general
content, or for an emotional tone such as happy, surprised, or angry. If they are not marking
answers or otherwise responding while listening, tell them ahead of time what will be required
afterward.
· After Listening
Finish with an activity to extend the topic and help students remember new vocabulary. This
could be a discussion group, craft project, writing task, game, etc.
The movement to ensure an equal number of class hours spent honing listening skills is still dragging along behind the others however with increased awareness comes new momentum and ultimately more inclusion.
We at TEFL Chiang Mai English Language Certification (a fully accredited and globally recognized TEFL program) strive for our students to learn conversational English with the latest proven strategies and methods, but share up to date pedagogy and strategies as part of our teachers career development through the latest teaching paradigms.
As part of TEFL Chiang Mai's goal to increase cultural and religious sensitivity among our participants, we also offer a TEFL Buddhist Exchange program where future TEFL teachers have the opportunity not only to become certified instructors but to participate as student's of the Buddhist philosophy and tradition with daily monk chats and Dharma talks to better understand the religious beliefs which permeates our student's lives through out many parts of South East Asia. For more information and registration for this, or any of the "Paradise TEFL" franchise programs, please don't hesitate to contact us today!
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