آموزش زبان(استفاده از مواد آموزشی-کلاسهای انگلیسی)
Acknowledgement X
Abstract
XI
List of Tables XII
Chapter 1: Introduction 1
1.1 Overview 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem and Purpose of the Study 5
1.3 Significance and Justification of the Study 6
1.4 Research Questions 7
1.5 Research Hypotheses 8
1.6 What Is Known About Listening 8
1.7 What Is Known About Authentic Materials 10
1.8 Definition of Important Terms 12
1.9 Delimitations 13
1.10 Limitations 14
1.11 Organization of the Master Thesis 14
Chapter 2: Review of Literature 15
2.1 Introduction 15
2.2 Listening Comprehension 15
2.2.1 Definition of Listening 15
2.2.2 Importance of Listening 17
2.2.2.1 Listening and Academic Success 18
2.2.2.2 Discovery Listening 18
2.2.3 Listening as an Academic Process 20
2.2.3.1 Knowledge Required for Listening 20
Process
2.2.4 Listening Comprehension versus Reading 21
Comprehension
2.2.5 Listening Comprehension 23
2.2.5.1 Authentic and Listening 23
Comprehension
2.2.5.2 Different Kinds of Comprehension 24
2.2.5.3 Comprehension Preceding Production 25
2.2.6 Tasks for Listening Comprehension 25
2.2.6.1 Performing to Indicate Understanding 27
2.2.6.2 Teaching rather than Testing 28
2.2.7 Inner Speech and Language Learning 29
2.2.7.1 Listening and Speaking 29
2.2.8 Maturation and Language Learning 30
2.2.8.1 Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal 31
Development
2.2.9 The Role of Background Knowledge in 32
Learning Language
2.2.9.1 Schema Theory 32
2.2.9.2 Background Knowledge/Prior 33
Knowledge
2.2.10 Cultural Background 35
2.3 Listening and English-as-a-Foreign-Language Learning 36
2.3.1 The Emergency of Communicative Language 36
Teaching
2.3.2 Communicative Approach: Some Principles 38
and Features
2.4 The Use of Aural Authentic Materials 40
2.4.1 Definitions of Authentic Materials 40
2.4.2 Authentic Materials and Language Performance 41
2.4.3 Nature of Authentic Texts 43
2.4.3.1 Characteristics of Authentic Speech 43
2.4.3.2 Authentic Speech and Cultural Aspect 44
Chapter 3: Methodology 46
3.1 Introduction 46
3.2 Summary of the Study 46
3.2.1 Participants 48
3.2.2 Classroom Observation 49
3.3 Demographic Data of the Students 50
3.4 Classroom Environment 52
3.4.1 Setting 52
3.5 Classroom Practices 52
3.5.1 Listening Materials Implemented in Class 52
3.5.2 Class Procedure 53
3.6 Teacher’s Pedagogy 54
3.7 Interviews 55
3.7.1 Interviews with Students 56
3.7.1.1 First Interview 56
3.7.1.2 Second Interview 56
3.8 Self-Evaluation Questionnaire 57
3.9 Language Learning Strategy Questionnaire 58
3.10 Data Collection 59
3.11 Analysis of Data 60
3.12 Validity and Reliability 63
Chapter 4: Results 64
4.1 Introduction 64
4.2 Summary of the Study 64
4.3 Results of the Study 65
4.3.1 Results for Fundamental Research Question: 66
Influences of Aural Authentic Materials
4.3.1.1 Results from the Interviews with Students 67
4.3.1.2 Results from the Class Observation 69
4.3.1.3 Results from the Self-Evaluation 71
Questionnaire
4.3.2 Summary of Findings Related to the Influences 72
of Aural Authentic Materials
4.3.3 Results for Secondary Research Question#1: 73
Learning Strategy Use
4.3.3.1 Results from the Interview with 73
students
4.3.3.2 Results from the Class Observation 75
4.3.3.3 Results from the Learning Strategy 76
Questionnaire
4.3.4 Summary of Findings Related to the Learning 77
Strategy Use
4.3.5 Results for Secondary Research Question#2: 79
Attitudes towards Language Learning
4.3.5.1 Results from the Interviews with 79
Students
4.3.6 Summary of Findings Related to the Students’ 80
Attitudes towards Language Learning
4.4 Overall Findings of the Study 80
4.4.1 Students with no Progress in Listening Ability 81
4.4.2 Students with Progress in Listening Ability 82
Chapter 5: Conclusion 84
5.1 Introduction 84
5.2 Summary of the study 84
5.3 Discussion of Results 86
5.3.1 Authenticity of the Listening Materials 86
5.3.2 Influences of Aural Authentic Materials on 89
Listening Comprehension
5.3.3 Use of Learning Strategies 92
5.3.4 Attitudes towards Language Learning 94
5.4 Conclusions 96
5.5 Recommendations 102
5.5.1 Recommendations for Further Research 102
5.5.2 Implications for Teaching 103
Bibliography 105
Appendices 123
Appendix A 124
Appendix B 125
Appendix C 129
Appendix D 131
Appendix E 137
Appendix F 145
Appendix G 147
Appendix H 148
Appendix I 149
Appendix J 150
Appendix K 151
Appendix L 157
Acknowledgements
It is the highest time I seized the
opportunity to offer my most genuine and profound words of gratitude to
many people to whom I owe the accomplishment of this research. Among
many people who have bestowed, most kindly, their invaluable help upon
me I should specifically thank my honorable thesis advisor, Dr.Karkia,
who patiently went through every line of this thesis and provided me
with many insightful comments and invaluable suggestions. I would also
like to extend my sincere appreciation and gratitude to Dr. Ghahremani
Ghajar, my thesis reader, for her most professional guidelines,
meticulous reading of this manuscript, making insightful suggestions and
corrections; for her expertise and time. I am also very much grateful
to Dr. Rahimi for her critical evaluation, and judgment of this thesis.
Also my thanks and best wishes go to all
students who participated in the present study, without whose
cooperation this research would not have been conducted.
Last, by no means least, a truly cordial
sense of thankfulness to my parents General Ali Ghaderpanahi and
Firooze Nobariyan for their support and everlasting encouragement
throughout my educational years.
ABSTRACT
The fundamental purpose of
this study was to examine the influences of aural authentic materials on
listening ability of thirty female undergraduate psychology majors
studying English as a foreign language. The secondary purposes of the
study were to identify the learning strategies used by EFL students
experiencing authentic listening texts and to determine the influences
of authentic materials on EFL students’ attitudes towards learning
English.
A quantitative and qualitative analysis
was offered in this study. It basically focused on using authentic
materials and real-life situations as part of the communicative
approach. Sources for designing and implementing effective listening
strategy instruction and the transcript of one-hour videotaped session
were recorded and analyzed. The results of the listening comprehension
posttest were compared to that of the pretest using a 2-tailed t-test (p
< .05). A one-way ANOVA on the mean strategy use was applied (p
< .05).The results of the qualitative data analysis were in line
with and confirmed that of quantitative. Analysis of the interviews and
the questionnaires revealed that the use of authentic materials in the
EFL classroom helped increase students’ comfort level and their
self-confidence to listen to the foreign language. Results showed a
statistically significant improvement in listening ability, as well as
the positive effect on EFL students’ motivation to learn the language.
Recommendations were offered to ease students’ frustration that resulted
from the speed of authentic speech. Pedagogical implications of the
results were discussed along with the impact on EFL students’ listening
comprehension development.
List of Tables
Table 1: Source of Data 48
Table 2: Demographic data of Strategy 51
Table 3: Analysis of Data 62
Table 4: Interview Results 68
Table 5: Results from Class Observation 70
Table 6: Students’ Responses on Self-Evaluation Questionnaire 71
Table 7: Interviews with Students on Learning Strategy Use 74
Table 18: Class Observation on Learning Strategy Use 75
Table 9: Responses to Questionnaire on Learning Strategy Use 78
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Overview
Listening is probably the least explicit
of the four language skills, making it the most difficult skill to
learn. It is evident that children listen and respond to language before
they learn to talk. When it is time for children to learn to read, they
still have to listen so that they gain knowledge and information to
follow directions. In the classroom, students have to listen carefully
and attentively to lectures and class discussions in order to understand
and to retain the information for later recall.
The assessment of listening
comprehension for academic purposes is an area which has not received
much attention from researchers (Read, 2005). Rankin (1926/1952)
suggests that adults spend more than 40 percent of their communication
time listening, in contrast with 31.9 percent speaking, 15 percent
reading, and 11 percent writing. Clearly, much of the educational
process is based on skills in listening. Students have to spend most of
the time listening to what the teacher says, for instance, giving
lectures or asking questions. According to Wolvin and Coakley (1979),
the amount of time that students are expected to listen in the classroom
ranges from 42 to 57.5 percent of their communication time. Taylor
(1964), on the other hand, estimates that nearly 90 percent of the class
time in high school and university is spent in listening to discussion
and lectures. Since listening occupies such a large percentage of the
communication time of most people, it is therefore advantageous to
possess effective listening skills in order to meet listening demands
that occur daily.
Listening is an important skill for
learners of English in an academic study context, since so much of what
they need to understand and learn is communicated through the oral
medium (Read, 2005). Listening can also help students build vocabulary,
develop language proficiency, and improve language usage (Barker, 1971).
Cayer, Green, and Baker (1971) found that students’ ability to
comprehend written material through reading as well as to express
themselves through spoken and written communication are directly related
to students’ maturity in the listening phase of language development.
Dunkel (1986) also asserts that developing proficiency in listening
comprehension is the key to achieving proficiency in speaking. Not only
are listening skills the basis for the development of all other skills,
they are also the main channel through which students make initial
contact with the target language and its culture (Curtain &
Pesola,1988).
Investigating the EFL listening needs of
college students is ignored in Iran. Probing in to the conversational
and academic listening abilities required by EFL college students should
be very well considered. Iranian EFL students are studying English in
their home country where English is not the dominant native language.
Students who are from environments where English is not the language of
the country have very few opportunities to hear the real language; these
students therefore are not accustomed to hearing the language as it is
produced by native speakers for native speakers. Consequently, students
from the countries in which English is taught as a foreign language
frequently have great difficulty understanding English spoken to them
when they come in to contact with native speakers of the language.
Selecting appropriate materials and
activities for language classroom requires much attention. Materials
include text books, video and audio tapes, computer software, and visual
aids. They influence the content and the procedures of learning. The
choice of deductive versus inductive learning, the role of memorization,
the use of creativity and problem solving, production versus reception,
and the order in which materials are presented are all influenced by
the materials (Kitao, 2005). Authentic materials refer to oral and
written language materials used in daily situations by native speakers
of the language (Rogers& Medley, 1988).Some examples of authentic
materials are newspapers, magazines, and television programs. It is
necessary for students who are going to study in an English-speaking
environment in future to learn how to listen to lectures and take notes,
to comprehend native speakers in various kinds of speech situations, as
well as to understand radio and television broadcasts. (Paulston &
Bruder, 1976).This is also true for students who pass English courses in
universities.
Videotapes and audiotapes, television,
and interactive computer software are becoming increasingly common
methods of delivering academic content in the university classroom. One
way to prepare EFL students for encounters with real language is to
apply real language or authentic speech in the EFL classroom (Bacon,
1989; Rivers, 1980; Rogers & Medley, 1988; Secules, Herron,
&Tomasello, 1992). The breath, the timbre, the speed and the
intonation of each authentic voice influence the content and meaning of
the spoken word (Selfe, 2005). An advantage of introducing authentic
materials at an early stage of language learning is to help students
become familiar with the target language (Field, 1998). The use of
authentic materials in EFL teaching and learning appears to be
worthwhile (Porter & Roberts, 1981; Rings, 1986; Rivers, 1987).
Teachers should employ authentic listening materials at all levels in
instruction whenever possible (Chung, 2005). Implementing authentic
speech in classroom listening allows students to have “immediate and
direct contact with input data which reflect genuine communication in
the target language” (Breen, 1985, p.63). Conversely, however, the use
of teacher talk and/or foreigner talk with EFL students can impede
students’ ability in listening comprehension because of the unusual rate
of speech (Robinett, 1978; Snow & Perkins, 1979).
This exploratory study sought to examine
the influences of the use of aural authentic materials on listening
ability in students of English as a foreign language. This descriptive
study examined how the use of authentic input in an EFL classroom eased
and/or impeded students’ learning in English-language listening. In
conjunction with the primary objective, the study also identified the
learning strategies EFL students used when they experienced authentic
listening materials. Finally, the study determined the influences of
using authentic materials on EFL students’ attitudes towards learning
English.
1.2 Statement of the Problem and Purpose of the Study:
Listening plays a significant role in
the lives of people. Listening refers to a process in which a listener
perceives aural stimuli and attempts to interpret the message of a
speaker or oral text. Of the four major areas of communication skills
and language development- listening, speaking, reading, and writing- the
one that is the most basic is listening. It is evident that children
listen and respond to language before they learn to talk. When it is
time for children to learn to read, they still have to listen so that
they gain knowledge and information to follow directions. In the
classroom students have to listen carefully and attentively to lectures
and class discussions in order to understand and to retain the
information for later recall.
As the focus in foreign language
instruction moves toward the individual as the central element in the
process of foreign language learning, the importance of listening
comprehension has come to the forefront of foreign language development
as a topic of study in both theory and pedagogy. Though primarily
ignored until recently, listening comprehension plays a major role in
the paradigm shift in language learning and language teaching towards
attention to language function and communication. Listening
comprehension is increasingly considered a skill in and of itself as
well as the foundation for speaking (Sharpe, 2005).
In language classroom, listening ability
plays a significant role in the development of other language art
skills. When students first learn a language, they generally have to
listen to the words several times before they are able to recognize and
pronounce those words. Listening skills are as important as speaking
skills, face-to-face communication is not possible unless the two types
of skills are developed together (Mitsuhashi, 2005).
1.3 Significance and Justification of the Study
Professionals, teachers, and all those
who are concerned about teaching practices and learning in EFL
situations have continually attempted to explore new ways in order to
make beneficial improvements in the field of teaching and learning.
The significance of this study lies in
exploring the ways using strategies and aural authentic materials in EFL
classes influence learners’ listening ability, their attitudes and
awareness of their own experiences. Thus, a semester long micro
ethnography, an intensive study of small groups through the use of
observation was conducted in order to generate a description and
interpretation of the teaching environment, and the teaching methodology
was applied in one EFL class. The actions and views of the participants
towards “listening” were also taken in to consideration.
The method of ethnography involved:
in-depth observation of classroom practices over time; interviews with
students; and updating the research methodology through a study of
recent research.
This study underlies the importance of
positive attitudes and the use of aural authentic materials for
successful listening comprehension. Learning a language is learning how
to communicate as a member of a particular cultural group. The students’
attitudes were best developed through listening to aural authentic
materials. An examination of this process from the perspective of
participants using qualitative and quantitative methods uncovered the
elements participants considered essential for successful conversation.
2.4.1 Definitions of Authentic Materials
A further area for micro-listening
practice is suggested by the greatly increased use of authentic
materials. The most common definition is unaltered texts that are
generated by native speakers and for native speakers (Bacon, 1992;
Joiner, 1991; Joiner et al., 1989; Rings, 1986; Rogers & Medley,
1988; Scarcella & Oxford, 1992).
An advantage usually cited for authentic
materials is that they afford examples of the hesitations, false
starts, filled and empty pauses, etc., which characterize natural
speech.
Widdowson (1979) argues that
authenticity is not a quality of text at all; he believes that
authenticity is achieved “when the reader realizes the intentions of the
writer.”
This section has presented some
definitions of the term “authentic materials”. Generally, authentic
language is that which is used by native speakers communicating orally
or in writing.
2.4.2 Authentic Materials and Language Performance
It is common practice to introduce
pieces of authentic listening at an early stage of learning, alongside
scripted texts, to help learners to become familiar with the real
cadences of the target language. Empirical studies have confirmed
positive results obtained by listeners who are given opportunities to
interact with authentic oral texts (Porter & Roberts, 1981; Shrum
& Glisan, 1999).
Learners need practice in the real-life
task of extracting meaning from utterances where much of the language is
beyond their current state of knowledge. The teacher must bring massive
amounts of authentic materials in to the classroom and make them
consistently accessible to the students (Grittner, 1980; Lund, 1990;
Meyer, 1984; Rogers & Medley, 1988; Schmidt-Rinehart, 1994).
Mitsuhashi (2004) noted that
authenticity should be evident both in language and in task. Joiner,
Adkins, and Eykyn (1989) assert that it is not necessary for students to
listen to authentic materials everyday. Furthermore, Omaggio Hadley
(1993) claims that finding authentic discourse for listening
comprehension is much more difficult than obtaining and selecting
authentic texts for reading. She further says that unmodified authentic
discourse often presents a random assortment of vocabulary, structures,
functions, content, situation, and lengths.
Listening materials should be given the
attention they deserve because the kind of material to which a listener
is exposed has its own effect to facilitate or complicate comprehension.
An increasing number of linguistics and language educators emphasize
the importance of authentic oral texts very early in the language
experience (Bacon & Finnemann, 1990; Wing, 1986). Authentic
materials can even be used from the fist week of the first semester;
however, the materials must relate to learners’ life experiences and
contain appropriate features that enhance comprehension at this level
(Rings, 1986; Vandergrift, 1997). Feyten (1991) asserts that learners
can handle authentic, unedited discourse although their success in
comprehending may range from very little to considerable. Meyer (1984)
and Richards (1983) suggest providing students with essential background
knowledge and simple tasks to perform while listening.
Hansen and Jensen (1994) contend that
students from all proficiency levels should be exposed to natural speech
as a regular part of their listening practice. According to Bacon
(1989), less-proficient students can understand and benefit from
authentic texts. Further she posits that an early exposure to such texts
will help these students develop useful listening strategies for more
complex tasks later on. However, the texts should be culturally relevant
to the experience of the students.
It can be concluded, from this section,
that there is an increasing interest in implementing authentic materials
in a language classroom so that the students have opportunities to hear
and practice using the language they will encounter outside the
classroom. Also, several research studies have shown students’
improvement in language performance as a result of exposure to authentic
language in the classroom.
2.4.3 Nature of Authentic Texts
2.4.3.1 Characteristics of Authentic Speech
Traditional views emphasize severe
grading of teaching materials so that these materials fit the learner’s
linguistic knowledge. The problem with authentic texts is that they have
long been perceived as being too difficult for students to understand
(Ciccone, 1995; Lund, 1990; Rogers & Medley, 1988; Ur, 1984).
Beginning language learners may experience extreme frustration when
confronted by an authentic text. However, Cook (1996) asserts that
difficulty depends upon the task that is used with the material.
Comprehension of authentic material is facilitated by some
characteristics of the spoken language such as pausing, repeating,
rephrasing, and the use of clauses rather than sentences
(Schmidt-Rinehart, 1994; Wing, 1986). Authentic texts are more redundant
than most texts prepared for language learners; the redundancy of these
texts gives the students more clues to comprehension (Bacon, 1989;
Gilman & Moody, 1984; Meyer, 1984, Schmidt-Rinehart, 1994).
Nevertheless, other characteristics of the spoken language such as
reduced and ungrammatical forms would, on the other hand, be expected to
hinder understanding (Wing, 1986). In addition, the fact that authentic
texts are often delivered at rapid speech can be intimidating to some
students (Joiner et al., 1989). Jacobson (2003) believes print materials
should be used in ways that they would be used in the lives of learners
anywhere outside of their
