Five ideas to improve listening
By Tarun Patel
Listening is the most important receptive (and learning) skill for English language students. An ability to listen and interpret is a fundamental communicative ability.
Teaching listening involves training in some ‘enabling skills’ — perception of sounds, stress, intonation patterns, accents, attitudes and so on, as well as ‘practice’ in various styles of listening comprehension.
1. Clear Voice: The teacher needs to use a clear voice with good articulation and sufficient projection to be heard by all the students. The teacher’s voice whether speaking or reading aloud is the first and most important source of listening material for students. A good voice is produced from the diaphragm and not from the upper chest.
2. Cassette or CD Player: A good cassette or CD player for classroom use will have a forward-facing loudspeaker slightly higher than the students’ ear level so that the sound goes directly to the students. If your loudspeaker is too low and the students are sitting in rows, their bodies and the furniture will block the sound. If your player’s loudspeaker points vertically upwards, the sound will be reflected off the ceiling and be distorted. Turn it, so it faces the students.
3. Outside Noise: Reduce the noise coming from outside the classroom by shutting the windows (or, in hot countries, turning off the air conditioning) while students are listening.
4. Inside Noise: The greatest source of noise which interferes with listening comes from the students themselves. Train them to keep quiet while listening by making sure that they have tasks which force them to listen carefully.
5. Use the language laboratory: Earphones and headphones deliver undistorted sound directly to the ears. If you have access to a language laboratory, this provides ideal conditions for intensive listening. Don’t spend all your language laboratory time doing structural drills. Use the time for intensive and extensive listening.
I will bring some more listening tips in the next issue of ELTWeekly.
Do you have some ELT tips to share? Please send them to eltweekly@gmail.com.