Teaching Listening

Teaching Listening 

Listening comprehension has not always drawn the attention of educators to the extent that it now has.
Listening Comprehension in Pedagogical Research
Listening as a major component in language learning and teaching firts hit the spotlight in the late 1970s with James Asher (1977) work on TPR.
All of these issue prompt teachers to consider some specific questions about listening comprehension
* What are listeners “doing” then whey listen?
* What factors affect good listenig?
* What are the characteristics of real-life listenig?
* What are the many things listeners listen?
* What are some principles for designing listening technique?
* How can listening techniques be interactive?
* What are some common technique for teaching listening?


An Interactive Model of Listening Comprehension
What is clearly an interactive process as the barin acts on the impulses, bringing to bear a number of different cognitive and affective mechanisms.
A key to human communication is the ability to match percieved meaning with intended meaning. This match making, of course can extend well beyond simple methaporicl and idiomatical language.


Types of Spoken Language
Much of our language teaching energy is devored to instruction in mastering English conversations.
Numerous other form of spoken language are also important into language course, especially in teaching listening comprehension.
In monologues, when one speaker uses spoken language for any length of time, as in speeches, lectures, reading, news broadcast, and the like, the hearer must process long strenght oof speeches of speech without interruption.
Dialogues involves two or more speakers and can be subdivided into those exchanges that promote social relationships and those for which the purposes is to convey propositional or factual information.



What Makes Listening Difficult?
The learners of second language need to pay special attention to such factors because ‘they strongly’ influence the processing of speech, and can even block comprehension if they are not attended. The following eight characteristic of spoken language are adapted from several sources (Dunken 1991; richards 1983; Ur 1984)
1. Clustering
2. Redundancy
3. Reduced forms
4. Performance variables
5. Colloquial language
6. Role of delivery
7. Stress, rhythm, and intonation
8. Interaction


Microsskills of listening comprehension
List are very useful in helping you to break down just what it is that your learners need to actually perform as they acquire effective listening strategies.
Students in academic setting need to be able to perform such things as identifying the structrure of a lecture.


Types of Classroom Listening Performance
1. Reactive
2. Intensive
3. Responsive
4. Selective
5. Extensive
6. Interactive.


Principles For Designing Listening Techniques
1. In an interactive, four-skills curriculum, make sure that you don’t overlook the important of techniques that specially develope listening comprehension competence.
2. Use teachniques that are intrisically motivating.
3. Utilize authentic language contexts.
4. Carrefully consider the form of listeners response.
5. Encourage the development of listening strategies.
6. Include both bottom-up and top-down listening techniques.



Listening Techniques From Beginning to Advanced
1. For beginning-level listeners
Bottom-up
Goal :