How to Teach Listening

When we teach listening we need to teach not only English, but we also need to teach how it is used. We need to teach both :

• The language system, (our knowledge of language : grammar and vocabulary, etc )
• The use of the language system ( the skills of language use )

Our knowledge of the language system includes our knowledge of words, how these words are properly put in order ( syntax or grammar ), how these words are said in connected streams ( phonology ), how these words are strung together in longer texts ( discourse ) and so on.

Using the language system involves how we apply this knowledge of the language system to understand or convey meaning and how we apply particular skills to understanding and conveying meaning.

Listening skills are often divided into two groups :

• Bottom up listening skills ( bottom up processing ) => refers to the decoding process, the direct decoding of language into meaningful units, from sound waves through the air, in through our ears and into our brain where meaning is decoded. To do this students need to know the code. How the sounds work and how they string together and how the codes can change in different ways when they're strung together.
  

• Top-down listening skills ( top-down processing ) => refers to how we use our world knowledge to attribute meaning to language input; how our knowledge of social convention helps us understand meaning.

" An understanding of the role of bottom-up and top-down processes in listening is central to any theory of listening comprehension " ( Richards, 1990 : 50).

Listening Strategies
=> are techniques or activities that contribute directly to the comprehension and recall of listening input. Listening strategies can be classified by how the listener processes the input.

1. Top-down strategies are listener based; the listener taps into background knowledge of the topic, the situation or context, the type of text, and the language. This background knowledge activates a set of expectations that help the listener to interpret what is heard and anticipate what will come next. Top-down strategies include

• Listening for the main idea.
• Predicting.
• Drawing inferences.
• Summarizing.

2. Bottom-up strategies are text based; the listener relies on the language in the message,
that is, the combination of sounds, words, and grammar that creates meaning. Bottom-up
strategies include

• Listening for specific details.
• Recognizing cognates.
• Recognizing word-order patterns.

Strategic listeners also use metacognitive strategies to plan, monitor, and evaluate their listening.

• They plan by deciding which listening strategies will serve best in a particular situation.
• They monitor their comprehension and the effectiveness of the selected strategies.
• They evaluate by determining whether the combination of listening strategies selected was an effective one.

Integrating Metacognitive Strategies

Before listening = Plan for the listening task

• Set a purpose or decide in advance what to listen for
  
• Decide if more linguistic or background knowledge is needed
• Determine whether to enter the text from the top-down ( attend to the overall meaning ) or from the bottom-up ( focus on the words and phrases )

During and after listening = Monitor comprehension

• Verify predictions and check for inaccurate guesses
• Decide what is and is not important to understand
• Listen / view again to check comprehension
• Ask for help

After listening = Evaluate comprehension and strategy use

• Evaluate comprehension in a particular task or area
  
• Evaluate overall progress in listening and in particular types of listening tasks
• Decide if the strategies used were appropriate for the purpose and for the task
• Modify strategies if necessary

Using Authentic Materials and Situations

Authentic materials and situations prepare students for the types of listening they will need
to do when using the language outside the classroom.

One-Way Communication
Materials :

• Radio and television programs
• Public address announcements ( airports, train / bus stations, stores )
• Speeches and lectures
• Telephone customer service recordings.

Procedure :

• Help students identify the listening goal : to obtain specific information; to decide whether to continue listening; to understand most or all the message
• Help students outline predictable sequences in which information may be presented : who-what-when-where ( news stories ); who-flight number-arriving / departing-gate number ( airport announcements ); "for [ function ], press [ number ]" ( telephone recordings )
• Help students identify key words / phrases to listen for

Two-Way Communication
In authentic two-way communication, the listener focuses the speaker's meaning rather than
the speaker's language. The focus shifts to language only when meaning is not clear. Note the
difference between the teacher as teacher and the teacher as authentic listener in the
dialogues in the popup screens.