Creating Listening Activities That Work

Randall Davis
Presented at Carolina TESOL Conference and the International TESOL Annual Convention
March & April 2 !
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Purpose
Highlight

factors that affect comprehensibility for ESL students Discuss keys to teaching listening Demonstrate classroom activities that teach listening and encourage more student engagement in the learning process
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*eneral Concepts

Listening and speaking are reciprocals skills Testin+ listening is not teachin+ it !ust because you can"t remember something doesn"t mean you didn"t understand it at the time you heard it

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Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors ./0

#ate of speed $learner is a %limited processor%& 'ocabulary( idiomatic e)pressions( and grammatical structures Ambient noise Acoustic blur $*ord reductions due to unstressed syllables&

+eep your nose clean Have your nose in a book +eep your nose to the +eep your nose out of Thumb your nose at ,ay through the nose -ollo* your nose Stick your nose in .e on the nose Have a nose for something

grindstone

something

something

Acoustic 1lur
!eet

yet/

No,

Joo?

Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors .20

Lack of background schemata or kno*ledge

-amiliarity *ith topic helps learner dra* on that kno*ledge0 ho*ever( it can distort perceptions( leading to misinterpretation

Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors .20

Lack

111 I saw Big oot last night rummaging through

m! garbage. Here"s the u##! picture I too$ o him as he was running awa!.
,aralinguistic

of cultural understanding

utterances( feedback signals( and false starts Limited e)posure to deconte)tuali2ed speech $unpredictability factor& Amount of redundancy( number of pronoun referents

Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors .30

3o

visual or multisensory support

#ichness of environmental cues $images( sounds( smells( tone of voice& play key roles in deciphering the message

Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors .40

Test

items sometimes distort and e)aggerate the amount of information that even native speakers could process
%hat is the man"s name and . . . i one train is heading east at &' miles an hour and another one westbound with onl! () lbs o pressure in the bac$ le t tire, what is the probabilit! that blah blah blah blah blah?

Co)prehensi(ilit, -actors .50

4nability

to clarify( restate( and use circumlocution to indicate a need for a modified version of the utterance
*i+e up, pretend, or as$ or clari ication

4 don"t understand Sorry The number is 567189 What are you trying to say about ::::/ 4 didn"t catch that last point about :: So( *hat you"re saying is that :::: 4n other *ords( ::: Let"s see if 4 got that straight ;ou said that :::::

6e,s to Teachin+ Listenin+ ./0

Create tasks $and use live speakers& that appro)imate real1life situations ,rogress from semi1authentic speech to genuine authentic speech Don"t use tasks that result in cognitive overload Design tasks that are success1oriented .uild upon learners" background kno*ledge Allo* time for collaborative listening and discussion to clarify and restate ideas

6e,s to Teachin+ Listenin+ .20

,rogress from finding the gist of the conversation( to main ideas( to critical1 thinking skills *here students construct meaning on their o*n Discussing
Clarifying

Comparing Contrasting

Cause -Effect Relationships

Hypothesizing
Dispelling Illogical Reasoning

Inferring

6e,s to Teachin+ Listenin+ .20

Di+ital 7oice 8ournals ' Sana9o Media Assistant
Handles all ma<or media types including rm( =,9( and *ma Displays captions or other te)t .ookmarks files for easy revie* Controls speed of media files #ecords>saves files in various formats including =,9 and *ma

,esigned speci icall! or language learning. -ommercial stand-alone or lab product.

Giving Appropriate Feedback

?b<ective@ To help students learn ho* to give and received clarification Auestions or feedback signals

?h( really/ Bh1Huh 3o kidding What"s that/ Why do you feel that *ay/ 4 feel the same *ay 4 couldn"t agree more What do you mean by generous@ time( money *hat e)actly/ 4 don"t follo* you 4n other *ords/

,re1listening activity to stimulate background kno*ledge 4diomatic e)pressions to improve comprehension and fluency ,ost1Listening e)ercises to improve problem1 solving skills

Sa)ple Lesson# Datin+ & Marria+e

'ocabulary E)ercise C ,escripti+e .d/ecti+es Drammar -ocus C .d/ecti+e clauses and modals o ad+ice, past obligation, and speculation Asking Euestions C *i+ing eedbac$ ,re1Listening Task C 0el!ing on students" bac$ground $nowledge Listening Task C -hec$ing main ideas and ma$ing conclusions based on scripted con+ersations ,ost1Listening C 1a$ing predictions and dispelling allacies

*ra))ar -ocus

?b<ective@ To help students learn to form ad<ective clauses and e)plain their reasons

4"m looking for a partner *ho>that is :: because :::::::: 4 like people *ho>that are :::: due to the fact that :::::: 4 en<oy dating people *ho>that ::::::::: 4 prefer going out *ith people *hose ::::

7oca(ular, 1uildin+

?b<ective@ To help students increase their productive use of descriptive ad<ectives

honest( sociable( intelligent( *ealthy( attractive

Pre'Listenin+ Tas9
;ou

hear a car honking in the drive*ay Who might it be/ math tutor date

F Watch 'ideo G 1 Who is it/

Modals of Speculation

?b<ective@ To teach modals of speculation and apply them in a conversation

=ust > has to > could > may > might

- It must be her date. - . gu! might be there to pic$ her up. - 2he car could be at the wrong house.

Couldn"t > can"t > might not

- It couldn"t be her mother. - It can"t be good.

Modals of Necessity / Advice

Have to > need to

?b<ective@ To teach modals of necessity > advice( the appropriateness of each according to conte)t( and apply them in a conversation
F Watch 'ideo G 1 Deorge

- 3ou ha+e to step in and sa! something. - 3ou need to accept the situation.

=ust > had better > should > ought to > could > might

1 3ou"d better ollow her in !our car. - 3ou could in+ite the gu! in and get to $now him.

Possible Questions
Discrete ,oint

Where are you going/ Ho* old is that guy/ What"s his name/ Where did you meet him/ What time *ill you be home/ Does he have an earring in his nose/ Can 4 follo* you in my car/ Do you need a chaperon/ ;ou"re not going to marry that guy( are you/ Would you rather stay home and play Scrabble/

Possible Questions
Critical1Thinking

What do you like most about the guy and *hy/ 111 reasons 4f 4 don"t let her go out *ith the guy( *hat *ill she do/ 111 cause and effect > condition What happened to your last boyfriend( #onald/ Ho* is date( Dirk( different from the last guy/ 111 compare and contrast 4f you could plan the ideal date( *here *ould you go and *hat *ould you do/ 111 hypothesi2e

Modals

?b<ective@ To teach modals of advice( past obligation( and speculation and apply them in a conversation
F Watch 'ideo G 1 +orrin

3ou should spend more time with the amil!. 3ou"d better thin$ o+er !our decision, or !ou might regret it. 1! sister shouldn"t ha+e gone to that part!. 4he could ha+e sa+ed more or college. 1! parents must ha+e $nown about m! grades, but the! didn"t sa! an!thing. 2he dog could/might ha+e eaten the coo$ies.

Su))ar,

Create engaging activities that teach listening(not <ust test it ,rovide rich content that is *ithin the linguistic reach of your students Encourage the use of critical1thinking and problem1solving skills that are needed in and out of the language classroom

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