scholarly journals Listening in a Second Language: Hermeneutics and Inner Speech

1989 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Murphy

The purpose of this article is to broaden the current theoretical basis for describing listening as a dynamically interpretive language process by reviewing two areas in the literatures on comprehension and interpretation that generally are not cited by writers interested in the listening process. These complementary theoretical traditions lend support to the more familiar characterizations of listening as an active language process that have emerged from the basic tenets of cognitive science. Within the cognitive framework it is widely acknowledged that listeners engage in the use of deliberate, as well as automatic, strategies for listening. By introducing less familiar themes that actually reinforce cognitive descriptions, it is hoped that the research literature into the second language (L2) listening process will be enriched. The philosophical tradition of 'hermeneutics', and a description of internal mental processes known as 'inner speech', are two specific areas of the literature that are discussed. Following an explication of the underlying processes that underpin these theoretical traditions, a pedagogical model is proposed for the teaching of academic listening skills in the L2 classroom.

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huong Nguyen ◽  
Marilyn Abbott

When teaching listening, second language instructors tend to rely on product-oriented approaches that test learners’ abilities to identify words and answer comprehension questions, but this does li le to help learners improve upon their listening skills (e.g., Vandergri & Goh, 2012). To address this issue, alternative approaches that guide learners through the listening process toward improved comprehension and uency have been recommended in the literature. Based on a review of 6 popular intermediate adult English as a second/foreign language (ESL/EFL) textbooks, we found that most of the listening activities in the texts exemplified a product-oriented approach (testing word recognition or listening comprehension) rather than a process-oriented approach (providing instruction to aid in word recognition and comprehension). To enhance the integration of process-oriented approaches for teaching listening, we provide suggestions for activities to supplement product-oriented teacher-made and textbook activities. We begin with an overview of second language listening theory and research that justi es the incorporation of process-oriented instructional approaches in the ESL classroom. Then we report the results of our textbook review and present examples of recommended activity types that teachers and textbook writers could incorporate into their instructional materials to encourage a balanced approach to teaching listening.Quand les enseignants de langue seconde enseignent l’écoute, ils ont tendance à sefier aux approches orientées sur le produit qui évaluent la capacité de leurs élèves à identifier des mots et à répondre à des questions de compréhension. Pourtant, ce e méthode ne contribue que très peu à l’amélioration des habiletés d’écoute des élèves (par ex., Vandergri & Goh, 2012). Pour aborder ce e question, les chercheurs recommandent des approches alternatives qui guident les apprenants au l du processus d’écoute de sorte à améliorer la compréhension et les compétences. Un examen de 6 manuels populaires d’anglais langue seconde ou étrangère pour adulte a révélé que la plupart des activités d’écoute sont orientées sur un produit (évaluation de la reconnaissance des mots ou la compréhension à l’écoute) plutôt que sur un processus (directives pour aider la reconnaissance des mots et la compréhension). Pour me re en valeur l’intégration des approches axées sur le processus dans l’enseignement de l’écoute, nous o rons des suggestions d’activités pour enrichir les activités créés par les enseignants ou provenant des manuels et qui sont axées sur le produit. Nous commençons par un survol de la recherche et de la théorie qui portent sur l’écoute en langue seconde et qui jus- ti ent l’intégration dans les cours d’ALS d’approches pédagogiques axées sur le processus. Ensuite, nous présentons les résultats de notre examen de manuels et recommandons des exemples de types d’activités que les enseignants et les auteurs de manuels pourraient incorporer dans leur matériel pédagogique pour o rir une approche équilibrée à l’enseignement de l’écoute. 


ReCALL ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryam Sadat Mirzaei ◽  
Kourosh Meshgi ◽  
Yuya Akita ◽  
Tatsuya Kawahara

AbstractThis paper introduces a novel captioning method, partial and synchronized captioning (PSC), as a tool for developing second language (L2) listening skills. Unlike conventional full captioning, which provides the full text and allows comprehension of the material merely by reading, PSC promotes listening to the speech by presenting a selected subset of words, where each word is synched to its corresponding speech signal. In this method, word-level synchronization is realized by an automatic speech recognition (ASR) system, dedicated to the desired corpora. This feature allows the learners to become familiar with the correspondences between words and their utterances. Partialization is done by automatically selecting words or phrases likely to hinder listening comprehension. In this work we presume that the incidence of infrequent or specific words and fast delivery of speech are major barriers to listening comprehension. The word selection criteria are thus based on three factors: speech rate, word frequency and specificity. The thresholds for these features are adjusted to the proficiency level of the learners. The selected words are presented to aid listening comprehension while the remaining words are masked in order to keep learners listening to the audio. PSC was evaluated against no-captioning and full-captioning conditions using TED videos. The results indicate that PSC leads to the same level of comprehension as the full-captioning method while presenting less than 30% of the transcript. Furthermore, compared with the other methods, PSC can serve as an effective medium for decreasing dependence on captions and preparing learners to listen without any assistance.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamile Hamiloğlu

This article is a review on student teacher (ST) learning in second language teacher education (SLTE) and it aims to establish a context for ST learning for professional development in SLTE research and frame its contribution to the current research literature. To achieve this, it conducts an overview on concepts of interest, and it places in perspective some of the key previous findings relating to the research at hand. Broadly, it is to serve as a foundation for the debate over perspectives of second/foreign language (S/FL) student teachers’ (STs’) learning to teach through their professional development with reference to both coursework and practicum contexts.Keywords: student teacher learning, second language teacher education (SLTE), professional development


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merel Muylle ◽  
Eva Van Assche ◽  
Robert Hartsuiker

Cognates – words that share form and meaning between languages – are processed faster than control words. However, it is unclear whether this effect is merely lexical (i.e., central) in nature, or whether it cascades to phonological/orthographic (i.e., peripheral) processes. This study compared the cognate effect in spoken and typewritten production, which share central, but not peripheral processes. We inquired whether this effect is present in typewriting, and if so, whether its magnitude is similar to spoken production. Dutch-English bilinguals performed either a spoken or written picture naming task in English; picture names were either Dutch-English cognates or control words. Cognates were named faster than controls and there was no cognate-by-modality interaction. Additionally, there was a similar error pattern in both modalities. These results suggest that common underlying processes are responsible for the cognate effect in spoken and written language production, and thus a central locus of the cognate effect.


2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 338-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Yeldham

This study examined the influence of formulaic language on second language (L2) listeners’ lower-level processing, in terms of their ability to accurately identify the words in texts. On the one hand, there were reasons for expecting the presence of the formulas to advantage the learners, because the learners would process these formulaic words more holistically than the surrounding non-formulaic words. On the other hand, though, because formulas are commonly uttered in more reduced fashion than their surrounding non-formulaic words – and L2 learners commonly face challenges understanding reduced speech – it was possible that the formulas would negatively impact the learners’ processing. The participants listened to four texts, which were paused intermittently for them to transcribe the final stretch of words they had heard prior to each pause. The researcher had previously categorized these words as being part of formulas or non-formulas through corpus analysis. By comparing the listeners’ identification of the formulaic and the non-formulaic language, the study found that formulaic language facilitated their lower-level listening. This degree of advantage, however, varied across text difficulty level and listener proficiency level. Based on the findings, implications for L2 listening instruction are discussed.


Author(s):  
Vehbi Turel

In this chapter, 48 language learners' perceptions towards the presence of captions at the first listening (i.e. the while listening stage) in an IME that aimed to enhance the language learners' listening skills as a part of learning English as a second language were investigated. The language learners were autonomous intermediate (and upper intermediate) non-native speakers (NNSs). The results reveal that captions should not be available at the while-listening stage in IMEs for FLL/SLL. The availability of the captions at the while-listening stage in IMEs for FLL/SLL seems to make language learners rely on captions. Instead, the unavailability of the captions at the while-listening stage in IMEs for FLL/SLL seems to: (1) help language learners to focus on listening texts, (2) encourage language learners to try to understand listening texts without captions help and (3) encourage and motivate language learners to listen to / view the listening texts more.


Author(s):  
Tingting Kang

Due to the nature of listening, multiple media tools (e.g., audiocassette players, radio, video, multimedia, and language laboratory) have been utilized in second language (L2) listening instruction for a long time. This chapter recruited the most recently published empirical studies and meta-analyzed available evidence on the effects of different multiple media tools on L2 listening comprehension. The results revealed a medium-to-large effect of multiple media tools on listening comprehension in between-group designs (Cohen's d = .69). The effects of individual multiple media tools have also been statistically synthesized. Further, moderator analysis could help L2 educators and test developers make decisions on applying different multiple media tools in the fields of L2 instruction and assessment. Specifically, subtitles (in the first language/L1) /captions (in the source language/L2), as well as self-regulated listening and slow speed, are recommended to teachers and test developers as a means to improve learners' listening comprehension. In the end, this chapter concludes by identifying potential areas for future research.


Author(s):  
Kaine Gulozer

In the field of second language (L2) perception, there is a common adherence to quantitative methods to examine reduced forms (RFs). This chapter extends the field by reporting on an investigation that analyzed L2 listeners' perceptions of RFs in English from a qualitative perspective. RFs instruction through web-based activities was delivered to a total of 80 learners of English of varying proficiency for five weeks. Twenty participants reflected on their performance on RFs listening tasks and provided justifications for their perceptions of the target RFs. Qualitative analysis revealed that the RFs that influenced L2 learners' perceptions of RFs were linking, pause phenomena, and assimilation. The results of using such qualitative methodology highlights the important role that RFs plays in perception judgements in syllable-timed languages such as Turkish, a factor which has not always been given much prominence in previous L2 fluency quantitative research.


2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 152-155
Author(s):  
Kedi Simpson

In her article, Graham (2017) concludes ‘that very little of the research regarding the teaching of listening has made it into the classroom in England, not least in a positive way’ (p. 117). She suggests that teachers rarely delve into the process of second language (L2) listening in class; instead, listening comprehension is treated more as a test than a task. She continues that there is an over-application of the widely shared findings that pre-listening tasks aid listening comprehension – particularly tasks which involve predicting the vocabulary which will be heard during the listening task. Given the suggestion that learners find listening tasks difficult has been addressed within schools simply by making such tasks easier, Graham feels a more pedagogically apt approach might be to examine more closely what has made the task difficult and to modify teaching to address this.


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