An introspective analysis of listener inferencing on a second language listening task

2014 ◽  
pp. 228-249
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Listening ◽  
Listening Task

scholarly journals TEXT CHARACTERISTICS OF TASK INPUT AND DIFFICULTY IN SECOND LANGUAGE LISTENING COMPREHENSION

2013 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Révész ◽  
Tineke Brunfaut
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Task Difficulty ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Task Completion ◽  
Stimulated Recall ◽  
Second Language Listening ◽  
Listening Task ◽  
Second Language Listening Comprehension ◽  
Analytical Tools

This study investigated the effects of a group of task factors on advanced English as a second language learners’ actual and perceived listening performance. We examined whether the speed, linguistic complexity, and explicitness of the listening text along with characteristics of the text necessary for task completion influenced comprehension. We also explored learners’ perceptions of what textual factors cause difficulty. The 68 participants performed 18 versions of a listening task, and each task was followed by a perception questionnaire. Nine additional students engaged in stimulated recall. The listening texts were analyzed in terms of a variety of measures, utilizing automatized analytical tools. We used Rasch and regression analyses to estimate task difficulty and its relationship to the text characteristics. Six measures emerged as significant predictors of task difficulty, including indicators of (a) lexical range, density, and diversity and (b) causal content. The stimulated recall comments were more reflective of these findings than the questionnaire responses.

Predicting second language listening functor comprehension probability with usage-based and embodiment approaches

2021 ◽  
pp. 136700692110008
Author(s):  
Allie Patterson
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Word Length ◽  
First Language ◽  
The Body ◽  
Frequency Word ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Second Language Listening ◽  
L2 Listening ◽  
Listening Task ◽  
The Relationship

Aims and Objectives: Embodiment is a major paradigm of first language (L1) research but has not yet been widely adopted in second language (L2) research. The main objective of this research was to find evidence for the effects of sensorimotor embodiment on L2 listening functor comprehension rates. Research Hypothesis: Frequency, word length, and Minkowski3 sensorimotor norms are significantly predictive of functor comprehension probability in an L2 listening task. Methodology: 129 Japanese participants were administered a paused transcription test that contained twelve target phrases. Data and analysis: Transcription of functors was the dependent variable. The independent variables were frequency, word length, and Minkowski3 sensorimotor ratings. These variables were analyzed with logit mixed-effects regressions. Findings/conclusions: Greater frequency, longer word length, and higher Minkowski3 ratings were found to facilitate comprehension and significantly increase the probability that a functor was transcribed. Frequency rates derived from spontaneous L1 oration and conversations were found to be significant, whereas frequency derived from written texts was not significant despite being from a much larger corpus. Originality: No L2 study has used Minkowski3 sensorimotor ratings to predict L2 performance. Minkowski3 ratings quantify the relationship between language and the body. Few researchers have yet to incorporate embodiment theories into models of L2 comprehension. Implications: Embodiment theories complement usage-based approaches and should be incorporated into existing L2 theories. Researchers should be aware of textual differences between corpora and choose corpora appropriate for their analyses.

Practitioners respond to Suzanne Graham's ‘Research into practice: Listening strategies in an instructed classroom setting’

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 152-155
Author(s):  
Kedi Simpson
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Listening Comprehension ◽  
Classroom Setting ◽  
L2 Listening ◽  
Listening Task ◽  
Teaching Of Listening ◽  
Listening Strategies

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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