TSL3105 Topic 1

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TSL 3105 Teaching of Listening and Speaking Skillsin the Primary ESL classroom

TOPIC 1 PI!CIPLES O" TE#C$I!% LISTE!I!% #!&SPE#'I!% S'ILLS

1(0 S)!OPSIS

Topic 1 introduces you to the Principles of Teaching Listening and Speaking

Skills. It provides an overview of the important principles that a teacher has

to bear in mind when teaching listening and speaking skills. It also aims to help

you develop a better and deeper understanding of the communication process

that we most often take for granted such as the listening process, the

conventions of spoken language and the factors that affect listening and

speaking skills.

1(1 LE#!I!% O*TCO+ES

y the end of Topic 1, you will be able to!

"ifferentiate between listening and spoken language

Identify the components of the listening process

"evelop a clearer understanding of the conventions of spoken

language

Identify the elements of the communication process

#nderstand better the factors affecting listening and speaking skills

1(, CO!TE!T

T$E I+POT#!CE O" LISTE!I!%

Listening is arguably the most important skill re$uired for obtaining

comprehensible input in one%s first and any subse$uent languages. It is a

pervasive communicative event! we listen considerably more than we

read, write, or speak &"ecker, '(()* +maggio adley, '((1* -ilt, 1/(,

cited in ysop 0 Tone, 12.3iven the importance of listening, thenatural assumption is that listening skills are actively taught to both first

&L12 and second &L'2 language learners.

owever, this is not necessarily so in L1 instruction &ysop 0 Tone, 12.

The situation is slightly more sanguine in L' instruction, but only in recent

years. 4or some time, listening was regarded as a 5passive6 or 5receptive6

skill and, conse$uently, not particularly crucial as a skill area to be taught.

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7esearchers began to recogni8e the importance of listening and its role in

comprehensible input &9rashen, 1'2, and attention to and adoption of

newer comprehension:based methodologies brought the issue to the fore.

Listening became a skill to be reckoned with and its key position in

communication recogni8ed &4eyten, 11* +maggio adley, '((12.Listening is a skill to be taught, with concomitant strategies to help L'

learners be successful &erne, '(()2.

Listening is a comple; processnd reading behaviour is assessed much more fre$uently than

listening behaviour* that is, we are more often tested on what we read

than on what we hear. >nd when we are tested on material presented

in a lecture, generally the lecture has been supplemented by readings.

Second, many of us aren%t willing to improve our listening skills. ?uch

of this unwillingness results from our incomplete understanding of the

process

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The process moves through the first three stepsnd

the act of remembering may

or may not be necessary.

4or e;ample, if someone

tells you to 5watch your

step,6 you have no need to

remember the message

after you have completed

that step.

"ig/re 1( The Listening Process

Let%s look at the parts

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hearing deficiency due to a congenital or inherited weakness. +r perhaps the

deficiency resulted from an accident, a disease, or prolonged e;posure to

loud noises.

Sometimes the problem can be corrected through the use of mechanicaldevices that restore hearing loss, or through hearing aids that amplify sound.

Scientists and engineers are constantly developing new products designed to

correct and help specific types of hearing loss.

Remember that hearing and listening are not the same. Hearing is the

reception of sound; listening is the attachment of meaning. Hearing is,

however, a necessary prerequisite for listening and an important component

of the listening process.

( #ttending

Let%s continue with the B:mail analogy. -hen I turn my computer on, it will

receive the message that you sent. ut I must do more! I must attend to the

message if the process is to continue. Perhaps I received a phone call Dust

after I turned my computer on and had to move away from my desk* I do not

know that you have sent a message. +r maybe I don%t have an opportunity to

read my B:mail that day.

Suppose that I am working on something else when the message arrives. ?y

computer signals that I have mail from you. I want to read it, but I decide that I

will do it later. I continue to stay busy on another task, however, and forget to

read the message. Later, I may mistakenly 5trash it6 without ever reading it.

-hatever the case, I don%t attend to the message.

uman listening is often ineffective common e;ample makes the point. Suppose you

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are attempting to read a book and watch TE at the same time. >lthough

some people claim they can do this, actually both activities suffert other times, something may

interrupt or disturb your attention.

Selectivity of attention e;plains why you 5perk up6 or pay attention when

something familiar to you, such as your hometown or your favorite hobby,

is mentioned. In fact, you may have been listening intently to a

conversation when someone in a different conversation mentions your

name. Immediately, the focus of your attention shifts to the conversation in

which your name was mentioned.

Strength of attention.>ttention is not only selective* it possesses energy,

or strength. >ttention re$uires effort and desire. In the e;ample of reading

a book and watching TE, the receiver &reader@watcher2 directed his or her

primary attention toward either the book or the TE. Aomplete attention can

be given to only one stimulus at a time, and necessary attention to only a

limited number of stimuli at the same time. If we spend too much energy

on too many stimuli, we soon will not be paying attention to any of them.

-e are all familiar with aircraft accidents that were caused at least in part

by controllers in the tower having to process too much information.

Aonsider also how we can be so attentive to a newspaper, a TE program,a personal computer, a sports event, or another individual that we are

oblivious to things around us. -atch a young couple in love sometime!

Cou%ll see a good e;ample of intensity, or strength of attention.

Sustainment of attention.Fust as attention is determined by selectivity

and strength, it is affected by time of sustainment. +ur attention wanes,

and this fact is important to an understanding of listening.

4or e;ample, we can listen to some public speakers far longer than we

can listen to others. "uration may depend on the subDect, the setting, the

way the speech is packaged, and on the speaker%s delivery. ut no matter

how articulate and skilled the speaker, or how interesting the content, our

attention finally ends. If for no other reason, the human body re$uires

sleep or attention to other bodily needs. The mind can only pay attention

for as long as the body can sit still.

Selectivity, strength, and sustainment determine attention. 7eceiving and

attending are prere$uisites to the rest of the listening process. The third

step in that process is understanding.

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c( *nderstanding

Someone has said, 5Aommunication begins with understanding.6

ow trueG > message may have been sent and received, and the

receiver may have attended to the messagend I missed the point.

In listening, the key point is sometimes missed. > worker may tell a

supervisor several things that happened while the supervisor was out of

the office. -hile relating all the events, the worker mentions that the

boss asked that the supervisor call upon his return. The supervisor

missed this important piece of information because he was not 5ready6

for it* that is, he was trying to understand the other parts of the message.

Later, he asks the worker why he had failed to tell him that his boss

wanted to see him. ut the worker hadtold him* he Dust didn%t

understand.

+ur e;pectations and@or our failure to get the point often lead to

misunderstanding. ut the maDor reason for my not understanding the B:

mail I received from you was probably something else! the words you

used and the manner in which you arranged them. either of us was

necessarily 5at fault6* we simply attached different meanings to the

words. Cou attached one meaning to those words, I attached another.

-e communicate effectively with each other only insofar as we share

meanings for the symbols

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-ith B:mail, the message is limited to words or other visual

symbols that represent words. In listening, both verbal and nonverbal

symbols are crucial to understanding. Aonsider the roles they play.

Verbal symbols.Eerbal communication means communicating throughthe use of words, whether spoken or written. Two barriers obstruct our

understanding of verbal communication.

arrier 41The same words mean different things to different people. This

barrier is a common one, and it may be e;perienced whenever any two

people attempt to communicate.

I may tell my colleague that the temperature in the office is $uite comfortable.

?y 5$uite comfortable,6 however, is her 5uncomfortable6! J/ degrees is

comfortable for me* J( degrees is comfortable for her. The same word can

mean different things to different people. > friend tells me he will be over in

five minutes. To him, five minutes means 5soon6

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These two barriers

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remembering are part of the listening process. 7esponding and remembering

are indicators of listening accuracy.

d( esponding

The listening process may end with understanding, since effective

communication and effective listening may be defined as the accurate sharing

or understanding of meaning. ut a response may be needednd there are different types of responses.

Direct verbal responses.These may be spoken or written. Let%s continue

with the B:mail analogy. >fter I have received, attended to, and

understood the message you sent, I may respond verbally. If your

message asked a $uestion or sought my coordination, I might type a

response on my computer and reply to you. Perhaps you re$uested that Icall you or come to see you, in which case I do so. +r you might have

asked me to write a position paper or think about an issue and give you

some advice, in which case I might send a $uick B:mail response

indicating that I will get back to you later.

Responses that seek clarification.I may use B:mail to ask for additional

information, or I may talk to you either on the telephone or face:to:face. I

may be very direct in my re$uest, or I may Dust say, 5tell me more about it.6

Responses that paraphrase.I may say something like, 5in other words,what you are saying is. . . .6 > paraphrase gives the sender a chance to

agree, or to provide information to clarify the message.

Nonverbal responses.?any times, a nonverbal response is all that is

needed* indeed, it may even be the preferred type of response. The

knowing nod of the head, an understanding smile, or a 5thumbs up6 may

communicate that the message is understood.

7esponding, then, is a form of feedback that completes the communication

transaction. It lets the sender know that the message was received, attended

to, and understood.

e( ememering

?emori8ation of facts is not the key to good listening. Cet memory is often a

necessary and integral part of the listening process. Some would go so far as

to say, 5if you can%t remember it, you weren%t listening.6

This statement is often untrue. Think for e;ample, of the times you heard a

good Doke but can%t remember it long enough to get home and tell it* or the

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number of times you have gone to the grocery store and couldn%t remember

what you were asked to buy. >nd the most frustrating situation of allt times,

something will 5Dog6 our memory, such as hearing another Doke, seeing asimilar product on the grocery store shelf, or meeting someone else with the

same first name.

-hat is the relationship between memory and listeningH #nderstanding the

differences between short:term memory and long:term memory will help

e;plain the relationship.

-ith short:term memory, information is used immediatelynd

the amount of information that can be retained is $uite limited, though it varies

somewhat with variations in the material to be retained. 4or e;ample, most of

us can remember only very few random numbers &), 1K, , /K, 'J), M, )1,

J1K, '1(, 1, J///, 1112. ut if there is a pattern &1, ', ), , 1M, K', M), 1',

'/M, /1', 1('), '()2, the task is much easier.

Long:term memory allows us to recall information and events hours, days,

weeks

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. ow is hearing different from listeningH

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C$##CTEISTICS O" SPO'E! L#!%*#%E

It is both time:bound, and dynamic. It is part of an interaction in which

both participants are usually present, and the speaker has a particular

addressee or addressees in mind.

The comple;ity and speed of most speech acts make it difficult to

engage in comple; advance planning. The pressure to think whilst

speaking promotes looser construction, repetition, redundancies! fillers,

hesitations and rephrasings and.

Sentence boundaries are at best unclear though intonation and pause

divide long discourse into more manageable chunks.

Participants are usually face:to:face and so can rely on feedback

&e;tra:linguistic cues to aid meaning2. The le;icon of speech is usually

characteristically vague using words which refer specifically to the

situation. "eictic &see! dei;is2 e;pressions are very commonly used, for

e;ample! that one, in here, right now.

Spoken language makes greater use of shared knowledge than written

language.

?any words and constructions are characteristic of, especially informal,

speech. Lengthy co:ordinate sentences &Doining sentences with co:

ordinates such as 5and6 are normal and are often of considerable

comple;ity. onsense vocabulary is often not written and may have no

standard spelling &whatchamacallit2. +bscenity may be replaced with

graphic euphemism &S* *!2.

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Speech is very suited to social &phatic = i.e. 5chewing the fat62

functions, such as passing the time of day or 5creating an atmosphere6

or any situation where unplanned and casual discourse is desirable. It is

also good at e;pressing social relationships, opinions, and attitudes in

part due to the vast range of nuances, which can be e;pressed by

prosody and accompanying non:verbal features.

There is an opportunity to rethink an utterance whilst it is in progress.

owever, errors once spoken cannot be undone. >s such, the

interlocutor must live with the conse$uences.

egotiation of meaning is common and often a large part of any

conversation.

Interruptions and overlapping are normal and are generally very

common.

4re$uently displays ellipsis. Speech makes use of many formulaic e;pressions.

egotiation of topic is also very important! yes butO, anywayO, right

thenO,

Interlocutors give and receive immediate feedback.

It has many routines and this can make it very predictable. 4or

e;ample you never say, 53ive me a banana6 in a bread shop. ut, each

situation has its own discourse which have been historically and socially

defined.

. ow is spoken language different from written languageH Identify fiedifferences.

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. -hat are some of the difficulties faced by students when they areparticipatig in speaking activitiesH Identify threedifficulties.

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Some important differences et2een listening and spoken lang/age

Listening Spoken Lang/age

7eceptive skill@ Passive skillH Productive skill@ >ctive skillH The listener wants to listen to

Qsomething% The speaker wants to say

something

e@ she is interested in thecommunicative purpose of what isbeing said

e@ she has some communicativepurpose

e@ she processes a variety oflanguage items

e@ she selects from his@ herlanguage store

. Is listening a passieactivityH "iscuss and provide reasons to supportyour answer.





The Comm/nication Process

Aommunication is a dynamic process involving a series of actions and

reactions with a view to achieving a goal. Aommunication is, therefore, a two

way process, that is, the ability to receive is as important as the ability to

send. 4or successful communication, feedback is crucial because it tells how

your message is being interpreted. It can make or break the communication

process.

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Comm/nicator &sender or encoder2 is the one who initiates the

communication process.

Encoding is the formulation of messages in the communicator%s mind, that

is, thecommunicator not only translates his purpose &ideas, thoughts or

information2 into a message but also decides on the medium to

communicate his planned message.

# channel is the vehicle through which a message is carried from the

communicator to the receiver.

The receier, at the other end of the communication, is the recipient of themessage and must possess the same orientation as the communicator.

&ecoding is the interpretation of the message by the receiver.

"eedack is the response or acknowledgement of receiver to the

communicator%smessage. The e;change is possible only if the receiver

responds.

!oise is any kind of interruption that can creep in at any point of the

communicationprocess and make it ineffective.

-hy Listening !eeds to e Ta/ght.

Eery important skill in daily life* -ilga 7ivers &112! we listen twice as

much as we speak, four times as much as we read and five times as

much as we write

It has uni$ue aspects that make it different from other language skills

Eery important for developing speaking skills. ida &1/J2! 5Learning to

speak a language is very largely a task of learning to hear it6.

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-hat &oes Learning to Speak Inole.

"/nctions= speakers do a number of things with language* certain

functions go together &ygate, 1J! Qroutines%2 Ling/istic forms= speakers use different words and structures to do

the things they have to do

#/tomaticity of responses= thinking, listening and speaking go on

almost simultaneously

Social appropriacy= highly sensitive to conte;t, degree of formality,

politeness

Topics= speakers speak about something, use words and structures

that pertain to the topic

The "/nctions of Lang/age

Transactional function= conveying information* message:oriented*

Interactional function= gives importance to the listener as a person*

main purposeto maintain good social relationships

Conentions of Spoken Lang/age

Putting words, phrases and sentences together

Eocali8ing what they want to say = pronunciation and intonation Possessing the ability to be reasonably fluent

Stretching the language they know to cope with new situations

Interaction is more than Dust putting a message together responding

to what other people say

Ahoosing language that is appropriate for the person you are talking to

Taking turns in a conversation

9nowing how to interrupt

9nowing how to disagree politely

Bncouraging others to speak B;pressing interest

Ahanging the topic

>sking one to repeat or e;plain what they are saying

"actors #ffecting Listening and Speaking Skills

T#S' 6Pair 2ork7

Think of two real:life situations in which you were involved in = one

in which communication was successful and the other when

communication was unsuccessful.

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Identify the factors that contributed to the success@ failure of the

communication that took place

-hen we teach Bnglish we need to be sure that our students can be

understood when they speak. They need to be able to say what they want to

say. There are numerous factors that affect listening and speaking skills.

Pronuniciation = the sounds in the language

Suprasegmental features of the language = intonation, stress and

rhythm

9nowledge of subDect matter or topic of conversation

Language ability of the speakers = grammatical competence

Eocabulary

Intercultural awareness

7ole relationship and appropriacy = sociolingusitic competence

>wareness of the conventions of speaking = turn taking,

interrupting etc.

>wareness of the varieties of language

"iscourse competence = awareness of the differentways

language is used in different situations

9nowing the difference between formal and informal language use

. Aan you think of other factors that affect listening and speaking skillsH

T#S'

-ork in groups of K@)

Identify ' situations where L0S takes place!

= Lecture

= 4riends chatting at the canteen

= 7adio show

= TE talk show etc

-hat kind of language was used = formal@ informal -hat is the relationship between the speakersH

ow many times did the speakers change topicH

7eport any other interesting observations that you may have made.

"o you think the teaching of L0S is important for learners of BnglishH

ow much L0S did your teachers do while you were in schoolH

-hy do you think L0S is being neglected in schoolsH

-hat do you think teachers and administrators should do to make

listening and speaking an important part of language learningH

Prepare a Powerpoint presentation complete with pictures and otherrelevant materials.

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TSL3105 Topic 1