Perspectives of EFL Students in Listening

Abstract

This descriptive study analyzed the perspectives of EFL students in listening. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected through a survey to 72 university participants (48 females and 24 males), whose ages range from 20 to 26. Results demonstrated that the most difficult sources learners have are that they do not understand better neither when listening to some topics of their interest nor when listening to a recording at once. Likewise, even if anyone says something slowly or native speakers because their vocabulary knowledge is not enough. Learners understand their teachers mostly but they suggested they cannot discriminate among phonemes orminimal pairs. The listening comprehension strategies students use are that they listen to authentic recordings such as podcasts, series, movies and YouTube audios. They prefer listening to songs focused on their lyrics meaning to recordings from textbooks. Finally, the listening comprehension activities students have been exposed the most are: filling in blanks, summarizing information orally, talking and comparing answers among classmates. Additionally, pupils would rather their teachers to provide them with the listening transcripts when looking for specific details. This research is of great interest to any EFL teacher who seeks to improve listening skills to make their students better and more independent learners.