How to Improve Listening Skills

1. How to Improve Listening Skills

2. "We were given two ears but only one mouth, because listening is twice as hard as talking."

3. Difficulties in listening • Listening is not focused at high schools • Lack of facilities and resources or utilize little of them: tapes, cassette players, computers, video clips, movies, internet, English speaking people, and clubs

4. Con’t • Feel we are failing if we can't understand every word - this can create worry and stress • Can only understand if people speak slowly and clearly • Find it hard to keep up with all of the information coming their way • Get very tired during long listening

5. So what to do? • Listen to something you enjoy • Listen for the main ideas • Listen for specific information • Identify stresses and reductions • Get meaning from context

6. Con’t • Most beginners get difficulty due to the lack of vocabularies, pronunciation and grammar. - Select a book with the cassette suitable for your level. It helps practice the listening easily and you can anticipate the level of difficulty. - Listen to the cassette without reading the text/ dialogue once or twice. When you find difficulty in grasping the meaning, listen again while scrutinizing the text/ dialogue.- Pay attention carefully to the pronunciation and intonation. If you want to improve your pronunciation, listen and repeat the dialogue/ text by pausing each sentence.

7. Con’t • After listening to the text/ dialogue, do the exercise and check your answer with the answer-key or with your teacher.- If you watch TV, select the English program/ film. Listen to the dialogue carefully without reading the translation (text).- Listen to English songs and learn the words. If you like singing, memorize the words and sing them.- Practice the above tips everyday although only half an hour. By practicing the listening exercises many times, your listening will improve faster.

8. Con’t • Mentally put yourself in other person’s shoes • Spend more time listening than talking • Listen unconsciously to radio, television, movie. • Ask questions • Don’t translate – create barrier between speaker and listener • Encourage the speaker, provide feedback and paraphrase to show you are listening • Don't need to know a lot about a subject to have a conversation but a desire to learn, understand and make things interesting • Take notes, analyze, paraphrase, summarize and ask for clarification

9. Con’t • Judge content, not delivery, i.e. what they say, not how they say it • Listen optimistically – don't lose interest straight away • Do not jump to conclusions • Concentrate – don't start dreaming – and keep eye contact • Do not think ahead of the speaker – you will lose track

10. Con’t • Work at listening – be alert and alive • Keep emotions under control when listening • Open your mind – practice accepting new information • Breathe slowly and deeply • Relax physically, get comfortable

11. My experience • Listen/sing English songs • Listen to radio, tapes, internet, movies, television. If fine, I listen attentively; if not, I will just listen relaxingly • Listen to different fields • Talk to foreigners, friends. • Go to ESC. • Use resources available: internet, tapes, CDs, movies, movie. Copy files to computers, ipods, mp3, mp4 to listen at home, on travel… • Set a goal when listening or talking • Remember “Failure is mother of success”. Allow ourselves to make mistakes. Don’t worry! The game is still long!

12. Resources • Streamline, Headway, Interactions, Now Hear This, Listening level A, B,C, Tactics for Listening, Toefl, Ielts. • Websites: • http://www.englishpod.com/ • http://www.elllo.org • http://www.eslcafe.com • http://www.esl-lab.com • http://www.youtube.com • http://www.nytimes.com • http://www.voa.com • http://www.bbc.com • Use www.google.com to find more

13. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!