Prelims Examination: Teaching Of Listening

Top Down Processing refers to the cognitive process of using prior knowledge and expectations to understand and interpret incoming information. In the context of listening, it means that the listener utilizes their background knowledge and context to comprehend the meaning of a message. This approach involves using existing knowledge and expectations to make predictions and fill in gaps in understanding. It is an active and constructive process where the listener actively engages in interpreting and making sense of the message based on their prior knowledge and expectations.

The correct answer is "Top Down Process". In this scenario, the speaker and the hearer share a common understanding of the "going to the dentist" schema. The hearer is able to make sense of the speaker's response ("Fine. I didn't feel a thing.") without the need for additional details because they are able to draw upon their prior knowledge and expectations about what typically happens during a dental visit. This is an example of top-down processing, where higher-level knowledge and context influence the interpretation of incoming information.

Gary Buck describes the activities of assessing the situation, monitoring, self-evaluating, and self-testing as metacognitive strategies. These strategies involve being aware of one's own thinking processes and actively controlling and regulating them during language tasks. Metacognitive strategies help individuals to plan, monitor, and evaluate their language learning and performance, leading to more effective language use.

Bottom Up Processing refers to the listening process where comprehension starts from the basic level of analyzing incoming input, such as sounds, words, clauses, sentences, and texts, and gradually builds up to derive meaning. It involves decoding the received data in successive levels of organization. This approach focuses on the details and individual components of the message before forming a complete understanding of it.

The given correct answer is "Cognitive Strategies". This is because Gary Buck (2001) defined this strategy as mental activities that involve comprehending and storing information in working memory or long-term memory for later retrieval. Cognitive strategies are focused on the actual processing of information and include activities such as paying attention, organizing information, and making connections between new and existing knowledge. These strategies help individuals understand and remember what they are listening to.

The steps mentioned in the question, such as setting a purpose or deciding in advance what to listen for, determining if more linguistic or background knowledge is needed, and deciding whether to enter the text from the top down or bottom up, all indicate the actions that need to be taken before listening to something. These steps help the listener prepare themselves mentally and strategically for the listening task, ensuring that they are focused and attentive during the listening process.

The explanation for the given correct answer, "Listening as Comprehension," is that Jack Richards believes that the primary purpose of listening in second language learning is to aid in the comprehension of spoken language. This suggests that the focus of listening should be on understanding the meaning and message of the discourse rather than solely on acquiring new language forms or structures. Richards emphasizes the importance of comprehending spoken language in order to effectively communicate and participate in conversations.

The correct answer is "Restructuring Activities." The definition provided states that these activities involve the productive use of selected items from the listening text. Restructuring activities typically involve tasks that require learners to manipulate and reorganize the information they have heard in order to demonstrate their understanding and ability to use the language. This can include activities such as summarizing, retelling, or transforming the information from the listening text.

Gary Buck described the activities of comprehension processes, storing and memory processes, and using and retrieval processes as cognitive strategies. Cognitive strategies refer to the mental processes and techniques used to acquire, process, store, and retrieve information. In this context, the activities described by Buck involve the processing and understanding of linguistic and nonlinguistic input, the storage of this input in working memory or long-term memory, and the retrieval of information from memory to be used in output. These activities are all part of the cognitive processes involved in learning and problem-solving.

The given activities involve restructuring the language and applying it in different contexts. Paired reading of the tape scripts helps students analyze the conversational texts and understand how the language is used in real-life situations. Written sentence-completion tasks require students to use expressions and linguistic items from the texts, which involves restructuring the language to complete the sentences. Dialog practice and role plays also require students to use key language from the texts in different scenarios, further reinforcing the restructuring of the language. Therefore, the activities mentioned in the question can be categorized as restructuring activities.

The steps mentioned in the question, such as evaluating comprehension, overall progress, and deciding if strategies were appropriate, all indicate the part of a metacognitive strategy that occurs after listening. This is because these steps involve reflecting on and assessing one's listening performance and making any necessary adjustments or modifications to strategies.

The correct answer is "Noticing Activities". The definition states that the cycle involves returning to the listening texts and using them as the basis for language awareness. Noticing activities typically involve focusing on specific language features or patterns in the texts, allowing learners to become more aware of the language used. This aligns with the idea of using the listening texts as a basis for language awareness. Restructuring activities, on the other hand, typically involve manipulating or reorganizing language, which is not mentioned in the definition.

The listening process described in the passage is a bottom-up process. This means that the listener breaks down the utterances into smaller components, identifies the underlying propositions expressed, and remembers the units of meaning. The listener relies on their knowledge of grammar and the speaker's intonation and pausing to assist in this process. This contrasts with a top-down process, where the listener uses their prior knowledge and expectations to interpret the meaning of the utterances.

The perspective of listening described in the given answer is "Listening as Acquisition". This perspective suggests that simply hearing and understanding input is not enough for learning to occur. Instead, learning takes place when we actively notice and pay attention to something in the input. This implies that comprehension alone is not sufficient for learning; it is the process of acquiring new knowledge or understanding through active engagement with the input that leads to learning.

The correct answer is Google Search Engine because it is not considered a one-way communication material. Google Search Engine is a tool that allows users to search for information online, but it does not provide audio or spoken content for listening activities. Authentic materials and situations for listening activities typically involve audio or spoken content, such as radio and television programs, public address announcements, speeches, and telephone customer service recordings.

The correct answer is "Listening and Making Inferences" because the question asks if the man is going to go with them, and the answer requires the listener to make an inference based on the man's response of "Pizza? I love pizza!" This suggests that he is interested in going to Pizza King with the woman.

The reason for listening in this dialogue is to gather specific information about what the speakers are going to eat. The man expresses his love for pizza, indicating that they are going to eat pizza at Pizza King. This requires paying attention to the specific details mentioned in the conversation.

The steps "Verify predictions and check for inaccurate guesses," "Decide what is and is not important to understand," "Listen/view again to check comprehension," and "Ask for help" all indicate the part of a metacognitive strategy that occurs during and after listening. This is because these steps involve actively monitoring and evaluating one's understanding and seeking clarification or assistance if needed.

The correct answer is "Metacognitive Strategies". In the given statement, Gary Buck (2001) mentions that this strategy in listening involves conscious or unconscious mental activities that perform an executive function in the management of cognitive strategies. This indicates that it refers to strategies that involve thinking about and reflecting on one's own cognitive processes, such as planning, monitoring, and evaluating one's understanding and learning. These strategies are known as metacognitive strategies.

The open-ended listening/speaking activity serves as the last step because it allows the learner to apply what they have learned and actively participate in a conversation. This activity encourages the learner to use their listening and speaking skills in a more independent and creative way, making them an active learner.

The given correct answer is "Use stress and intonation to identify word and sentence functions." This is because the other three exercises mentioned - using key words to construct the schema of a discourse, inferring the role of the participants and their goals, and inferring unstated details of a situation - all involve the top-down process of understanding and interpreting information. However, using stress and intonation to identify word and sentence functions is more related to the bottom-up process of analyzing individual words and sentences rather than the overall structure and meaning of a discourse.

The given activities of identifying differences between what they hear and a printed version of the text, completing a cloze version of the text, completing sentence stems taken from the text, and checking off entries from a list of expressions that occurred in the text are all examples of noticing activities. These activities involve paying attention to specific details and discrepancies in the text, which helps in understanding and comprehending the content more effectively.

A warm-up activity serves as an initial step because it helps prepare the learner for the upcoming lesson or activity. It is designed to activate prior knowledge, generate interest, and create a positive learning environment. By engaging in a warm-up activity, learners can transition from a passive state to an active state, where they are ready to actively participate and apply what they know in the upcoming activities.

The correct answer is Bottom Up Process. This process involves starting with specific details or examples and gradually building up to a larger understanding or concept. In the context of dictation, students might begin by listening to individual words or phrases and then gradually progress to longer sentences or paragraphs. This approach allows learners to develop their listening and comprehension skills incrementally, starting from smaller units and gradually expanding their understanding.

The reason for listening in this conversation is to identify the main idea or topic of the conversation, which is going out to dinner and specifically going to Pizza King.

The purpose of a POST LISTENING ASSESSMENT is to check comprehension, evaluate listening skills and use of listening strategies, and extend the knowledge gained to other contexts. The option "have a purpose other than assessment" does not align with the purpose of a post-listening assessment, as its main goal is to assess the listener's understanding and application of the listening material.

In this activity, students first read a list of key points that will be covered in a talk. Then, they listen to the talk to see which of these points are actually mentioned. This process of starting with an overview or main points and then focusing on specific details aligns with the top-down process. In a top-down process, the listener or reader starts with a general understanding and then narrows down to specific details or examples. Therefore, the correct answer for this question is the Top Down Process.

The correct answer is "Lack of confidence of many listeners." This is because the passage states that one major reason for students' poor listening skills is that listening is often neglected in language teaching for various reasons except for lack of confidence of many listeners. This suggests that lack of confidence is not a reason for poor listening skills, unlike the other options mentioned in the passage.

The content of a message plays a crucial role in successful listening. It refers to the information being conveyed and how it is organized. If the content is clear, relevant, and well-structured, it enhances understanding and comprehension. On the other hand, if the content is confusing, irrelevant, or poorly organized, it hinders successful listening. Therefore, the content variable directly affects successful listening.

The principle referred to in the above article is to consider the text, difficulty, and authenticity when teaching listening. The article suggests that authenticity can be broken down into task authenticity and input authenticity, and provides examples of different levels of authenticity for both. By considering the authenticity of the listening material, teachers can provide students with a more realistic and meaningful listening experience. Additionally, considering the text and difficulty level ensures that the material is appropriate for the students' language proficiency and learning goals.