A STUDY OF DIFFICULTIES FACED BY EFL TEACHERS IN

TEACHING LISTENING AT HIGH SCHOOLS IN

NGHE AN PROVINCE, VIETNAM
(A CASE STUDY WITH CURRENTLY USED TEXTBOOK "TIENG
ANH 11)
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lu Qy Khng
Danang University College of Foreign Languages
Phng guy!n Qu"nh ga# $%&
a' Dan ( )igh *chool# ghe An
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to investigate difficulties faced by EFL teachers in
teaching listening sections in Tieng Anh 11 at high schools in Nghe An. To collect
relatively objective inforation! a cobination of both "ualitative and "uantitative
a##roaches was used. $ata collection instruents consisted of "uestionnaires!
interviews and class observations. The data for the research cae fro two grou#s%
EFL teachers and 11
th
for students at high schools in Nghe An. The first grou#
involves 1& feale teachers and ' ale ones who have been teaching listening s(ills in
Tieng Anh 11 to 11
th
grade students in Nghe An high schools. The second one
co#rises of 1)) grade 11 students who are using Tieng Anh 11 as their official
English te*tboo( at school. The findings #ointed out that EFL teachers at high schools
in Nghe An were encountering any difficulties in teaching listening s(ills in general!
teaching listening sections in +Tieng Anh 11+ in #articular. Fro the findings! the
following i#lications were suggested% #roviding (ey words with their #ronunciation before
listening, guiding students what and how to do without understanding all the te*t, ada#ting
listening tas(s to suit students- ability and using ore interesting aterials beside the te*tboo(.
Ke !"#$%& %FL teachers+ &ifficulties+ teaching listening+ high schools+ ,ieng
Anh --
1' R()*"+(,e
.f the four language s/ills# listening has long 0een consi&ere& the 'ost
challenging an& &ifficult one 0y 0oth foreign language teachers an& stu&ents. 1n reality#
in 'any high schools in 2ietna' in general an& in ghe An 3rovince in 3articular#
teaching %nglish listening s/ills has not 0een 3ai& 'uch attention to. As a result# the
4ualities an& effectiveness of teaching an& learning this s/ill are not really as goo& an&
high as e53ecte&. ,his stu&y &eals 6ith teachers7 current an& 3otential 3ro0le's in
teaching listening sections in 8,ieng Anh --9 at high schools in ghe An# e5a'ine
teachers7 solutions to these &ifficulties an& then 3ro3ose a33ro3riate teaching 'etho&s
an& strategies that can facilitate the %nglish listening teaching.
-' P#e.*"/% S)/$*e% Re,()e$ )" )0e S)/$
-
,he issues of teaching an& learning the listening s/ill have 0een 3articularly
concerne& 0y a lot of researchers. :agang ;-<<=> 3ointe& out four 'a?or factors that
'a&e listening &ifficult to learners such as the 'essage# the s3ea/er# the listener an& the
3hysical setting. )e also suggeste& so'e solutions to these 3ro0le's. .laofe ;-<<@>
stu&ie& teaching listening co'3rehension in large classes. )e 0elieve& that stu&ents
coul& get a lot even un&er these con&itions. Aian ;(BBC> 3ai& 'uch attention to teaching
listening in a co''unicative classroo'. *he sho6e& the &isa&vantages of tra&itional
listening teaching an& &iscovere& so'e co''unicative 6ays to teach listening fro' her
e53erience. D?i6an&ono ;(BBD> in&icate& a techni4ue for teaching listening
co'3rehension that is a co'0ination of coo3erative an& strategic learning. Le ,hi Euan
Anh ;(BB-> reveale& that 8Listening *trategies9 6ere unconsciously use& 0y
2ietna'ese stu&ents at tertiary level. *he realiFe& the relationshi3 0et6een the learners7
listening a0ilities an& their strategy choice. Pha' ,hanh 2inh ;(BB(> investigate& the
&ifficulties in listening face& 0y firstGyear stu&ents of %nglish at Da ang College of
%&ucation. Phung ,hi )oai ,hu ;(BBH> e5a'ine& listening &ifficulties 3erceive& 0y
teachers an& stu&ents in using the ne6 %nglish te5t0oo/ for gra&e -B at Que 2o 11
u33erGsecon&ary school in Iac inh. 1t can 0e seen that 'ost researchers 'entione&
focuse& on stu&ying either the general 3rinci3les for teaching listening s/ills or the
3ro0le's face& 0y learners in learning listening an& suggeste& solutions to i'3rove
their listening s/ill. Iesi&es# their research su0?ects 6ere 'ainly stu&ents at the tertiary
level# not high school stu&ents. .n the contrary# this stu&y e'3hasiFes the 3ro0le's
face& 0y 2ietna'ese high school teachers in teaching listening an& their solutions.
1' De2*+*)*"+% "2 L*%)e+*+3
Listening is theoretically consi&ere& as a 3rocess in 6hich in&ivi&uals
concentrate on selecte& area of aural in3ut# construct 'eaning fro' 3assages# an& relate
6hat they hear to e5isting /no6le&ge ;.7$alley# Cha'ot an& Ku33er ;-<H<>>.
An&erson an& Lynch ;-<HH> &efine listening as 8the eans to iediate oral
#roduction! the iitation of s#o(en fors9. Listeners hear the in3ut as 6ell as actively
3rocess the 'essage to co'3rehen&. ,he o0?ective of listening co'3rehension is that
the learners are a0le to tal/ an& 6rite a0out 6hat they have hear& after listening.
Iuc/ ;(BB-# 3.=-> 3ointe& out that listening 6as an active 3rocess of
constructing 'eaning 0y utiliFing /no6le&ge to the inco'ing soun& in 6hich 0oth
linguistic an& nonGlinguistic /no6le&ge are involve&. )e in&icate& that 8co'3rehension
is affecte& 0y a 6i&e range of varia0les# an& that 3otentially any characteristic of the
s3ea/er# the situation or the listener can affect the co'3rehension of the 'essage9.
1n short# it can 0e sai& that listening is a language s(ill involving a wide range of
sub.s(ills. /t is ore than si#ly hearing, it is decoding sounds and understanding
the eaning behind those sounds.;Forseth# -<<D>
4' Me)0"$","3
(
0.1 /nforants of the 1tudy
,he &ata of the research 6ere &ra6n fro' t6o grou3sJ %FL teachers an& --
th
gra&e stu&ents at high schools in ghe An inclu&ing a' Dan 11# Do Luong 1# )a )uy
,a3. ,he first grou3 involves -H fe'ale teachers an& ( 'ale ones 6ho have 0een
teaching listening s/ills in 8,ieng Anh --9 ghe An high schools. ,he 'a?ority of the
teachers ;CCK> have 0een teaching for C to -B years. (BK have 0een teaching for over
ten years an& (CK have 0een teaching for less than C years. (CK are currently teaching
at a high school in a city# @BK are 3resently teaching at a high school in a to6nGlet. ,he
rest are currently teaching at a high school in a rural area.
,he secon& grou3 co'3rises of -BB stu&ents gra&e -- age& 0et6een -L an& -H
years ol& at high schools in ghe An. ,hey are using 8,ieng Anh --9 as their official
%nglish te5t0oo/ at 3resent.
0.'. $ata 2ollection /nstruents
Questionnaires an& class o0servations hel3e& the researcher collect 'ain &ata for
the stu&y. Iesi&es# infor'al intervie6s 6ith the teachers 6ere con&ucte& so as to o0tain
'ore infor'ation.
5' D*22*6/,)*e% *+ Le(#+*+3 (+$ Te(60*+3 E+3,*%0 L*%)e+*+3 S7*,, *+ H*30 S60"",% *+
N30e A+
3.1. 1tudents- $ifficulties in Learning English Listening 1(ill in Tieng Anh 11
3.1.1. 1tudents- Evaluation on $ifficulty of Listening Tas(s in +Tieng Anh 11+
Figure 5.1: Students Evaluation on D*22*6/,) of Listening Tasks
in "Tieng Anh 11"
%valuating the &ifficulty of listening tas/s in M,ieng Anh --M# a lot of stu&ents
foun& it too &ifficult ;(BK> an& &ifficult ;C(K>. ,hey sai& that although they 6ere
allo6e& to listen 'ore than three ti'es for each tas/# they coul& not catch any
infor'ation an& solve the listening tas/ assigne&. $ean6hile# -HK of the stu&ents
thought that listening e5ercises in their te5t0oo/ 6ere a 0it &ifficult. .nly -B out of -BB
stu&ents ;-BK> confir'e& that the tas/s 6ere a33ro3riate for the'. 1n fact# these 6ere
=
the 0est stu&ents 6ho 6ere goo& at listening. *ur3risingly# no stu&ents in the survey
foun& listening tas/s easy. As for the'# listening 6as really a 0ig 3ro0le'.
1t 6as very significant for the teachers to /no6 6hat listening activities 6ere the
'ost &ifficult for their stu&ents so that they coul& a&a3t the tas/s a33ro3riately. ,he
follo6ing chart sho6e& the stu&entsN co''ents on ty3es of listening activities in the
te5t0oo/ M,ieng Anh --M.
3.1.'. 1tudents- Evaluation on Listening Activities in +Tieng Anh 11+
Figure 5.2: Students Evaluation on Listening Activities in "Tieng Anh
11"
Accor&ing to the chart# 'ost of the stu&ents# accounting for LCK# consi&ere&
4uestions and Answers the 'ost &ifficult activity to &eal 6ith. ,he secon& o3tion
chosen 0y -BK of the stu&ents 6as ga#.filling. ,hey a&'itte& that ga#.filling#
es3ecially ga#.filling without given words 6ere so'eti'es too &e'an&ing for the'. 1n
this situation# they all 6ante& their teachers to si'3lify the tas/ 0y giving o3tions for
the' to listen an& choose. LK of the res3on&ents agree& that ulti#le.choice activity
6as the 'ost &ifficult. Although this /in& of activities 6as not too &ifficult for the
stu&ents to &o# it so'eti'es 'a&e the' confuse& 6hen the choices 6ere nearly si'ilar
to each other. 1nterestingly# CK of the stu&ents state& that T5F stateent activity 6as
so'eti'es very &ifficult es3ecially 6hen their teachers as/e& the' for e53lanation an&
correction. As for = stu&ents# 'a/ing u3 =K# inforation ga# 6as really the 'ost
&ifficult. ,hey argue& that they nee&e& to have the a0ility of noteGta/ing to &o this /in&
of activity.
5'-' L*%)e+*+3 Te(60*+3 D*22*6/,)*e% Pe#6e*.e$ 8 Te(60e#%
Tale 5.1: !ifficulties in Teaching Listening "erceived # Teachers
D*22*6/,)*e% Te(60e#% (N" 9 -:) (;)
*tu&ents7 lo6 'otivation or 3assive attitu&e -= DC
*tu&ents7 li'ite& voca0ulary -L HC
Large classes an& 'i5e& a0ility -C LC
Lac/ of teaching facilities an& teaching ai&s L =C
Listening tas/s &issatisfy stu&ents7 nee&s an& levels -= DC
,i'e li'itation for curriculu' < @C
@
Lac/ of e53erience in teaching listening ( -B
.thers - C
1t is reveale& fro' the fin&ings that the 0iggest &ifficulty 3reventing the' fro'
teaching listening s/ills 6as their stu&entsN li'ite& voca0ulary. HCK of the teachers
co'3laine& that their stu&entsN current voca0ulary 6as too little to co'3rehen& the
listening 3assage. As a result# the teachers al6ays ha& to s3en& too 'uch ti'e
3resenting ne6 6or&s an& their 3ronunciation 0efore as/ing their stu&ents to listen to
the recor&ing. ,hen the teachers coul& not finish the listening lessons ?ust 6ithin a @CG
'inute 3erio& in the class.
Another consi&era0le &ifficulty for LCK of the teachers 6as large classes an&
'i5e& a0ility. ,hey agree& that the 0ig class siFe coul& not 'eet the &e'an& of the
co''unicative language a33roach. ,he 0igGsiFe& classes cause& 0ac/groun& noise
6hich &istracte& stu&ents fro' listening as 6ell as the teachersN o0servations an&
assistance to in&ivi&uals. 1n&ee&# the noise coul& ta/e stu&entsN 'in& off the content of
the listening 3assage. *tu&ents usually ha& trou0les in getting concentration an& hearing
the soun&s clearly# es3ecially the stu&ents in the 0ac/ ro6s of the class. A3art fro' the
0ig classGsiFe# &ifferent levels of 3roficiency of the stu&ents in each class 'a&e it
&ifficult for the teachers in &esigning an& organiFing the listening activities in the
classroo' 0ecause the 0etter stu&ents coul& ta/e 3art in the activities 6hereas the
6ea/er stu&ents see'e& to 0e left 0ehin& an& &i& nothing e5ce3t &oing 3rivate things in
the class or ?ust co3ie& the ans6ers 3rovi&e& 0y the teachers.
As for DCK of the infor'ants# their o0stacle to listening teaching resulte& fro'
their stu&entsN lo6 'otivation an& 3assive attitu&e to6ar&s listening classes. 1n the
intervie6s# one teacher e53laine& that +The listening s(ill is not included in the tests and
e*as! which decreases students6 interests and efforts in learning listening s(illM.
,herefore# 'ost of the stu&ents sho6e& reluctance to the listening lesson 6hen they &i&
not co'3rehen& the listening 'essage at all. 1n a&&ition# there 6as no coo3eration
0et6een the 3artners in a grou3. ,hus# the lo6erGlevel stu&ents ten&e& to 0eco'e
3assive in listening lessons. ,hey relie& so 'uch on the teachers an& their 3artners.
,he sa'e 3ro3ortion of the teachers ;DCK> argue& that listening tas/s
&issatisfie& their stu&entsN nee&s an& levels of 3roficiency. ,hat resulte& fro' long an&
&ifficult listening te5ts inclu&ing a lot of ne6 6or&s or ne6 structures. Actually# it 6as
very &ifficult for the teachers to 'otivate stu&ents 6hen listening tas/s 6ere higher than
stu&entsN level. Accor&ing to these teachers# ina33ro3riate listening tas/s too/ the'
'uch ti'e to a&a3t to all levels of stu&ents.
@CK of the teachers fro' the 4uestionnaire sai& that li'ite& ti'e for the
curriculu' 6as their 0ig 3ro0le'. 1n reality# they usually ha& to sto3 the lessons right
after stu&ents finishe& listening tas/s assigne& 0ecause ti'e allocation for one listening
3erio& 6as over. 1t 6as 3ossi0le to say that ti'e 'anage'ent 6as also an art of language
C
teaching 6hich currently challenge& 'any co''unicative language teachers. 1t referre&
to a 6ellGorganiFe& teaching 3roce&ure an& teachersN a0ility to control an& 0alance the
ti'e for their 3resentation an& stu&entsN activities. $ost of these teachers ac/no6le&ge&
ti'e nee&e& for each stage of a listening lesson in theory an& they trie& to 'a/e the 0est
use of it. )o6ever# their failure 6as inevita0le an& un&erstan&a0le for a lot of reasons
such as 3oorGe4ui33e& classroo' con&ition# stu&entsN lo6 level of 3roficiency an&
0ac/groun& /no6le&ge# teachersN lac/ of e53erience an& ina33ro3riate 'etho&s an&
techni4ues in teaching listening# etc.
Lac/ of teaching facilities an& teaching ai&s 6as the 'ain &ifficulty for =CK of
the res3on&ents. ,he classes 6ere not e4ui33e& 6ith 'o&ern technology an& facilities.
As :agang state&# +listening aterial on ta#e or radio lac(s visual and aural
environental clues9 ;-<<=J -<->. 1n&ee&# the stu&ents 6oul& fin& it 'ore &ifficult to
un&erstan& the s3ea/erNs 'eaning if they &i& not see the s3ea/erNs 0o&y language an&
facial e53ressions. 1n contrast# 6ith vi&eo ta3es# stu&ents coul& +see #eo#le s#ea(ing9
an& +have a visual conte*t for what is being said9 ;)ar'er# -<<@J (-@>. ,hat reinforce&
their listening co'3rehension strongly. .n the other han&# there 6as a fact that so'e of
the' usually rea& the ta3e scri3ts instea& of using the cassetteG3layers. ,hey
co'3laine& that the cassetteG3layers in their school &i& not often 6or/ for a long ti'e
0efore they 6ere re3aire&. ,his reality 'a&e the' tire& in teaching listening lessons an&
stu&ents ha& fe6er o33ortunities to a33roach the real language through listening to
native s3ea/ers.
.nly ( out of (B teachers ;-BK> got o0stacles in teaching listening classes
0ecause they lac/e& teaching e53erience to facilitate their listening lessons. Fro' the
class o0servation# they accurately follo6e& the contents# instructions an& tas/s given in
the te5t0oo/ ste3 0y ste3. All they &i& 6ere to 3resent the ne6 6or&s# give the
instructions# an& as/ stu&ents to rea& the re4uire'ents# rea& the te5t or 3lay the ta3es
t6ice or three ti'es for stu&ents to listen to. Finally# they tol& stu&ents to &o the
su''ary or ans6er the 4uestions given. 1n other 6or&s# there 6as no &ifference or
significance 0et6een a listening lesson an& the other s/ills. A&&itionally# these teachers
ha& fe6 chances to atten& 6or/sho3s on listening teaching innovation at high school 0y
trainers in De3art'ent of %&ucation an& ,raining in igh An. ,herefore# teaching
listening 6as really a 0ig challenge for the'.
5' S/33e%)*"+% 2"# Te(60e#% )" I+6#e(%e )0e E22e6)*.e+e%% "2 )0e L*%)e+*+3 Te(60*+3
3.1. 1tudent /nforants6 1uggestions
First of all# it is very i'3ortant for us to listen to stu&entsN e53ectations to hel3
the' learn listening sections in M,ing An --M 'ore effectively. Fro' their
reco''en&ations# teachers an& e&ucators shoul& 6or/ out the 0est solutions to increase
the effectiveness of the listening teaching an& learning in general an& the teaching an&
D
learning listening sections in M,ing An --M in 3articular. ,he infor'ation collecte& 6as
re3orte& as follo6sJ
Tale 5.2: Student $nfor%ants& & Suggestions for 'etter Listening Teaching and
Learning
S/33e%)*"+% $nfor%ants
(N"9 1::)
(;)
Facilities
$ore 'o&ern technology or facilitiesJ co'3uters#
CDs# cassettes# etc.
D- D-K
$ore su33le'entary references to i'3rove
listening s/ill
@B @BK
Teachers
Using 'ore interesting listening activities C@ C@K
A&a3ting listening activities 'ore suita0le to
stu&ents7 levels
L@ L@K
Oui&ing an& instructing stu&ents ho6 to listen an&
&o the tas/# e'3hasiFe the 3ur3oses or /ey 6or&s
;e4ui33ing stu&ents 6ith necessary strategies in
listening>
<H <HK
Provi&ing 0ac/groun& infor'ation an& voca0ulary
for listening activities
-BB -BBK
First of all# 0efore 'a/ing &ecisions on solutions to overco'e the &ifficulties in
teaching listening# the teachers shoul& un&erstan& their stu&entsN e53ectations for
effective listening classes. Fro' the stu&ents7 reco''en&ations# teachers an& e&ucators
coul& 6or/ out the 0est solutions to increase the effectiveness of the listening teaching
an& learning. ,6o as3ects shoul& 0e ta/en into consi&eration to 'a/e so'e changes for
the current 3ro0le'sJ facilities# teachers6 ethodology.
All the stu&ents ;-BBK> e53ecte& their teachers to 3rovi&e the' 6ith
0ac/groun& infor'ation an& voca0ulary nee&e& 0efore as/ing the' to listen. %ssential
listening strategies to &eal 6ith each /in& of tas/s in the class 6ere 6ante& 0y <HK of
the stu&ent infor'ants. ,hey re4uire& that the teachers shoul& gui&e an& instruct the'
ho6 to listen an& &o the tas/# e'3hasiFe the 3ur3oses or /ey 6or&s. A re'ar/a0le
nu'0er of the' ;L@K> &esire& to 0e given listening activities 'ore suita0le to their
levels of /no6le&ge. As having a33ro3riate listening activities for high school
stu&ents is one effective 6ay to increase their 3artici3ation in listening classes# %FL
teachers shoul& 3ay 'ore attention to this factor in the %nglish teaching 3rocess. 1n
a&&ition# C@K of the stu&ents e53ecte& the teachers an& e&ucators to &esign 'ore
interesting listening activities in or&er to sti'ulate their interests an& 'otivation.
1n ter's of facilities# D-K of the infor'ants ho3e& that their teachers 6oul& use
'ore 'o&ern technology or facilities such as co'3uters# CDs# cassettes# etc. ,hey sai&
that they 6ere al6ays eager to 6atch the vi&eota3es an& listen to the s3eech at the sa'e
ti'e. Phat is 'ore# 'ore su33le'entary references to i'3rove listening s/ills 6ere
&esire& 0y @BK of the'.
3.'. Teacher /nforants6 1uggestions
L
Tale 5.2: Teacher $nfor%ants& Suggestions for 'etter Listening Lessons
S/33e%)*"+%
$nfor%ant
s (N9 -:)
(;)
Using interesting ga'es to 'otivate stu&ents -@ DB
Provi&ing /ey 6or&s 6ith their 3ronunciation 0efore listening -< <C
)aving stu&ents 6or/ in grou3s an& &o &ifferent tas/s -- CC
Oui&ing stu&ents 6hat an& ho6 to &o 6ithout un&erstan&ing all the
te5t.
-L HC
Iringing the teaching facilities fro' ho'e ;if you have> = -C
A&a3ting listening tas/s to suit stu&ents7 a0ility -H <B
Cutting off unnecessary activities an& focus on the 'ain ones = -C
Using 'ore interesting 'aterials 0esi&e the te5t0oo/ ;e.g. %nglish
songs# vi&eo>
-D HBK
Provi&ing regular 6or/sho3s or 3rogra's to e5change e53eriences
an& train teachers7 'etho&ology
-B CBK
Firstly# a 'a?ority of the teacher infor'ants ;<CK> e'3hasiFe& that they shoul&
3rovi&e /ey 6or&s 6ith their 3ronunciation for their stu&ents 0efore as/ing the' listen
to the 3assage. Accor&ing to these infor'ants# this 6ay coul& solve stu&entsN li'ite&
voca0ulary an& 3ronunciation 3ro0le'. *i'ilar results 6ere realiFe& in the class
o0servations. )o6ever# to so'e stu&ents# such su33ort 6as li/ely not enough for the'
to co'3rehen& the listening 3assage since their stu&ents lac/e& too 'uch voca0ulary
an& structures.
*econ&ly# as for <BK of the infor'ants# a&a3ting listening activities to suit
stu&ents7 a0ility 6as the 0est solution. ,eachersN a&a3tation is also to 'a/e te5t0oo/
lessons 'ore co''unicative. ,his &e3en&e& on the level of &ifficulty of the activities to
each class. ,hrough the intervie6s an& class o0servations# the author foun& that
teachersN a&a3tation of the listening activities in the te5t0oo/ often occurre& 6hen the
activities 6ere higher than their stu&entsN level of 3roficiency an& so'e of the
re4uire'ents 6ere too long an& unnecessary.
,hir&ly# in regar& to listening strategies# gui&ing stu&ents on 6hat an& ho6 to &o
6ithout un&erstan&ing all the te5t 6as 3ro3ose& 0y HCK of the teachers. Fro' the class
o0servations# 'ost stu&ents lac/e& a33ro3riate strategies 6hen &ealing 6ith the
listening tas/s. ,hey ten&e& to listen to the 3assage an& translate 6hat they hear& into
their 'other tongue to un&erstan& the 'eaning. ,hey al6ays trie& to listen an&
re'e'0er -BBK of infor'ation they hear&. As a result# they faile& to clarify an& focus
on the 'ain an& necessary infor'ation. Also# stu&ents often 3ause& at any ne6 6or&s
an& 'isse& the ne5t 3art 6hile they 6ere listening. For these a0ove reasons# the teachers
realiFe& that giving instructions an& a&vice a0out 6hat an& ho6 to listen 6as a goo&
6ay to increase the effectiveness of their stu&entsN listening.
Another solution suggeste& 0y HBK of the infor'ants 6as to use 'ore
interesting 'aterials 0esi&e the te5t0oo/. $ost intervie6e& teachers co'3laine& that
they coul& not have effective listening lessons 6ith the 3oor listening 'aterials lac/ing
H
authenticity. ,herefore# it 6as very significant for the' to use other su33le'entary
'aterials such as %nglish songs# %nglish s3ea/ing fil's# Iritish or A'erican culture
vi&eota3es# etc.
e5t# to the 3ro0le' of stu&entsN lo6 'otivation or 3assive attitu&es to6ar&s
listening teaching# -( out of (B teachers# u3 to DBK# thought that interesting ga'es 6ere
a useful 6ay to enhance the stu&entsN 'otivation 0ecause ga'es 6ere often 3referre& 0y
'ost stu&ents.
CCK of the infor'ants agree& that they ha& 0etter have stu&ents 6or/ in grou3s
an& &o &ifferent listening activities. 1n the intervie6s# they e53laine& that 'any stu&ents
en?oye& grou3 activities to e5change /no6le&ge an& share their ans6ers 6ith each
other. %s3ecially for 6ea/er stu&ents 6ho &i& not hear anything# the coo3eration a'ong
the 'e'0ers of the grou3 coul& su33ort the' a lot. Phat is 'ore# &ivi&ing listening
activities into &ifferent 3arts an& assigning each 3art to each grou3 coul& hel3 the
teachers finish the listening activities on ti'e. evertheless# the class o0servations
reveale& that this 6ay 6as rarely e'3loye& 0y the teachers in ghe An high schools
since it 6as not easy to control all the grou3s an& their 6or/ se3arately. 1n fact# each
grou3 ?ust focuse& so 'uch on their o6n &uty that they har&ly 3ai& attention to the
othersN 6or/. As a result# they ?ust un&erstoo& their listening 3art an& achieve& little
fro' the other grou3s. A suggestion is that the teachers shoul& only &o this techni4ue
for e5cellent stu&ents 0ecause it see's to 0e unsuita0le to lo6Glevele& stu&ents.
,he ne5t reco''en&ation 6as that the e&ucators or trainers fro' De3art'ent of
%&ucation an& ,raining in ghe An 3rovince 6oul& 3rovi&e regular 6or/sho3s or
3rogra's to e5change e53eriences an& train teachers7 'etho&ology.
Qegar&ing the ti'e li'itation in listening classes# 'ost teachers intervie6e&
6ishe& to have 'ore ti'e to finish the lessons. evertheless# it see'e& to 0e i'3ossi0le
0ecause of the 3lanne& 3rogra''e at all high schools in the 6hole country. ,herefore#
only -CK of the teachers offere& that they ha& to cut off unnecessary activities an&
focus on the 'ain ones. ,he sa'e 3ro3ortion of the infor'ants ;-CK> suggeste&
that teachers shoul& 0ring the teaching facilities fro' ho'e if they ha& so that they
coul& 0e rea&y for every situation. Fro' the class o0servations# the researchers foun&
that so'e teachers so'eti'es too/ their co'3uters to their schools 0ecause they coul&
not rea& the listening 3assage for continuously to the class 6hereas the cassetteG
recor&ers in their school &i& not 6or/ any'ore.
<' C"+6,/%*"+
1n conclusion# the fin&ings of the stu&y 3ointe& out that %FL teachers at high
schools in ghe An 6ere encountering 'any &ifficulties in teaching listening sections in
M,ieng Anh --M in 3articular an& listening s/ills in general. A lot of solutions 6ere
reco''en&e& 0y infor'ants to overco'e these o0stacles. )o6ever# in or&er to set u3
the attractive an& interesting listening lessons for stu&ents# these solutions shoul& 0e
<
ta/en into consi&eration 0y e&ucators# trainers an& teachers of %nglish as 'uch as
3ossi0le.
REFERENCES
A' E+3,*%0&
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-B