As an English teacher you'll have to think about how to best
work on your students' listening skills. Here's a video-chat
by Steven Starry and an article by Kelly Piggott on the subject.
As a teacher in Madrid, I have found that many students lack
the listening skills necessary to continue advancing as better
speakers. This is hardly a new observation, but I've always
been in search of new materials, especially since I can't constantly
be buying new ones. Moreover, to find suitable/interesting exercises
for each level makes it doubly difficult, especially if you
have a class load full of students at varying levels.
Academy
Requires English Teachers
Which brings us to the omnipresent .... web. Now, I must preface,
that I do have a laptop and can pick up a wireless signal at
several of the locations where I teach, but like anything on
the web, countless options can be discovered. The following
is a small sampling of sites, but, to be sure, there are many
more that you could find with a little time surfing around:
I am always learning of new ways to be an effective teacher
and when it comes to administering listening exercises, it's
no different. I
particularly enjoy the "History Channel" for more
advanced students. The site contains a wide array of topics
that come in compact sound bites. I first ask the student to
read the summary of what we will listen to. This gives the student
a context for what follows which usually enables him/her to
better understand the listening excerpt. We then listen to it
once. The first time through I ask the student to listen attentively,
and take notes if he/she wishes, but mainly concentrate on listening
and comprehension. Meanwhile, I vigorously take notes and try
to note ideas/words/idioms, etc. that may be troubling.
After
the first listening we discuss what the student has heard. I
try to get them to summarize it in their own words and then
begin to formulate questions based on my notes. This also is
a good chance to introduce new vocabulary and clarify other
potentially confusing parts. We then listen to the excerpt a
2nd time.
Before I start the recording for the 2nd time, I ask
the student to consider certain things. Normally, I ask that
he/she focus his/her listening on some of the ideas we've just
discussed. I will also ask him/her to tell me to stop at any
confusing parts which gives us a chance to further clarify an
idea or moment in the video and most importantly allows the
student to re-listen so as to finally catch the exact meaning.
I use a similar approach with other web-sites as well as DVDs.
(I try
not to ever exceed a 10 minute listening clip.) During many
of these
listening exercises I find that the student develops the confidence
that he/she can pick up on things he/she thought were otherwise
too difficult. Many times it’s a mental block more than poor
listening. That is to say, it seems that some think they have
a hard time listening and this very thought hampers their ability
to listen effectively. We sometimes talk about concepts related
to
listening and I try to emphasize not to get caught up on a word
or two, especially if the the student has understood the vast
majority of what we've heard. Occasionally, these exercises
lend to interesting conversation about humor, culture, etc.
As much as the students are learning, I always feel I'm learning
new
ways to help them and even improving my listening skills.
Rock Talk
This is a Youtube.com video describing a song-based textbook
and how and why to use it.
