Self-efficacy and academic listening

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Abstract

This paper takes as its starting point the difficulties inherent in listening in a second language. It argues that self-efficacy, broadly defined as the belief in one’s ability to carry out specific tasks successfully, is crucial to the development of effective listening skills, and that listening strategy instruction has the potential to boost self-efficacy. The degree of control over the process of listening that learners can gain through listening strategy instruction is an important factor in this process. Reviewing studies that have integrated strategy instruction with measures to address learners’ sense of control and self-efficacy for listening, it concludes by arguing that in an EAP context, such a heightened sense of confidence can help learners cope more effectively with authentic oral input.

Highlights

► I explore the role of self-efficacy in second language listening comprehension. ► I discuss studies that have investigated ways of improving self-efficacy in listening. ► I draw out the implications of self-efficacy theory and measures to improve self-efficacy for academic listening.

Introduction

The argument that effective listening does not develop on its own but needs to be fostered explicitly is not a new one (see, for example, Mendelsohn, 1994), with recent contributions to the debate emphasising in particular the importance of listening strategy instruction in this process (Vandergrift & Tafaghodtari, 2010). An argument less frequently made, however, is that effective listening also depends on learners’ self-efficacy for listening, on their confidence in their ability to make sense of the input to which they are exposed. This paper considers the role of self-efficacy in listening in a variety of learning contexts and argues that its development is both central to effective listening and an integral part of listening strategy instruction. It then applies the concept to the particular case of the EAP learner.

Section snippets

Listening difficulty

While a high level of listening skills is widely acknowledged to be vital for success in a number of language learning contexts, including in EAP settings (Ferris & Tagg, 1996), such effective listening skills do not develop easily. Vandergrift (n.d.) comments that listening is a ‘complex, active process of interpretation’, far more than just ‘extracting meaning from incoming speech’. Furthermore, a range of studies (e.g. Arnold, 2000, Goh, 2000, Hasan, 2000) indicate that across instructional

Self-efficacy

The student quotation just given reflects a low sense of self-efficacy for listening, a lack of belief in the ability to succeed or improve. Self-efficacy (Bandura, 1993) is an important ‘subtheory’ (Dörnyei & Ottó, 1998, p.44) within an expectancy-value framework of motivation (as outlined in the work of Eccles and co-authors, e.g. Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). The concept relates to individuals’ belief in their capacity to achieve specific tasks, which is held to have a strong influence on levels

The role of classroom methodology

It is possible that low levels of self-efficacy for listening are exacerbated by the way in which listening is taught. Indeed, it has been noted by a number of commentators (Chambers, 2007, Field, 2008, Graham, 2006, Graham et al., in press) that in many language classrooms, listening takes the form of an activity to be ‘delivered’ rather than a skill to develop in its own right. Teachers interviewed in two studies conducted in UK secondary school contexts (reported in Graham, Santos &

Boosting self-efficacy

We thus have a rather negative picture of listening comprehension and self-efficacy. It is important to note, however, that several studies have indicated that self-efficacy for listening, as well as listening performance, is amenable to development, through the explicit teaching of listening strategies, within a model of strategy instruction which has a strong emphasis on scaffolding of learning and learner reflection. Such strategy instruction aims at increasing learners’ sense of control and

Concluding discussion and implications for EAP pedagogy

Research into the role of self-efficacy in listening thus seems to underline its importance in terms of listening performance. Within an EAP context, self-efficacy would seem to have particular relevance. Nothing can fully prepare a second-language student for the experience of listening to a full-length lecture or participating in a rapid exchange of views in a seminar. However, it is important to ensure that these experiences do not give rise to the kind of listening anxiety that forces the

Suzanne Graham is Professor of Language and Education at the University of Reading, Institute of Education. Her research interests include language learner strategies, second language listening comprehension and motivation for language learning.

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      The present study, therefore, was interested in the students' attitude changes toward the diversity of English after the intervention. In regard to self-efficacy (Bandura, 1995), it can be broadly understood as people's beliefs about their abilities to succeed in a given situation; in language learning, such beliefs have consistently been found to impact learning motivation and outcomes (Graham, 2011). In the present study, the students' self-efficacy as learners and users of English was examined.

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    Suzanne Graham is Professor of Language and Education at the University of Reading, Institute of Education. Her research interests include language learner strategies, second language listening comprehension and motivation for language learning.

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