AN ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTS OF MULTIMEDIA ON ENGLISH LISTENING COMPREHENSION OF JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

• Main Authors: Tsai, Pei-hua, 蔡佩樺
• Other Authors: James Oladejo
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2004
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/58484969777435831659

碩士 === 國立高雄師範大學 === 英語學系 === 92 === ABSTRACT The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of multimedia on the learning of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). More specifically, the study identifies how different media types influence the listening performance of junior high school students in Taiwan. By comparing the performance of students exposed to a given material through audio. The main questions explored in the study are: (1) which groups of students performed better on a listening comprehension task? (2) Was there any relative effectiveness in the application of audio video aids upon the listening comprehension of the students? (3) Did the provision of subtitles in video material aid listening comprehension? (4) Was there any significant gender difference in the performance of the students on the listening tasks? (5) Did students’ self-reported EFL listening habits have any significant effect on their listening comprehension? The major findings of this study are as follows: 1. The group that used audio video with no subtitle generally performed better than the other three groups in this study. 2. Female students’ performance in listening comprehension tasks are significantly better than those of their male counterparts, regardless of the medium through which the material was introduced to the students. However, the differences between the two genders are insignificant when the two groups were required to summarize the materials. 3. The habit of regularly listening to English audiotapes significantly improved the subjects’ performance on language learning. The findings have some pedagogical implications relating to the criteria for choosing EFL listening materials, teaching and learning. First, instructors need to be aware that the use of multimedia aids in language teaching does not necessarily help students learn better, unless the specific needs of individual groups of learners are given proper attention. Second, the study shows that providing background knowledge to the students through pre-listening activities relating to the contents of the material is more helpful for comprehension than using subtitles in video materials. Third, instructors ought to be aware that different multimedia resources have different influence on male and female students. Instructors, therefore, need to be selective on which multimedia aids to use in their teaching, depending on the gender of the students. Finally, it is important to create an appropriate learning environment in order to help students in gaining a better understanding of EFL materials. Using multimedia without appropriate supporting activities could actually be detrimental to EFL learning.