The Post Listening Phase

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

In the theoretical part of the paper we first and foremost sought to analyze listening phases such as pre-listening phase, while-listening phase and post-listening phase. We defined the term listening comprehension as well as the significance of listening comprehension. According to Pokrivčáková (2010, p.61) listening is ‘a receptive communicative skill. It provides the aural input as the basis for development for all remaining language skills. By developing their ability to listen well, learners become more independent, as by hearing accurately they are much more likely to be able to interact in a foreign language effectively.’

A listening process can be divided into three phases including: pre-listening, while-listening and post-listening phase. The stages cannot be parted because they are closely connected, and should help learners to improve their listening skills. These stages are necessary part of listening comprehension and the teacher must support the learners to be vigorous.

The aim of our research is to find out whether the teachers from elementary schools use the phases of listening comprehension and what activities or tasks they use in these phases. In addition, the activities of the teachers in English language classes will be explored.

The teaching process, which includes listening, can be observed. So we have decided to focus our observation on the activities of the teacher in respective listening comprehension phases. These activities includes: clear instructions given to the pupils, immediate or instent feedback, number of recording played by the teacher, way of checking learners’ responds.

Drawing on our review of domestic and foreign scholarly literature we have set the following research questions:

Question no. 1:

Does the teacher give the students clear instructions in the pre-listening phase?

Question no. 2:

How many times does the teacher play the recording for the students in the course of the while-listening phase?

Question no. 3:

Does the teacher give the learners the instant feedback?

Question no. 4:

How does the teacher check the correctness of students' answers?

Our goal for the research part of the paper will be to find answers for the aforementioned questions and prove or refute hypothesis which have been formulated on the basis of theoretical points of departures and the research questions as follows:

Hypothesis no. 1:

Teachers use all three phases of listening comprehension.

Hypothesis no. 2:

In the course of the pre-listening phase, teachers prefer tasks such as a Discussion on the theme of the recorded passage.

Hypothesis no. 3:

In the course of the while-listening phase, teachers use True/false exercises.

Hypothesis no. 4:

In the course of the post-listening phase teachers prefer Role play activities.

5.2 Research sample

The research was done on a sample of English language teachers at the junior high school (secondary school) level. 20 teachers and 10 pupils participated in the research. The research sample included urban as well as rural elementary schools and starting as well as experienced teachers mostly from the self-governing region of Trenčín. A questionnaire was used in the research (see Appendix B). The questionnaire consisted of five questions. For the purpose of comparability the research results are given in %.

The research sample also includes the observation of twelve English language classes.

5.3 Research methodology

Our research is divided into three parts. In the first part we used the method of direct structured observation; in the second part we used the questionnaire method. On the basis of the results of these research methods we prepared three classes as part of the educational practice (practice-teach). Subsequently, these classes were taught and conclusions or observations following from them can be found in the conclusion of the survey. We compared these conclusions with the conclusions which follow from class observation, the questionnaire or theory. In other words, we compared classes taught by other teachers with our own three classes. Each class is focused on one of the listening phases. It means that the first class is focused on the pre-listening phase, the second class on the while-listening phase, and the third class on the post-listening phase. I worked with a group that consisted of 10 students. All students were 14-years-old; their level of English was A2. Some of them were very good at English; however, there were poorer learners, too.

Before I prepared exercises and various activities for the students, it had been important to find a suitable text which would be interesting for the pupils and which would attract their attention. Attracting students' attention as well as motivating them is both very important and difficult. I opted for the topic: Medical problem. I prepared a suitable text as well as exercises, so that my class would not give a stereotypical impression, but rather enliven the teaching process in the class. The respective types of exercises were as follows:

At the doctor's

Topic: Medical problem

Aims: to practise listening and speaking to a doctor

Vocabulary: Medical problems and treatment

Pre-listening stage

1. Brainstorming: Give students three minutes to list the name for common ailments as many as possible. Get them to write them on the board and ask other students to add some of their words. Check students understanding and practise pronunciation.

2. Talking: Ask a few students when they last went to the doctor's:

When did you last go to the doctor's?

What for?

3. Work with a book

Tell students to study the pictures and captions, and to tell you when they need these words. (to describe a problem to a doctor)

Check their understanding of the words, and revise part of the body, by asking:

What's swollen? – finger, toe...

What's bleeding? – knee, head...

What's hurt?

What's sore?

Tell students to look at the pictures and tell you what they have in common. (They are used by doctors for medical problems). Check understanding by asking questions:

What do you put in a sling? (an arm)

What do you do with tablets? (you take them)

When do you use an x-ray, a bandage, a plaster?

Stronger groups

Students write two- three sentences about a medical problem they have had. They should say when it happened, what the problem was and what treatment the doctor gave. Walk round the class as students write, giving help where needed.

While-listening stage

1. Draw into notebook the report cards. What does diagnosis means? Problem:___________________

Diagnosis:__________________

Treatment:__________________

Listen to the first conversation at the doctor's.

Which part of the body hurts?

2. Listen to the dialogue again.

How the patient hurt it? Is it broken?

What does sprained mean?

3. Listen to the second conversation.

What is the patient's problem?

4. Listen to the dialogue again.

How long has it been like this? Is it itchy?

What does drops mean?

Now complete the report cards.

5. Listen to the conversation again and check your answers.

Patient 1

Problem:___________________

Diagnosis:__________________

Treatment:__________________

Patient 2

Problem:___________________

Diagnosis:__________________

Treatment:__________________

Post-listening stage

Warm up – how do you say ...

Use the anagrams in brackets to complete the sentences.

My throat is very ____________ (eros).

I've cut my finger and it's ______________ (glibened).

I can't walk very easily. My knee is ________________ (lowsnel).

My face feels very ________________ (thyic).

Is your eye all right? It looks ________________ (uniflap).

Number the dialogue in the correct order.

_ I've hurt my finger.

_ Will I have to go to the hospital for that?

_ Goodbye.

_ Hello. What can I do for you?

_ Yes, but it's very painful.

_ Hello, doctor.

_ About three days. I closed a door on it.

_ Yes, here you are. Take this letter to the hospital and they'll x-ray it for you.

_ How long has it been like this?

_ I see. Well, I think you've probably broken it, so you'll need an x-ray.

_ Hmm. Yes. It's a bit swollen. Can you bend it?

_ Thank you, doctor. Goodbye.

What do you remember from the first conversation? What questions did the doctor ask? What did he tell the patient to do, and why? Now create a dialogue from the information on the report cards.

Try to identify the problem. In pairs, choose one situation and work out a similar dialogue, one student is a doctor, the other is the patient. Two groups can to act their scene for the rest of the class.

Revision. Dictate the names of several minor medical problems (sprained ankle, cough, toothache, sore throat, headache). Get students to read the words back to you, and to spell them. Write them on the board. Ask students to explain what they mean.

5.4 The comprehensibility of instructions in the pre-listening phase

5.4.1 Theoretical point of departure

The pre-listening stage is the first and needful part of listening comprehension. Pokrivčáková (2010) claims that this type of stage should be extended enough. Underwood (1989, p.32) states that ‘making sure that the students know exactly what is required of them is an essential part of the pre-listening stage. All the students should understand what they have to do before the teacher start to play, read or speak the listening text.’ In the pre-listening phase it is important that the students get clear instructions on what they are to do while listening. The students need to know what they are required to do. It is an inevitable part of the pre-listening phase. All students should understand what they are to do before the teacher turns on the radio (Underwood, 1989). Rixon (1993) argues that it is necessary for the teacher to make sure that the students have understood the task. The teacher must give the students understandable instructions before the listening process begins. The students must understand the reason for listening (Pokrivčáková, 2010).

5.4.2 Research results

Observation of the teachers brought results which can be seen in the table.

Tab 1 The comprehensibility of instructions in the pre-listening phase

The teacher…

total

%

explained the students what they have to do while they are listening

10

83

did not explain the learners what have to do while they are listening

2

16,6

Statement: While observing English language classes we found out that in most cases (i.e. 83 % of the observed classes) the teacher makes sure that the students know exactly what they are required to do before he or she turns on the recording for the first time. In other words, the teacher tells them exactly what they need to do while listening, what they need to focus on and what they need to pay their attention to. However, we also found out that in 16.6 % of the classes the teacher did not give the students clear instructions and directions with regard to what they need to do while listening.

5.5 The number of recordings played by the teacher in the while-listening phase and the results obtained by observation

5.5.1 Theoretical point of departure

The while-listening stage is the next part of listening process. In this stage the teacher controls the listening task and students concentrate to the listening text. According to Pokrivčáková (2010) during the while-listening stage learners demand to listen to a passage at least twice. In some cases students need three or four listenings to work it out. The first listening admit students an universal plot about the passage. The students should not be requested to achieve any understanding task before their first listening.

5.5.2 Research results

The research brought the following results:

Tab 2 The number of recordings

The teacher played the recording...

total

%

Once

0

0

Twice

4

33,2

Three times

8

66,4

More than three times

0

0

Statement: While observing the English language classes we found out that the teachers play recordings to students at least two times. The observation showed that in 33.2 % of the observed classes the teacher played recordings to the students two times and in 66.4 % of the classes even three times.

5.6 The immediate feedback in the while-listening

5.6.1 Theoretical point of departure

In this type of stage it is very significant to keep instant feedback. The main purpose of feedback is to check whether the learners have succeedeed in the tasks or not. But it is also rigid for teacher (Underwood, 1989). As Underwood (1989, p.73) claims ‘it is necessary to replay the listening text in order to refer to the salient points. A number of value of discussion in not held immediately, while relevant are uppermost in everyone's mind.’ The learners can divide their knowledge in pair or group work. It is more appropriate (Harmer, 1991). ‘Pair or group checking can follow while-listening tasks and can lead to interesting post-listening consideration of the passage and the exercises (Underwood, 1989, p.73).’

5.6.2 Research results

Tab 3 The instant feedback during while-listening phase

The teacher gave the learners immediate feedback

Number

Total

Yes

2

16,6

No

10

83

Statement: While observing English language classes we found out that the teachers do not give the students a feedback immediately after listening. This observation proved to be true in 83% of the observed classes. We found out that in only 16.6% of the cases were the students given an immediate feedback by the teacher. This feedback was given in such a way that the teacher paused the recording in the course of listening and asked the students questions related to the topic.

5.7 Way of checking student's correct answers and the results obtained by observation

5.7.1 Theoretical point of departure

In the post-listening stage it is necessary to check whether the learners have understood what they needed to work out and whether they have achieved whatever task has been set successfully (Underwood, 1989). Pokrivčáková (2010, p.65) argues that ‘the teacher can use post-listening activities to check comprehension, evaluate development of listening skills or the practical use of selected listening strategies.’ The teacher has to control the correct answer when learners finish their listening task (Lindsay and Kinght, 2006). Underwood (1989, p.75) argues that ‘the teacher should give the answers orally, by pairs checking each other's answers, by the teacher showing the answer on the overhead projector, by group discussion, by asking the students to check against answers given in a book.’ It is convenient to completed without paying attention how many responds learners have got correct or incorrect.

5.7.2 Research results

The results of the research we can see in the table:

Tab 4 Way of checking students' correct answers

The teacher checked the correct answers …

total

%

Orally

9

75

In pairs

2

16,6

He wrote the correct answers on the board

1

8,3

Statement: The table shows that teachers check the correctness of students' answers in various ways. In no less than 75 % of the cases the teacher checks the correctness of answers orally, in 16.6 % of the cases in pairs, i.e. the pupils check each other's answers, and in 8.3 % of the cases the teacher wrote down the correct answers on the board.

5.8 Research results acquired via the questionnaire method

5.8.1 Data acquired via a questionnaire given to the teachers

The first question of the questionnaire sought to know which listening comprehension phases the English language teachers use in listening lessons.

Tab 5 The stages of listening comprehension used by the teachers

choices

No. of answers

%

Pre-listening stage

4

20

While-listening stage

1

5

Post-listening stage

0

0

All three stages

15

75

Statement: The research showed that 20 % of the teachers use the first listening comprehension phase, 5 % of the teachers opted for the second listening phase, i.e. the while-listening phase, and 75 % of the teachers use all three listening comprehension phases.

The second question of the questionnaire inquired whether the English language teachers think it is necessary to use all three phases of listening comprehension.

Tab 6 The necessity of using all the stages of listening comprehension

choices

No. of answers

%

Yes

19

95

No

1

5

Statement: The questionnaire showed that 95 % of the teachers think it is necessary to keep all three listening phases; only 5 % of the asked teachers believe it is unnecessary to use all three listening comprehension phases.

The next question of the questionnaire sought to ask the teachers which exercises they use with their students in the pre-listening phase.

Tab 7 Types of activities used in the pre-listening stage

choices

No. of answers

%

Discussion on the theme of the recorded passage

10

50

Pre-teaching vocabulary

12

60

Making predictions about the passage for listening

6

30

None

0

0

Others

0

0

Statement: 50% of the teachers use exercises such as Discussion on the theme of the recorded passage, 60% of the asked teachers employ Pre-teaching vocabulary in their classes, and 30% of the teachers make use of activities such as Making predictions about the passage for listening.

The fourth question of the questionnaire explored what exercises the teachers do with their students in the course of the while-listening phase.

Tab 8 Kind of tasks used in the while-listening stage

choices

No. of answers

%

Text completion-gap filling

14

70

True/false

12

60

Multiple choice questions

6

30

Putting pictures in order

8

40

Ticking off items

7

35

Information search

7

35

Others

0

0

Statement: 70% of the teachers use exercises such as Text completion-gap filling in the course of the while-listening phase, 60% of them prefer True/false exercises, 30% of the asked teachers prefer Multiple choice questions, 40% of the teachers use Putting pictures in order, and 35% of the teachers use activities such as Ticking off items and Information search in their English classes.

In the last question the teachers were asked to say what activities they usually use with their students in the post-listening phase.

Tab 9 Sort of exercises treated in the post-listening stage

choices

No. of answers

%

Role play

10

50

Summarizing

6

30

Form completion

4

20

Others

0

0

Statement: In the last listening comprehension phase, i.e. the post-listening phase, 50 % of the teachers use Role play exercises, 30 % Summarizing activities, and 20 % Form completion exercises.

5.9 The practical use of the results

Listening comprehension is a very important skill, together with the other three such as writing, reading and speaking. Listening comprehension must be paid much attention in the teaching process. Teachers should pay greater attention to this skill because it is becoming a must for students who want to understand English speakers and to communicate in English.

In the course of both parts of our research - questionnaire and direct structured observation - we focused on the respective listening comprehension phases which represent a necessary part of the teaching process that makes use of the practice of listening comprehension. These phases represent an inevitable part of the teaching process and therefore they cannot function separately. Teachers should use all three stages of listening comprehension in listening lessons.

The first of these phases is the pre-listening phase. With regard to this first phase our research sought to explore whether this phase is used, what exercises the teachers prefer in the course of this phase and whether the teachers give the students sufficiently clear instructions before the listening begins. The research showed that the teachers use this phase in their English language classes. Within this phase they use exercises such as Pre-teaching vocabulary. These exercises are very helpful because students acquire new vocabulary which substantially helps them with listening to the text. The use of the pre-listening phase is very important and all teachers should use it when they teach English. It is a so-called introductory phase which is as important as the following two phases. This phase must be adequately long; it is necessary to motivate the students and help them adapt to the while-listening phase. In the course of this phase the teacher should give the learners necessary information, lead a discussion with them on the topic in question, etc. Each of these activities help the pupils gain a certain insight into what is going to follow. In the course of this phase it is necessary that the teacher gives the students understandable instructions. The learners must exactly know what they are required to do. It is an inevitable part of the pre-listening phase. Unfortunately, it was observed in some classes that the teachers not always clearly explain to the students what the latter are supposed to do or do not make sure whether the pupils have understood their instructions. In the course of this phase the teachers should also use other types of exercises such as Setting the context or Checking the listening tasks. There is a great number of exercises which can be used in the course of the pre-listening phase.

The second phase is no less important. It is the while-listening phase and it follows immediately after the pre-listening phase. In the course of this phase students do exercises while or immediately after listening. Therefore, it is crucial to find suitable exercises or activities. In the course of this phase we once again inquired whether the teachers employ it in their English classes, what types of exercises they use, how many times the teacher plays the recording to the students and also if the teachers use the instant feedback. The research showed that the teachers use this phase in the course of the teaching process as well. Most teachers use Text completion - gap filling exercises. Nevertheless, they also use other types of exercises such as True/false, Multiple choice, Putting pictures, etc. In their classes the teachers should also use other types of exercises or activities, for example Listen and draw or Listen and correct. As we have already mentioned, it is possible to use a great number of interesting exercises during this phase as well. There are much more creative types of exercises which would certainly enliven the stereotype of the teaching process. In the course of the observation we sought to explore how many times the teacher plays the recording to the students. The learners should hear the recording at least twice. It can sometimes happen that the pupils need to hear the recording three or more times. This phenomenon is very important in the course of the while-listening phase. After the first listening the teacher should not interrupt the recording, but should rather play it without interruption. Thus the students have a chance to hear the whole text continuously. Next, the pupils should compare their answers in pairs or groups before the teacher will call on them. After this phase the recording should be played for the second time. The teacher should play the recording as many times as necessary. The student must have enough opportunities to listen to the recording. In the course of this phase we also sought to find out whether the teachers use an immediate feedback. Using an immediate feedback is both necessary and very important. The learners need to know whether or not they did well while listening. They also need to know in what parts of the exercise they made mistakes. Students remember what they have just heard for a very short time only. Therefore, it is crucial to use an immediate feedback. Not using a feedback can cause that the students will be frustrated and loose the interest in learning. The learners can check their results in pairs or small groups. In that way they can discuss their answers with each other. The teacher should not neglect using a feedback, even though it might be difficult to capture the students' attention, especially in case of younger students.

The third - and last - listening phase is the post-listening phase. It is very important to employ this phase in the teaching process as it gives the students an opportunity to use their knowledge in real-life situations. It is also important to use appropriate exercises and activities in the course of this phase. The learners should find the topic interesting and attractive. Again, we inquired whether the phase is employed, what exercises the teachers use, and in what way the teacher checks the correctness of students' answers. The research showed that this phase is used as well; the most common type of exercise is Role play. Here it is also necessary to point out that the teachers could employ other types of exercises such as Jigsaw listening or Problem-solving, too. These exercises are more creative and they would enliven the stereotype of the teaching process. The teachers can check correct answers in various ways. The research proved that most teachers check correct answers orally. The learners could check the answers in pairs or groups which would be less stressful for them than being called on by the teacher individually. The atmosphere in the class would be more relaxed and less tense. In the course of the observation of the English classes we found out that most classes proceeded almost identically as if done according to a certain pattern or template. First, new vocabulary was explained, then the pupils listened to a recording, and finally they filled in given exercises connected with the recording.

In conclusion, it should be noted that our research with 20 participating teachers and 10 pupils was only informative. Therefore, these conclusions cannot be generalized and applied to all elementary school teachers.

Conclusion

The results of this research were supposed to help us find out whether the respondents from elementary schools use the phases of listening comprehension and what exercises or tasks they use in respective phases. In addition, the activities of the teachers in English language classes were explored. The aim of the research was to find answers of the research questions and to confirm or not to confirm acknowledge our assumptions, which we introduced in hypothesis.

Question no. 1:

Does the teacher give the students clear instructions in the pre-listening phase?

Having analyzed the results acquired through observation in the classes, we found out that in most of the observed classes (i.e. 83 %) the teacher had clearly explained to the students what they were to do before they listened to the text. In other words, the students knew exactly what they should focus their attention on while listening to the recording. In only a few classes, which represented 16.6 % according to our observation, the teacher did not give the students precise instructions with regard to what they were expected to do while listening. As a consequence, most students were confused and did not know exactly what they were expected to do. Therefore, they did not focus on the recording, but rather inquired what they were supposed to do with the exercise in question anyway.

Question no. 2:

How many times does the teacher play the recording for the pupils in the course of the while-listening phase?

In the course of our observation we found out that the recordings were played more than two times in most of the observed classes. Mostly (i.e. 66.4 % of the classes) they were played three times. If they were played two times only, the reason was that the students did not need to listen to the recording anymore. The learners were able to fill in the exercise without further listening to the recording. The teacher asked the students whether they need to listen to the recording one more time, but the pupils did not. There were very bright and apt students in the class.

Question no. 3:

Did the teacher provide an immediate feedback in the while-listening phase?

In the course of our observation we found out that the teachers do not give the students a feedback immediately after listening. It proved to be true that in no less than 83% of the observed classes the teachers did not provide an immediate feedback; the pupils were given a feedback by the teacher in 16.6% of the classes only. In the classes where an immediate feedback was provided the teacher paused the recording in the course of listening after a certain passage and asked the learners questions. It was quite difficult to keep students' attention as they were younger pupils. In this case it is appropriate if learners solve a given task in pairs or small groups.

Question no. 4:

How does the teacher check the correctness of students' answers?

In our observation we found out that the teachers check the correctness of students' answers in various ways. However, in most cases (up to 75 % of the observed classes) the teachers checked the correctness of pupils' answers orally. That is to say, the teacher asked a question, waited for a moment and then called on a student. In some classes the learners checked correct answers in pairs. Alternatively, the teachers wrote correct answers down on the board and the students checked them.

Hypothesis no. 1:

Teachers use all three phases of listening comprehension.

The research showed that up to 75 % of the asked teachers use all three listening comprehension phases. That is a very satisfying trend. For the purpose of listening comprehension it is necessary to use all three listening phases because they organically connect to each other and cannot function separately. Only an insignificant number of the teachers is of a different opinion. These results can be found in Table 4. That also proved our hypothesis as correct.

Hypothesis no. 2:

In the course of the pre-listening phase teachers prefer exercises such as Discussion on the theme of the recorded passage.

The questionnaire showed that 50 % of the teachers use exercises such as Discussion on the theme of the recorded passage in the course of the pre-listening phase, but even 60 % of the teachers use exercises such as Pre-teaching vocabulary. Therefore, our hypothesis was refuted. This result can be found in Table 6.

Hypothesis no. 3:

In the course of the while-listening phase the teachers use True/false exercises.

The questionnaire showed that in a vast majority of the elementary schools exercises such as Text completion - gap filling are used in the course of the while-listening phase. It represents no less than 70 %. We expected that True/false exercises would be used most often. However, the questionnaire proved that this kind of exercises is used by 60 % of the teachers only. It means that our hypothesis was refuted once again. The result can be found in Table 7.

Hypothesis no. 4:

For the post-listening phase the teachers prefer Role play activities.

The survey showed that no less than 50 % of the asked teachers use Role play exercises in the post-listening phase. It means that our hypothesis was proved as correct in this case. The teachers also use other types of exercises, for example Summarizing or Form completion. Nevertheless, Role play is used most often. The result can be found in Table 8.

For the last phase of our survey we prepared 3 classes which were subsequently taught. Each class was focused on one of the listening phases. It means that the first class was focused on the pre-listening phase, the second class on the while-listening phase, and the third class on the post-listening phase. While preparing respective exercises or activities and looking for a suitable text, I tried to keep all the criteria which these phases should meet. These criteria or requirements can be found in the theoretical part of the paper. The pre-listening phase consists of five exercises.

The pre-listening phase

In the first exercise I gave the students some time to think about common diseases they know. These included, for example, cold, sore throat, flu, stomachache, broken leg, etc. Then they wrote them down on the board and the rest of the pupils subsequently added and wrote other words. If the students did not know the meaning of some words, we all explained them to each other and we also practiced their pronunciation. Most learners were able to respond quickly and visualize common diseases. While writing these words on the board, the students were extraordinarily active and tried to write down as many words as possible. I tried to make sure that all pupils in the class were active and involved in the teaching process. The students were challenged to think and be alert constantly. While one of the learners was writing on the board, others prepared other words. Finally, we pronounced these words aloud together with the whole class for several times so that they might remember them better.

In the course of the second activity I was asking the students when the last time they visited a doctor was and what the reason was for this visit. The pupils did not have a problem entering into conversation on this topic and did not have a problem with vocabulary either. They were able to express themselves fluently. If some of the students did not want to respond, I did not force them to enter the activity. I do not think it is even possible to force pupils to communicate.

In the third activity of the pre-listening phase the students were asked to look at pictures and captions to these pictures in their textbook and to say when they use these words. In other words, to say how they would describe their problem to a doctor. Together with the students we were solving this situation, explaining necessary vocabulary and repeating those body parts which are related to the topic in question. In the course of this exercise the pupils were again active and attentive and tried to solve the problem in question as good as possible.

For the fourth exercise we used the textbook again. The students were asked to look at pictures in the textbook and to say what these pictures have in common. Afterwards, I asked the pupils questions such as: What do you put in a sling? What do you do with tablets? I can also evaluate this activity positively as the students made efforts to answer my questions. If they struggled with vocabulary, we immediately explained how the word in question is pronounced or how to say best what they wanted to say. I wrote the respective words down on the board for the pupils to remember them better.

I selected the last exercise of the pre-listening phase because there were some very apt and bright students in the group. I came to this conclusion while I was working with this group of pupils during the previous classes within my practice-teach. That was also the reason why I opted for this group of students. The learners were asked to write 2-3 sentences about health problems they have ever had. The sentences were to inform about when that happened, what the problem was and what medicine they were prescribed by the doctor. The students promptly wrote several sentences on the topic in question; when they needed help, I gave it to them. They were also free to use dictionaries but I tried to respond to their request swiftly. Most pupilss were able to accomplish the exercise on their own, without my help. Afterwards, we read their answers in front of the whole class. The group I worked with had relatively extensive vocabulary with regard to their level of English and they therefore did not struggle with this kind of activities.

I assess this phase as extraordinarily successful and interesting. As mentioned in the theoretical part of the paper, the pre-listening phase is very important and affects the other two phases which follow. In the course of this phase I tried to provide the students with understandable instructions so that it is clear what they are expected to do. If they did not understand, I explained it to them one more time. The respective exercises used in the course of this phase prepare students for the very process of listening and that is very important. Therefore, we worked with vocabulary so that the students memorize the vocabulary which they needed later in the following phases of the teaching process.

The while-listening phase

The while-listening phase also consists of five exercises. We began this phase of listening comprehension by asking the students to draw a card in their notebook which they were to complete later in the course of listening. Before the first listening I asked the students what the word diagnosis means. Some but not all students knew this word; therefore, we first explained it so that they did not have problems understanding. I wrote it down on the board again. Then the pupils listened to a dialog for the first time. After the first listening I asked them: Which part of the body hurts? And the students responded. Many were surprised how much they understood.

Then they listened to the recording for the second time. And again I asked them: How did the patient hurt it? Is it broken? In this case the students were able to respond promptly again. Afterwards, I wrote the word sprained down on the board and asked whether the students knew this word. Most students knew this word. As I have already mentioned, I worked with the group of learners with very extensive vocabulary.

After that the students listened to another dialog and we proceeded in the same way.

Finally, the pupils were asked to complete their cards. I played the recording for them one more time so that they could check their answers. Lastly, I let the learners check the correct answers with each other in pairs.

Had they need to listen to the recording once more, I would have played it for them. I played the recording for the pupils as many times as they needed. The theoretical part says that students should listen to a recording at least two times. However, it can also be found that learners should be played a recording as many times as necessary. I also tried to observe these criteria. In the course of this phase I also tried to give an immediate feedback which is very important in this phase of listening and which is usually given little attention. Our research has shown that teachers almost never give an immediate feedback which is a major mistake. In most classes, this phase proceeds in such a way that the teacher plays the recording 2-3 times without pausing it. As many authors claim in the theoretical part of the paper, students remember what they hear for a very short time only. Therefore, it is necessary to use a feedback. Not using it can lead to learners' frustration and loss of interest in learning. Even though the use of a feedback can be demanding for both teachers and pupils, it is necessary to use it in the course of the while-listening phase.

The post-listening phase

At the beginning of this phase I wanted the students to repeat the vocabulary from previous classes so that they would be able to work on the following exercises without problems. I asked the pupils individually: How do you say...? And the students were supposed to respond to my question. They did not have the slightest problem with this activity. The topic from previous classes captured their attention and, therefore, they remembered the vocabulary well and had no problem recalling them.

After we practiced the vocabulary, I asked the learners to complete two exercises (2 and 3) from their workbook. We checked the correct answers together. I made a compromise in this part of the class. We checked the first exercise orally, i.e. I called on individual students. The students were asked to check the second exercise in pairs. They were also free to use the key to the exercises; therefore, I was sure that their answers will be correct after all. I liked this second way of checking the exercises better and the pupils also evaluated it positively. Our research shows that teachers check the correctness of students' answers orally in most cases.

The fourth exercise was focused on dialog formation. The learners were asked to prepare a dialog among themselves in accordance with the completed cards. They had completed these cards in the previous class while listening. If they wanted to, they could write the dialogs down in their notebook in order to remember them better and to avoid stress from the presentation of dialogs. The students tried to prepare most creative dialogs. They liked the activity.

The pupils liked the fifth activity as well. As part of this activity, the students first prepared a dialog among themselves. One pupil was a doctor and the other was a patient. The dialogs were supposed to be similar to those they had listened to in the last class. Shy students wrote the dialogs down in their notebook in order to avoid stage fright while presenting them. After that, two groups of learners presented the dialogs in front of the class. This activity was enjoyed by the students extraordinarily and had big success. This exercise helped eliminate stress and shyness and the pupils were completely relaxed.

In the last exercise of the post-listening phase I dictated several types of health problems to the students. These included, for example: sprained ankle, cough, toothache, sore throat, and headache. The learners read these words and were also asked to spell them. Then they wrote them down on the board. The students were expected to try explaining these words by describing them in English. I selected this activity because of the aforementioned reason, namely that there were very apt students in the group. They liked this activity very much because they were not used to doing such activities with their teacher, as they told me.

Self-reflection

The respective classes I taught were of much benefit to me as a future teacher. I had an opportunity to get a complete picture on how to prepare for a class, how to manage the time necessary for individual activities, how to choose a suitable text, and many other helpful things. In the course of the respective classes the students actively participated in the teaching process and there was a friendly atmosphere in the class. My overall impression is positive.

Summary

The aim of the final thesis was to explore various aspects of the process of listening comprehension, including both theoretical and practical ones.

The paper is divided into a theoretical and a practical part. The theoretical part consists of four chapters. The first chapter deals with the features of listening comprehension. Moreover, it clarifies various understandings of the concept as suggested by many leading authors. The second chapter was focused on the pre-listening phase. It accentuates the importance of this phase and discusses its nature as suggested by authors such as Underwood, Rixon or Pokrivčáková. It also includes various types of exercises which may be applied in the course of this phase and factors which influence the choice of these tasks. The third chapter illuminated the while-listening phase, its purpose and significance as well as exercises, the importance of instant feedback used in the course of this phase. The last chapter of the theoretical part of the paper focused on the post-listening phase. It clarified its essence and purpose; the chapter includes a number of activities related to this phase and factors that influence the selection of these activities.

The practical part of the final thesis, i.e. the fifth chapter explored the implementation of the respective phases of listening comprehension on a sample of teachers of English language at the junior high school (secondary school) level. This part was divided into three parts. In the first part we used direct structured observation, in the second part questionnaire and in the last part we created three English lessons. Each lesson was focused on one phase of listening comprehension. A questionnaire consisted of five questions. The research sample also included observation of English language classes. The aim of the research was to find out whether teachers use listening comprehension phases during their English classes, what significance they attribute to them, and what kinds of exercises they use in respective phases. The activities of the teachers in the class were also observed. The research showed that teachers mostly use all three listening phases and regard them as important. They use various types of exercises in respective phases. However, these are mostly stereotypical, traditional types of tasks. We suggest that more creative activities should be used which would lead to enlivening the teaching process. While observing English classes we have found out that most classes proceeded almost in the same way. First, new vocabulary was explained. Then the pupils listened to a recording, and, finally, they filled in given exercises connected with the recording.

In conclusion, we would like to note that today there are changes in the teaching process of English language. These changes are related to the use of English language in many spheres of life. Therefore, one can see that the issue of teaching listening skills in English classes is a very important factor which has an impact on the communication efficiency in this language.

Resume

Záverečná práca je rozdelená na dve časti teoretickú a praktickú. V rámci teoretickej časti sa zaoberáme nasledovnými pojmami:

Počúvanie s porozumením je receptívna komunikatívna zručnosť. Počúvanie je proces, pri ktorom by mal byť žiak schopný porozumieť nahrávke, identifikovať vzťahy medzi rozprávajúcimi a taktiež identifikovať pocity rozprávajúceho, jeho myšlienky. Je to vlastne schopnosť vybaviť si a pochopiť informácie, prezentované ústnym podaním.

Proces počúvania je možné rozdeliť do troch fáz: fáza pred počúvaním, fáza počas počúvania a fáza po počúvaní. Všetky tri typy fáz počúvania sú užitočné počas vyučovacieho procesu, v ktorom by učiteľ mal motivovať a povzbudzovať žiakov k aktivite. Jednotlivé fázy nemôžu byť oddelené pretože navzájom úzko súvisia a mali by pomôcť žiakom zdokonaliť zručnosť počúvania.

Prvou z troch fáz počúvania s porozumením je fáza pred počúvaním textu. Táto fáza zahrňuje aktivity, ktoré žiaci robia pred samotným počúvaním. Cvičenia používané pred počúvaním sú veľmi dôležité. Žiaci tak získajú určitú predstavu o texte, ktorý budú počúvať. V rámci tejto fázy je nevyhnutné poskytnúť žiakom zrozumiteľné inštrukcie zo strany učiteľa. Žiaci potrebujú vedieť čo sa od nich požaduje. Je to dôležitá časť fázy pred počúvaním. Učiteľ si musí byť istý, či žiaci porozumeli čo sa od nich žiada. Nemenej dôležité je objasniť študentom slovnú zásobu, ktorá bude zahrnutá v počúvaní. Počas tejto fázy je možné uplatniť veľké množstvo cvičení.

Druhou nemenej dôležitou časťou procesu počúvania je fáza počas počúvania. Zahrňuje cvičenia alebo aktivity používané počas počúvania. Tento typ fázy nasleduje po fáze pred počúvaním. Počas tejto fázy žiakova pozornosť je zameraná na text. Žiaci by mali počúvať nahrávku minimálne dva-krát. Môže sa stať, že žiaci potrebujú počuť nahrávku tri alebo štyri krát. Nahrávku je potrebné pustiť toľkokrát koľko študent potrebuje. V tejto fáze žiaci robia rôzne cvičenia a preto je dôležité vybrať vhodné typy cvičení. Učiteľ by mal svedomito zvážiť tento výber. Aj počas tejto fázy je možné uplatniť veľké množstvo kreatívnych cvičení, ktoré prispejú k oživeniu vyučovania. Vo fáze počas počúvania je veľmi dôležitá okamžitá spätná väzba či žiaci boli úspešní počas počúvania. Bezprostredne po počúvaní si žiaci pamätajú to čo počuli len veľmi krátky čas a preto je nutné uplatniť okamžitú spätnú väzbu. Žiaci potrebuju vedieť či boli úspešní alebo nie. Bez uplatnenia spätnej väzby žiaci môžu byť frustrovaní a následne stratiť záujem o učenie.

Fáza po počúvaní textu je poslednou fázou počúvania s porozumením, ktorá nasleduje dve predchádzajúce fázy. Uplatňuje sa po počúvaní nahrávky. Učiteľ môže na základe cvičení kontrolovať jako žiaci porozumeli nahrávke. Tieto cvičenia sa používajú po skončení nahrávky. Aj počas tejto fázy má učiteľ možnosť použiť obrovské množstvo zaujímavých cvičení alebo aktivít, ktoré by prispeli k oživeniu vyučovania a zaujali by žiakov. Na záver môžeme poznamenať, že táto posledná fáza počúvania nasleduje predchádzajúce dve fázy a je aplikovaná po skončení nahrávky.

Druhá časť práce má praktický charakter. Zaoberá sa prieskumom na základných školách. Cieľom prieskumu bolo zistiť uplatňovanie fáz počúvania s porozumením na hodinách anglického jazyka. V rámci prieskumu sa skúmajú rôzne aktivity učiteľov, ktoré je možné skúmať pozorovaním. Využili sme aj metódu dotazníka a v rámci pedagogickej praxe sme si vytvorili konkrétne hodiny na jednotlivé fázy počúvania s porozumením. Na základe vopred stanovených hypotéz a výskumných otázok sme vyhodnotili celý prieskum.