Listening: introduction

Why do people listen to the following things?

music

podcasts

audiobooks

Listening

nature sounds

sports commentary

Which of these do you find most enjoyable?

Language skills + competencies

The studying of language can be broken down into four skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) and three* competencies (grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation).

Some people categorise the skills the following way:

A: speaking and writing

B: reading and listening

Others categorise the skills this way:

A: speaking and listening

B: reading and writing

*some people add FUNCTIONS as the 4th competency

Work with a partner and explain why these skills are categorised these ways (you just have to do a little logic work)

Also, reflect on your own experiences as language learners. Where has most of the focus been? (include skills and competencies here)

Language levels

As you may know, an organisation called the Council of Europe developed their Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in the 1990s and published it in 2001 (What? You didn't know???).

These are the people who are responsible for the A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 categorisation of learners.

Of course, there are different ways of categorising learners. Cambridge, in true Cambridge style, invented a bunch of terms that will be difficult for language learners to understand or remember. Their levels are breakthrough, waystage, threshold, vantage, effective operational proficiency, mastery.

Older, and more comprehensible terms for language learners, such as beginner, elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, upper-intermediate, advanced and proficient, have been around since the mid 20th century.

Take a look at the CEFR's breakdown of different learners' abilities with listening.

A1: I can recognise familiar words and very basic phrases about myself, my family and immediate concrete surroundings when people speak slowly and clearly.

A2: I can understand phrases and the highest frequency vocabulary related to areas of immediate personal relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). I can catch the main idea in short, clear, simple messages and announcements.

B1: I can understand the main points of clear standard speech on familiar topics which appear regularly about work, school, free time, etc. I can understand the main point of some TV programmes on current affairs or topics of personal or professional interest when the delivery is slow and clear.

B2: I can understand extended speech and lectures and follow even complex lines of argument if the topic is reasonably familiar. I can understand most TV news and current affairs programmes. I can understand the majority of films in standard dialect.

C1: I can understand extended speech even when it is not clearly structured and when relationships are only implied and not stated explicitly. I can understand television programmes and films without too much effort.

C2: I have no difficulty in understanding any kind of spoken language, whether live or broadcast, even when delivered at fast native speed, but I might need some time to get familiar with the accent.

Which level best describes you?

Refer specifically to the different kinds of text that are mentioned above.

Talk about any other kinds of things you CAN or CAN'T do when it comes to listening.

Now listen to an audio text.

You will listen to TWO speakers talking about their first day at work.

First, listen and answer the following questions:

What problems did they have?

Which level do you think this is suitable for?

You might be surprised, but this text actually comes from PRE-INTERMEDIATE.

Some of the language they use is definitely beyond what many A2-level students are comfortable with, but the TEXT is just one thing that is considered.

More important than the TEXT is the TASK.

Listen again and answer the questions below.

Answer with S (Simon), C (Clare) or B (both of them)

Now compare your answers with a partner

In theory, almost any text can be used with any level if the task is appropriate.

Many students have the false idea that they need to understand everything in a listening text. When they don't, they think that they have weak listening skills.

This kind of thinking is likely to do a lot more harm than good.

Listening 2

Now we're going to do another listening task. This time, you're going to listen to a meteorologist, Mike Bench, talking about his job.

Before you listen, how do you think Mike will answer the following questions?

01: What's the difference between a meteorologist and a weather presenter?

02: How far ahead can you accurately predict the weather?

03: Are long-term forecasts ever accurate?

04: What's your favourite kind of weather?

05: Why do you think the British talk about weather so much?

06: In what ways have you noticed that the weather has changed in the last ten years?

07: Are you optimistic or pessimistic about climate change?

Now listen and check your answers

Also, what level do you think this is for? Give reasons

Go to 6:50

Now listen again. What examples does he give of the following?

01: an occasion when it's difficult to predict the weather

02: how weather in one part of the world affects another part

03: why thunderstorms are exciting to watch at night

04: how the weather affects us day to day

05: some unusual weather this year in the UK

06: the effects of climate change on the UK weather

Now compare your answers with a partner

We'll look at this more in the next class, but did you notice any similarities in the way the TWO listening parts were organised?