When we're learning a foreign language, making sense of what we hear is the first step toward fluency. It sounds obvious, but until recently, we didn't know much about how listening works. New research shows that effective listening involves more than simply hearing the words that float past our ears. Rather, it's an active process of analysing information and making meaning. Studies of skilled language learners have identified specific listening strategies that lead to excellent comprehension. In addition to that benefit, research has shown that learners who adopt these strategies become better listeners. So what are listening strategies? Skilled learners go into a listening activity with a sense of what they want to get out of it. They set a goal for their listening, and they make predictions about what the speaker will say. Before the talking begins, they review what they already know about the subject, and form an intention to “listen out for”what's important. Once they begin listening, these learners maintain their focus; if their attention wanders, they bring it back to the words being spoken. They don't allow themselves to be thrown off by confusing or unfamiliar details. Instead, they take note of what they don't understand and later make inferences(推测)about what those things might mean, based on other clues available to them: their previous knowledge of the subject, the identity of the speaker, and so on. All the while, skilled learners are evaluating what they're hearing and their own understanding of it. They're checking their inferences to see if they're correct. Such strategies are all about thinking, and they produce a variety of benefits. Research indicates that such learners are better at analysing and storing new information, better at finding the best ways to practice what they have learned. Last year, for example, University of Ottawa researcher Larry Vandergrift published his study of 106 undergraduates who were learning French as a second language. Half of the students were taught in a traditional fashion, listening to and practicing texts spoken aloud. The other half, dealing with the same skill level and taught by the same teacher, were given clear instruction on how to listen. In the journal Language Learning, Vandergrift reported the results: The second group “significantly outperformed(胜过)” the first one on a test of comprehension. In a 2006 study by researchers from Singapore, Chinese speakers who were learning English as a second language reported increased motivation and confidence after they were taught metacognitive strategies. Though listening is often treated as a way to make others feel appreciated, it's also one of the most powerful tools we have to gain information and insight(洞察力).
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