HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF INDUSTRY AND TRADE FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ----- 🙦 🙤 ----- DIFFICULTIES IN LISTENING COMPREHENSION OF THE FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH-MAJORED STUDENTS AT HUIT AND STRATEGIES TO COPE WITH Student’s name(s): NGUYEN THI TRANG Supervisor’s name: TRINH THU HANG Ho Chi Minh City, 2024 HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF INDUSTRY AND TRADE FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ----- 🙦 🙤 ----- DIFFICULTIES IN LISTENING COMPREHENSION OF THE FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH-MAJORED STUDENTS AT HUIT AND STRATEGIES TO COPE WITH by NGUYEN THI TRANG Student ID: 2029212803 This graduation paper is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in English at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade Supervisor: TRINH THU HANG Ho Chi Minh City, 2024 GRADUATION PAPER APPROVAL PAGE Title of Paper: Difficulties in listening comprehension of the first-year English- Majored students at HUIT and strategies to cope with Presented by: Full Name: Nguyen Thi Trang Student ID: 2029212803 Date Submitted: __11/11/2024_____________________ We, the undersigned, have reviewed the aforementioned graduation paper of the student named above. The paper has been evaluated based on content, structure, research methods, and adherence to academic standards. Supervisor Approval Trịnh Thu Hằng Faculty Review Committee 1. Reviewer's Name: ________________________ Signature: ___________________________ Date: __________________________ Comments (if any): 2.
Reviewer's Name: ________________________ Signature: ___________________________ Date: __________________________ Comments (if any): 3. Reviewer's Name: ________________________ Signature: ___________________________ Date: __________________________ Comments (if any): Result: [ ] Approved [ ] Approved with Minor Revisions [ ] Approved with Major Revisions [ ] Not Approved Final Comments from the Faculty Review Committee: All members of the review committee and the supervisor are required to sign this approval page, ensuring the paper meets the standards and requirements set by the Faculty of Foreign Languages of the Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade. NOTE: This page must be included as part of the final submission of the graduation paper. STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I, Nguyen Thi Trang, Student ID: 2029212803, declare that this graduation paper titled: " Difficulties in listening comprehension of the first-year English-Majored students at HUIT and strategies to cope with " is a creation of mine.
All outside resources have been duly acknowledged. I recognize that plagiarism is a severe infraction and that the faculty has the right to verify the originality of this work. Ho Chi Minh City, November, 11th, 2024 Nguyen Thi Trang i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I'd want to acknowledge and express my gratitude to my supervisor, Trinh Thu Hang, who made my graduation paper possible. Her support and counsel helped me get through all phases of writing my graduation paper.
I'd also want to thank my committee members for making my defense fun, as well as for your wonderful remarks and recommendations. I'd also want to thank Mr. Tran Tin Nghi and my entire family for their ongoing support and understanding as I conducted research and wrote my thesis. Your prayer for me got me this far.
Student’s name Nguyen Thi Trang ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.iv LIST OF FIGURES. Aims and Objectives. Scope of Study.
Definition of Terms. Significance of the Study.4 CHAPTER 2 : LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND. Influences on Language Learners' Listening Comprehension. Vietnamese English-Majored Students' Listening Comprehension.
Necessity for Additional Research on First-Year English - Majored Students at HUIT. The Role of Listening Strategies in Language Learning. The Impact of Technology Tools on Listening Ability. The Influence of Cultural Context on Listening Ability.
Teacher Support and Teaching Strategies in Developing Listening Skills. Difficulties in understanding native speakers when they speak. Struggles in grasping main idea in spoken texts. Impact of background noise on listening comprehension in the classroom.
Impact of accents and dialects on understanding spoken english. Helpfulness of resources provided by teachers for improving listening skills. Adequacy of feedback on listening comprehension performance. Opportunities to practice listening comprehension in class.
Frequency of listening to English audio materials outside of class. Desire for more interactive listening activities in class. Access to diverse listening materials and its impact on skills improvement. 48 iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS Abbreviations Full writing HUIT Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Difficulties in understanding native speakers when they speak.25 Figure 2: Struggles in grasping main idea in spoken texts.26 Figure 3:Impact of background noise on listening comprehension in the classroom.27 Figure 4:Impact of accents and dialects on understanding spoken English.28 Figure 5: Helpfulness of resources provided by teachers for improving listening skills.
29 Figure 6: Adequacy of feedback on listening comprehension performance.31 Figure 7: Opportunities to practice listening comprehension in class.32 Figure 8: Frequency of listening to English audio materials outside of class.33 Figure 9: Desire for more ỉnteractive listening activities in class.35 Figure 10: Access to diverse listening materials and its impact on skills improvement. 36 vi ABSTRACT Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade (HUIT) freshman majoring in English need to be proficient in listening comprehension, yet many Vietnamese them have difficulty with this area of language study. The purpose of this study is to look at the unique listening comprehension hurdles that freshmen majoring in HUIT English confront and to see what methods they use to get beyond these obstacles. Semi-structured interviews and a survey questionnaire were used in the research using a mixed-method technique.
Fifteen students were chosen to participate in the follow- up interviews out of the 120 freshman majoring in English at HUIT who completed the survey. This study offers important insights into the unique listening comprehension hurdles that HUIT freshmen majoring in English experience, as well as the approaches they use to overcome these obstacles. The results can help design focused interventions and support networks to help these kids improve their listening abilities, which will ultimately lead to an improvement in their general language competency and academic achievement. ________________________________________ Keywords: Listening comprehension, English-majored freshmen, HUIT, difficulties, strategies, vocabulary, background knowledge, speech rate, pronunciation, anxiety.
Rationale: This study explores the first-year English-Majored students of listening comprehension concerns and proposes effective techniques to alleviate them. This research topic is crucial for several reasons. Firstly, language learning and communication require listening (Vandergrift, 2007). This complicated cognitive process necessitates the integration of language and non-linguistic factors (Rost, 2011).
However, much research has shown that English- majored students suffer with listening (Gilakjani & Sabouri, 2016; Nunan, 1997). These concerns with attention, vocabulary, sound discrimination, and grammatical understanding might hinder pupils' language learning and academic success. Second, investigating listening comprehension issues and finding effective coping techniques improves English language instruction. Understanding the problems English- majored freshmen encounter helps educators create tailored instructional approaches and learning materials to help students improve their listening abilities (Goh, 2000; Vandergrift & Goh, 2012).
This will improve the English language curriculum and equip students for academic and professional success. The proposed topic also fits English language studies. Language competency depends on hearing; hence, study in this area is crucial (Rost, 2011). This study will help plan and implement English language teaching and learning programs for English- majored students.
In conclusion, the proposed research topic on the first-year English-Majored students of listening comprehension obstacles and solutions is topical and important. The study of this issue will improve English language instruction and give students the skills they need to succeed academically and professionally. Aims and Objectives The overarching aim of the present study is twofold: first, to identify and analyze the difficulties encountered by the first-year English-Majored students in English 2 listening comprehension; and second, to propose effective strategies and solutions to assist these students in improving their listening skills. To achieve these primary objectives, the study will undertake a series of interconnected research tasks.
Firstly, a comprehensive review of the existing literature will be conducted to gain a thorough understanding of the challenges faced by students in developing their listening comprehension abilities. This review will synthesize findings from previous empirical investigations and theoretical discussions on the topic. Building upon the insights garnered from the literature review, the study will then design and implement a mixed-methods approach, incorporating both surveys and interviews. This data collection process will enable the researchers to determine the specific difficulties that the first-year English-Majored students encounter in their English listening comprehension.
The survey will provide a broader, quantitative understanding of the challenges, while the interviews will offer more in-depth, qualitative insights into the students' experiences and perspectives. The data obtained from the surveys and interviews will be rigorously analyzed and synthesized to identify the key factors influencing the students' listening comprehension abilities. This analysis will form the foundation for the subsequent phase of the study, which involves the investigation and proposal of effective strategies, methods, and techniques to help English-majored students enhance their English listening skills. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed strategies will be evaluated through pilot testing with a sample of the first-year English-Majored students.
This evaluative component will provide valuable feedback to refine and optimize the recommended solutions, ensuring their practical applicability and pedagogical relevance. Scope of Study This study examines the first-year English-Majored students in listening comprehension issues. The study examines the issues this target demographic confronts in learning English. This study will look at the first-year English-Majored students at Ho Chi Minh University of Industry and Trade.
This cohort was chosen as the study's main focus 3 because they are at a vital stage of language learning and may struggle with English listening comprehension. The study will take place at the Ho Chi Minh University of Industry and Trade in Vietnam. Due to bachelor's thesis project limits, this geographical delimitation is important to make the study feasible and manageable. The study will detect and analysis the first-year English-Majored students in listening comprehension challenges.
Attention, vocabulary, sound discrimination, and grammar are examples. The study will focus on listening comprehension rather than speaking, reading, or writing. This study will use bachelor's thesis time for data collection and analysis. Due to the complexity and scale of a bachelor's thesis project, this time span allows for thorough research and relevant recommendations.
What are the main difficulties that the first-year English-Majored students at Ho Chi Minh University of Industry and Trade encounter in their English listening comprehension? 2. What effective strategies and solutions can be proposed to help the first-year English-Majored students at Ho Chi Minh University of Industry and Trade improve their English listening comprehension skills? 1. Definition of Terms English listening comprehension: refers to the ability to understand and accurately interpret the meaning of information conveyed through spoken English. This involves the cognitive processes of perceiving, parsing, and interpreting the aural input to construct meaning.
The first-year English-Majored: are students in their first year of study at the English language department/major of Ho Chi Minh University of Industry and Trade. These students have chosen to specialize in the English language as their primary field of study at the university level. 4 Listening difficulties: in this study are defined as the specific challenges and obstacles that the first-year English-Majored students encounter in their English listening comprehension. These may include, but are not limited to, issues related to attention, vocabulary knowledge, sound discrimination, and grammatical understanding.
Listening strategies: refer to the techniques, approaches, and methods that the first- year English-Majored students can employ to improve their English listening comprehension skills. These strategies may involve cognitive, metacognitive, or socio- affective processes. Significance of the Study This research study on English listening comprehension challenges faced by the first-year English-Majored students at HUIT, along with proposed solutions, will have significant implications and contributions in various areas. This study will add to English language acquisition research, notably in listening comprehension.
The in-depth study of the target population's specific challenges will help researchers understand what influences university-level English language learners' English listening skills. The study's findings will help inform and deepen theoretical discussions on successful English listening comprehension instruction. The findings of this study will benefit English language instruction.