MODUL PEMBELAJARAN
MATA KULIAH LISTENING
Cimahi, Januari 2023
1. PENDAHULUAN (INTRODUCTION)
Listening
Everyone knows that there are four skills in learning a language,
namely listening, speaking, reading and writing. They are always related in
terms of usage, and speaking is viewed by learners as the most desirable skill
in face-to-face communication in the globalization era. However, what is the
answer to the following questions?
Weena Kanadpon is a Thai teacher of English.
• What do you have to do before you can speak?
• What does a child learn before he talks?
• What do we do before chatting?
Listen, of course!
Naturally, children begin listening to their parents when they are babies.
They are often greeted, spoken to and admired without any response
expected. Though nobody knows if the baby understands the spoken words,
the process continues. Children automatically acquire such language over
some time, and later on gradually produce it through actual experience. The
production may be incomplete at first, but successful at last. That leads to
speaking skill which is quite applicable to daily conversation.
In learning English, listening can help improve speaking considerably.
Although it is the first of all skills, it is neither the easiest nor the most
meaningless. We need to hear various types of English repeatedly and
continuously if we want to communicate properly, meaningfully and
naturally.
Why is listening good?
1. When listening, we are reviewing a lot of English usage such as
vocabulary, grammatical structures, intonation, accent and our own
interpretation.
2. We can learn new words and expressions by hearing them frequently.
3. Besides the English revision, general knowledge from news, features, or
even advertising spots is certainly beneficial for regular listeners.
4. We can imitate what we hear and apply it with great confidence.
5. Listening can be a good "hobby" while we do other things such as
cooking, ironing, exercising, relaxing etc. In other words, we have no
wasted time at all.
6. Listening is also a great way to train our attention.
(DISCUSE WITH YOUR GROUP HOW TO Improve your listening ???
7 Ways to Hear English Everywhere
Two simple definitions
• to hear: to receive sound with the ears
• to listen: to receive sound with the ears and try to understand what
you hear.
You are very good at languages. That's obvious, because you already speak
one language very well - your own! And if you can learn and speak one
language well, then you can certainly learn and speak one or more other
languages.
But did you ever ask yourself: "How did I learn my own language?" In fact, you
never really "learned" it at all - you just started speaking it. One day, when
you were about two or three years old, you started speaking your language. A
few words at first, not full sentences. But you spoke. And very soon you made
progress without even thinking about it. It was like magic!
But it wasn't magic. It was the result of hearing. For two to three years before
you spoke, you heard people speaking your language all day, and maybe all
night. You heard people speaking your language. Maybe you listened to
people, but more importantly you heard them. Then, as if by magic, you
started to speak. All that hearing was necessary for you to start speaking. For
two to three years words went IN to your head. Then words came OUT of your
head! That is why hearing (and listening to) English as much as possible is so
important to you now. The more English you put in, the more you'll get out!
So how can you hear a lot of English when you're not in an English-speaking
country or family? Fortunately, there are many ways of hearing English in
almost all countries of the world.
1. Listen to English Radio
You can receive English-language radio in most countries. Two international
networks are the BBC World Service (from the UK) and Voice of America from
(USA). Both of them have special programmes for learners of English. You can
find information about times and frequencies for your country on their
websites.
2. Watch English Television
TV is an excellent resource for hearing and listening to English. The pictures
help you understand what is being said. If you don't have access to English-
language TV, you may be able to watch TV on Internet.
3. Watch/Listen to English by Internet
It is now a lot easier to hear English by Internet. If you're reading this at your
computer or mobile device, you can probably listen to some English-language
radio news right now, without even moving! And of course you can find
endless videos in English on YouTube and similar websites (although the
English is not always easy to follow). Check out our page on links to radio by
Internet.
4. Listen to Songs in English
Songs in English are everywhere, even on foreign-language radio and TV
stations. Listen to them often. Buy some MP3s or CDs, or make recordings,
and try to write the words for an entire song. But choose one that is not too
difficult. That means it should be reasonably slow, and with real words sung
clearly. Some pop songs are very unclear and are difficult even for native
English-speakers to understand fully! Here are some easy songs for English
learners.
5. Go to Cinemas with English-language Movies
Outside the English-speaking world, many large cities have cinemas that
show films in English, usually with sub-titles. Make it a habit to go to these
films. If you need to read the sub-titles, at least you'll be hearing English even
if you don't understand it.
6. Use Video for English Listening Practice
You can use video to watch films from Internet or that you buy or borrow. If
there are subtitles, you can cover them with paper (which you can remove if
you really don't understand after listening several times). And sometimes you
can use video to record programmes from television and then watch them
several times to improve your understanding. EnglishClub has video just for
learning English.
7. Get English-speaking Friends
Try to make friends with English-speaking people so that you can practise
your English through conversation. Of course, this will improve your speaking
as well as your listening. And if you don't have a lot of time to go out and
meet people, at least you can chat a little by telephone.
Note : Finally, don't worry if you don't understand everything you hear.
Hearing comes
first! Understanding comes next!
