Paper short abstract:

This study asked 26 Chinese JSL learners to listen to both authentic and non-authentic texts and compared the differences in their performance. The results showed that authentic texts are not necessarily more difficult, but sometimes help to understand the text.

Paper long abstract:

Using authentic texts in language classrooms is important to provide learners with real-world experiences by listening to the target language. The reality, however, shows that most of the listening materials used non-authentic texts which were recorded based on written scripts. In comparison, authentic texts tend to have more fillers, false starts, and back channels than non-authentic texts. This presentation is going to discuss the differences between authentic and non-authentic texts, and to show the results of the following experimental study.

In the study, 26 Chinese JSL learners whose proficiency level is equivalent to JLPT N2 or above are asked to listen to both types of texts. Later, researchers compared their performance by using the two types of data: (1) comprehension tests and (2) retrospective interviews on the listening process.

The analysis of the first data showed that authentic texts are not necessarily more difficult to comprehend than the non-authentic texts. The fact that authentic texts had more fillers, false starts, and back channels would not always hinder the learners' understanding of the text, but sometimes help the learners to understand the text. What's more, the second type of data showed that those who listened to the authentic texts are likely to use more listening strategies. However, it was also found that the use of listening strategies does not always help the learners to understand the text better. By comparing the listening process of learners with higher or lower score of the comprehension tests, it could be concluded that effective listeners do not rely too much on background knowledge, but will make good use of the information implied within the texts.

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