Listening comprehension strategy instruction: A review of previous studiesx

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM TP HỒ CHÍ MINH 
TẠP CHÍ KHOA HỌC 
HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION
JOURNAL OF SCIENCE
ISSN: 
1859-3100 
KHOA HỌC GIÁO DỤC 
Tập 16, Số 8 (2019): 227-240 
EDUCATION SCIENCE
Vol. 16, No. 8 (2019): 227-240
 Email: tapchikhoahoc@hcmue.edu.vn; Website:  
227 
Research Article 
LISTENING COMPREHENSION STRATEGY INSTRUCTION: 
A REVIEW OF PREVIOUS STUDIESx 
Ngo Thi Thanh Huyen 
Hung Vuong University 
Corresponding author: Ngo Thi Thanh Huyen – Email: ngohuyen2003@yahoo.com 
Received: March 10, 2019; Revised: June 01, 2019; Accepted: July 16, 2019 
ABSTRACT 
The article aims to review empirical studies on the effects of listening strategy instruction on 
the learners’ listening comprehension and their uses of listening strategies. This review is 
particularly interested in studies dealing with types of strategies used by English learners and the 
differences between the learners at the end of the research. The studies to be reviewed are those in 
the world and in Vietnam. Based on the review, some major conclusions and suggestions for further 
study in this field are provided. 
Keywords: listening instruction, listening strategies, listening strategy use. 
1. Introduction 
In spite of receiving minimal concern in the teaching and learning of English as 
Second/ Foreign Language (ESL/ EFL); listening comprehension is one of the most 
important skills in language learning (Bern, 1998; Oxford, 1993). This skill not only affects 
other related academic subjects of the students such as speaking, presentation or interpreting 
in English, but it also has lots of impacts on their professional practice. Being aware of the 
importance of mastering this skill, the author of this study, who is also a teacher, has spent 
much time reviewing literature related to methods to improve her students’ listening skills 
and found that there is a need to train them how to listen effectively (Gramham &Maccaro, 
2008; Vandergrift & Tafaghodtari, 2010). Listening strategy instruction has been widely 
recognized as an effective way in improving learners’ listening proficiency across a range 
of settings (Berne, 2004; Chamot, 1993; Vandergrift, 1997). 
Given the importance of listening in ESL/ EFL learning and teaching, there has been 
a growing body of literature on how listening strategy instruction influences the learners’ 
listening comprehension (Ana, 2010; Naoko, 2000; Yi, 2014). Participants of these studies 
were both ESL and EFL learners at college or high school level in the United States, Japan, 
Cite this article as: Ngo Thi Thanh Huyen (2019). Listening comprehension strategy instruction: A review of 
previous studies. Ho Chi Minh City University of Education Journal of Science, 16(8), 227-240. 
Tạp chí Khoa học Trường ĐHSP TPHCM Tập 16, Số 8 (2019): 227-240 
228 
Turkey, Thailand, and Vietnam. As suggested by O’Malley and Chamot (1990), explicit 
instruction can be beneficial to the learners by informing them about the purpose and the 
essence of strategies to be used, helping students maintain the strategy use over time and 
transfer the strategies learned into new tasks. 
This paper aims to review what researchers have studied about the effects of listening 
strategy instruction on the learners’ listening comprehension and their strategy uses. It is 
hoped that this review may provide some directions for teaching listening skills and facilitate 
future studies by finding out some gaps. 
2. Concepts related to listening strategy instruction 
2.1. Listening comprehension 
According to various researchers, listening comprehension is viewed as active and 
problem- solving processes in which learners construct meanings from aural passages and 
relate what they hear to existing knowledge (Anderson, 1985; Chamot & Kupper, 1989; 
O’Malley & Rost, 1990; Scarcella & Oxford, 1992). 
Anderson (1985) summarized listening comprehension process by a three-stage model 
called perceptual processing, parsing and utilization. 
In perceptual processing, learners focus their attention on the text and the sounds of 
the text are retained in short-term memory. During this period, the language begins to be 
analyzed and the learners transfer some of the text into meaningful representations. They 
mainly focus on the key words to comprehend the whole text. 
In parsing, learners first understand the words by matching the aural pattern of the 
word with its representation in the declarative knowledge. Segments or chunks of the 
language (words/ phrases) are necessary to decode the meaning. The length of the phrases/ 
segments processed depends on the learners’ knowledge of the language, the topic and the 
speech of the aural texts. 
In utilization process, the learners relate a mental representation of the meaning to 
declarative knowledge. When a new text meaning comes in, declarative knowledge is 
activated. Utilization is the key to comprehend the texts because comprehension happens 
when the knowledge the learners already have well matches with the new knowledge. 
2.2. Learning strategies 
Learning strategies are commonly defined as a thought process or behaviors that 
individuals engage in to comprehend, learn or retain new information (O’Malley& Chamot, 
1990; Oxford, 1990; Rubin, 1987; Wenden, 1983). 
Many researchers agree on the following features of learning strategies: 
- Some learning strategies are observable (e.g. note taking, cooperation), while some 
others cannot be observed (e.g. monitoring, interference) (Abraham & Vann, 1987; 
O’Malley & Chamot, 1990; Oxford, 1990; Wenden, 1987). 
Tạp chí Khoa học Trường ĐHSP TPHCM Ngo Thi Thanh Huyen 
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- At the early stages, learning strategies may be performed consciously and later 
unconsciously when the strategy application becomes automatic through practice (O’Malley 
& Chamot, 1990; Oxford, 1990; Wenden, 1987; Rubin, 1987). 
- Learning strategies can be t ... mploy a wide range of them in combination 
flexibly. In terms of metacognitive strategies, the participants focused only on planning, 
selective attention and directed attention. Furthermore, they also used only strategies for 
translation, note taking and imaging though cognitive strategies play a key role in processing 
a language. The students in this study were found to use social/ affective strategies more 
frequently than other kinds of strategies. In addition, this study also found that the students 
frequently used repeated listening and using resource strategies that were not covered in the 
listening strategy taxonomy. Finally, the author concluded that the influential factors 
affecting their use of strategies, according to her, came from the cultural characteristics and 
teaching and learning approach of Vietnamese context. 
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236 
Using think-aloud protocols and questionnaire as the data collection instruments, Le 
Thi Hang (2006) found out that unsuccessful listeners dominated their successful 
counterparts in the utilization of all the three strategy categories and used greater variety of 
strategies. Moreover, the successful listeners used fewer listening strategies but more 
effectively than those who were less successful. This finding was against most studies in this 
area claiming that it seems to have reported a greater use of listening strategies by successful 
students (Wharton, 2000; Green & Oxford, 1995, cited in Le Thi Hang, 2006). The finding, 
to some extent, supported Tokeshi’s (2003), Kiely’s (2002) which reported that the higher 
level students appeared to use fewer strategies. “This is because the higher level students 
comprehended for the most part the literal meaning of the utterances, unconscious strategy 
use was thus not available” (Tokeshi, 2003, cited in Le Thi Hang, 2006), while the lower 
level students had "more problems to solve”. 
Results also revealed that metacognitive and cognitive strategies were used with the 
first and second highest frequency, which demonstrated that the students in this study relied 
heavily on metacognitive and cognitive strategies to comprehend oral messages. This is a 
significant difference from the study by Ngo Thi Hang Nga (2015). 
3.2. Commonalities of previous studies 
First, previous studies (Abdullah, 2010; Ana, 2010; Maryam, 2014; Nantikarn, 2016) 
commonly used the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire (MALQ- 
Vandergrift) as the data collection instrument to measure the students’ use of strategies. This 
instrument seemed to be an effective tool to understand the learners’ use of listening 
strategies. 
Second, results showed that the students in studies were more aware of the usefulness 
of listening strategies. They perceived listening improvement in academic listening and real 
world listening situations; raising strategy awareness, increasing confidence in English 
listening abilities (Khaled, 2012; Yi Guan, 2014; CARO, 2013; Abdullah, 2010; Le Thi 
Hang, 2006). After strategy instruction course, the students are found to use more listening 
strategies than before the course (Nantikarn, 2016; Vandergrift, 2003). 
Third, higher scorers were found to use more strategies than lower scorers, especially 
metacognitive strategies (Naoko, 2000; O’Malley et all, 1985; Vann & Abraham, 1990). 
Low scorers used cognitively simple strategies such as translation, resourcing, and rote 
memorization very often (Cohen & Aphek, 1980; Mangubhai, 1991; Naoko, 2000; O’Malley 
et all, 1985; Oxford, 1990). There was appearance of socio-affective strategies. However, 
low scorers rarely used the socio-affective strategies. Asian students barely used questioning 
for clarification in English and cooperation (Naoko, 2000; Politzer & Mc Groarty, 1985). 
Tạp chí Khoa học Trường ĐHSP TPHCM Ngo Thi Thanh Huyen 
237 
Forth, there has been emergence of combined strategy use. High scorers used a 
combined strategy of note taking and other strategies like planning, directed attention, and 
elaboration. Low scorers did not use other strategies while using note taking (Naoko, 2000; 
Yi, 2014). 
Fifth, some studies discovered that there was appearance of repeated listening (listen 
again and again to comprehend what is heard) and using other sources (dictionary), which 
were not listed in the learning strategy taxonomy (Ngo Thi Hang Nga, 2015; Naoko, 2000). 
3.3. Inconsistencies of previous studies 
First, research have shown that high-proficiency listeners used more metacognitive 
strategies like monitoring or evaluating than the low-proficiency listeners (Green & Oxford, 
1995; Naoko, 2000; Vandergrift, 2003; Wharton, 2000). This type of listeners also got more 
improvement after the strategy training course (Vandergrift & Tafaghodtari, 2010). 
However, in his research, Nantikarn (2016) argued that the intervention participants showed 
improvement in strategy use regardless of their level of proficiency, and the improvement 
was of a similar nature across the proficiency groups. Ross and Rost (1991) also supported 
this point when they first identified listening strategies that high-proficiency students used 
in successful video listening, and then taught those strategies to low-proficiency students. 
Their results showed that “specific listening strategies can be taught to learners of all 
proficiency levels”. 
Second, Le Thi Hang (2006) found out that unsuccessful listeners dominated their 
successful counterparts in the utilization of all the three strategy categories and used greater 
variety of strategies. Moreover, the successful listeners used fewer listening strategies but 
more effectively than those who were less successful. 
Third, in his study, Naoko (2000) pointed out all students rarely used metacognitive 
strategies such as planning, directed attention, selective attention and self-evaluation. 
Nevertheless, in a recent research conducted in a university in Vietnam, Ngo Thi Hang Nga 
(2015) contradicted Naoko by concluding that among metacognitive strategies, planning, 
selective attention, directed attention were reported most frequently used strategies. 
4. Conclusion 
After reviewing, comparing and contrasting the similarities and inconsistencies among 
previous studies, some conclusions are reached as follows: 
Listening strategy training is proved to be beneficial to improve learners’ listening 
comprehension; thus, listening strategies should be integrated into the listening curriculum. 
Besides the theme-based lessons, the educators should include the strategy-based ones so 
that the learners know how to apply the strategies in a long term. 
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238 
There is still debate on the learners’ use of listening strategies. There is a need for more 
research on what kinds of listening strategies are the most effective for each kind of students. 
Their English proficiency levels and factors affecting their use of strategies should be taken 
into more consideration. 
Most of the studiewere conducted as quasi-experimental or experimental research 
while there have been very few studies on listening strategy instruction that employ design 
of action research. This kind of research is popular with and beneficial for the teacher 
researchers. 
In Vietnam, there have been very few studies on applying listening strategy instruction 
in order to help students improve their listening comprehension ability. This fact paves the 
way for further research in the aspect of teaching EFL listening skills. 
 Conflict of Interest: Author have no conflict of interest to declare. 
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HƯỚNG DẪN CHIẾN LƯỢC NGHE HIỂU: TỔNG QUAN VẤN ĐỀ NGHIÊN CỨU 
Ngô Thị Thanh Huyền 
Trường Đại học Hùng Vương 
Tác giả liên hệ: Ngô Thị Thanh Huyền – Email: ngohuyen2003@yahoo.com 
Ngày nhận bài: 10-3-2019; ngày nhận bài sửa: 01-6-2019; ngày duyệt đăng: 16-7-2019 
TÓM TẮT 
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