INSIGHTS INTO EFL LEARNERS’ USE OF LISTENING STRATEGIES FOR THE NEW TOEIC TEST FORMAT

Abstract

It is evident that listening comprehension is a vital skill in the process of language learning and plays a crucial role in communication, despite the fact that it is a strenuous activity requiring both background information and linguistic comprehension. Therefore, EFL learners should adopt listening strategies to facilitate the testing process. This study aimed to examine if the EFL learners at MCB English center used English listening strategies and then explore the frequency of the students’ use of these strategies. This mixed-methods employed qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect data via closed-ended questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with the participation of 221 respondents and 25 interviewees, respectively. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used for data analysis. The findings showed that a substantial proportion of the participants employed listening strategies at different levels of frequency, which were classified into three main groups, namely very high use (e.g. memory, cognitive and compensation strategies), high use (e.g. metacognitive strategies) and moderate use (e.g. affective strategies).