<p></p><p>This paper focuses on listening materials used in English language teaching in Sweden, especially in respect to the concept of global English. Global English could briefly be described as the linguistic, cultural, politic, and economic influence of English in the world. This influence concerns two aspects of English, namely the usage of English as a lingua franca in international communications, as well as the great range of English varieties that are used today. The purpose of this research is to study how varied listening materials are and how, when and why they are used in the classrooms. I conducted a two-part investigation to study these matters. The first part of the investigation focuses on teachers’ usage of listening materials and is based on a questionnaire handed out to five teachers. I found that the teachers varied much in their usage of listening materials. In the second part of the investigation I compare the listening materials provided by two Swedish textbooks on English, one from 1994 and one from 2003. Here I focus on the speakers’ varieties, rate of delivery, and instructions given for listening exercises. I found that both books featured a majority of speakers from the British Isles and America, and very few non-native speakers. The more recent book featured a larger degree of varieties outside the areas of Britain and the USA, as well as a larger degree of American English when dividing the varieties by the time these were spoken. RP (Received Pronunciation) and GA (General American) were also less dominating in the textbook from 2003. The rate of delivery was generally slower in the older textbook. The results from this investigation suggest that some changes seem to have occurred between the publishing of the two books. However, a focus on English as a lingua franca, where the aim is proficiency in efficient cross cultural communication rather than in the English spoken by native speakers,  does not seem to have influenced the textbooks studied here. It is difficult to appreciate whether or not changes like these have taken hold in Swedish classrooms, as teachers use many different listening materials and in many different ways.</p><p> </p>

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本論文為一教學實驗之研究，探討如何運用以電腦科技為媒介設計創新的學習環境，激勵台灣技專院校英語低成就學生之學習動機，增進其英語聽力能力。本研究以英語歌曲作為提升學習興趣的動源，電腦輔助學習任務為提供好玩有趣學習過程的憑藉；如此，學生可由愉悅聽歌、趣味活動中實作學習並達成學習任務目標。本論文並探索英語歌曲聽力電腦輔助學習任務對學生聽力字彙與知覺能力之影響，並了解學生對教學設計之歌曲聽力學習任務之評估。由學生在全民英檢聽力、英語母音知覺測驗、及歌曲單字聽力各方面的成績進步，顯示本實驗教學能有效改善低成就學生英語字彙與聽力學。根據相關與變異數分析結果，對學習任務評估越滿意的學生英語歌曲單字聽力成績進步越大。因此，本研究所設計之英語歌曲聽力學習任務能激發學生運用電腦與相關軟體學習編輯聲音影片，來了解英語 聲音與意義的連結、訓練養成辨識斷句的知覺聽力。此教學設計融入聽力教學、任務型學習、電腦輔助學習；且以設計研究方法觀點記錄理論基礎探討、教學資源運用、英語聽力課程中歌曲時間排練及歌曲切割之投影片簡報、歌曲對嘴表演影片製作學習任務之設計執行，提供其他英語教師作為電腦輔助聽力學習活動設計之參考。 / This study is an instructional experiment on how an innovative learning environment is constructed to motivate and improve English learning of the low-achievers at Taiwanese polytechnic colleges. Thus, this research employs English popular songs as a motivator and computer-assisted task design as a mediator for the students to do listening and play with the song materials. This instructional design provides these students with concrete task experiential learning and the pursuit for goal-oriented success, along with joyful song listening and playful task activities. This research also investigates the effects of these song listening tasks on the improvement of listening vocabulary and perceptual skills of the participants as well as their appraisals toward the designed tasks: time-rehearsing, segmenting, and lip-syncing. The effects of these song listening tasks are consolidated from the participants’ improved listening test scores from the elementary GEPT Listening Test, the Perception of Spoken English Test, and the Target Lexical Listening Test, their enhanced learning motivation and involved task performance, and their affirmed appraisals about their task fondness and the task usefulness. Furthermore, this study documents the design, implementation, and evaluation of such a song listening task-based syllabus in a digital language lab, which demonstrates an integration of second language (L2) listening instruction, task-based learning and teaching (TBLT), and computer assisted language learning (CALL). The design-based research (DBR) perspectives are also adopted to explain the role of the computer-mediated context to the innovative task construction; in addition, the task features which facilitate listening skills development and stimulate learning experience are identified by the appraisal components of song fondness and easiness, task playfulness and easiness, and task usefulness. Thus, the designed listening tasks can be shared and applied to other similar learning contexts.

This paper focuses on listening materials used in English language teaching in Sweden, especially in respect to the concept of global English. Global English could briefly be described as the linguistic, cultural, politic, and economic influence of English in the world. This influence concerns two aspects of English, namely the usage of English as a lingua franca in international communications, as well as the great range of English varieties that are used today. The purpose of this research is to study how varied listening materials are and how, when and why they are used in the classrooms. I conducted a two-part investigation to study these matters. The first part of the investigation focuses on teachers’ usage of listening materials and is based on a questionnaire handed out to five teachers. I found that the teachers varied much in their usage of listening materials. In the second part of the investigation I compare the listening materials provided by two Swedish textbooks on English, one from 1994 and one from 2003. Here I focus on the speakers’ varieties, rate of delivery, and instructions given for listening exercises. I found that both books featured a majority of speakers from the British Isles and America, and very few non-native speakers. The more recent book featured a larger degree of varieties outside the areas of Britain and the USA, as well as a larger degree of American English when dividing the varieties by the time these were spoken. RP (Received Pronunciation) and GA (General American) were also less dominating in the textbook from 2003. The rate of delivery was generally slower in the older textbook. The results from this investigation suggest that some changes seem to have occurred between the publishing of the two books. However, a focus on English as a lingua franca, where the aim is proficiency in efficient cross cultural communication rather than in the English spoken by native speakers,  does not seem to have influenced the textbooks studied here. It is difficult to appreciate whether or not changes like these have taken hold in Swedish classrooms, as teachers use many different listening materials and in many different ways.

The dissertation thesis deals with the skill of listening comprehension and using multimedia for its support in the French language teaching process. The issue is studied within the context of Czech curricular documents. It classifies language skills from the point of view of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. The process of listening comprehension is described in linguo-didactics from the historical point of view and as a process of language communication. Attention is paid especially to listening comprehension in foreign language teaching. The thesis focuses also on methodical procedures when developing and reinforcing this language skill. Integration of multimedia with respect to varied learning styles and strategies is described. Styles according to the perception preferences and listening learning strategies are focused on. The aim of the thesis is to find out what is the position of the listening comprehension skill in the French language teaching process at upper-secondary schools, what is the success rate of the students in the process of comprehension of the spoken language, whether multimedia can contribute to successful comprehension of the spoken language in a foreign language. The issue is viewed from the perspective of the students as well as the teachers....

This essay attempts to listen to meaning in the borderland, and asks in between which faculties and senses, through which we see and/or listen to the world, do we seek sense? My writing is located on this border, or more precisely on the erased border that I call an interspace or an interval, the place where we look for sense in the relation between language, philosophy, politics, and music. I have done this through the reading of three contemporary philosophers: Jacques Derrida, Jean-Luc Nancy, and Angela Davis. Derrida and Nancy have provided me with a theoretical and philosophical background for my approach to Davis’s philosophic and political claims. My analysis sets out from Derrida’s différance and what it reveals in the sign system of language. This is continued through a discussion of Nancy’s question: Is philosophy capable of listening, in all senses of the word? Is the philosopher not someone who always hears? In my reading, this connection is established through the blue notes. Davis, finally, provides me with a support for my claim that we, in the political significance of blues, in the traces of meaning that it contains, might be able to listen to Derrida’s différance. Keywords: Listening, meaning, différance, blues, sonority, blue notes, in between, border, subject, Jacques Derrida, Angela Y Davis, Jean-Luc Nancy. / Denna uppsats syftar till att försöka lyssna till meningen i gränslandet – mellan vilka relationer i våra förmågor och sinnen, av att se och/eller lyssna till världen, söker vi mening? Jag vill skriva om den gränsen, eller mer kanske den utsuddade gränsen i platsen jag kallar mellansfär och mellanrum, som den plats där vi söker mening i relationen mellan språk, filosofi, politik och musik. När vi idag söker mening och talar om varat, om individen och subjektivitet, kan det vara så att vi inte längre kan göra det genom fasta tecken, system och former? Istället för att stanna kvar i ett tillstånd av upprepande och separerande som landar i uteslutande och förtryck, i värdeskalor och normer, istället för att endast höra klassiska notsystem, eller förstå språkliga regler hos fasta teckensystem; kan det vara så att vi idag får vända oss till lyssnandet och mellansfären i de blå tonernas différance för att förstå olika individer och subjektivitet i relation till världen? Genom att göra en analys av Derridas term différance i hans text med samma namn: ”Différance” ur boken Margins of philosophy, ska jag försöka närma mig Nancys bok Listening samt läsa hans text genom tanken på différance i Nancys teori och förståelse om lyssnandet.  För att undersöka hur lyssnande och musik kan få ett praktiskt uttryck, av de teoretiska meningarna vi söker i différance, vill jag använda musikgenrerna blues och jazz och de blå toner som bluesen förhåller sig i och mellan. Min teori är att bluesen kan ge en plats (av flera) för var skillnader möts mellan text, värld och musik; platsen där différance kan lyssnas till, synliggöras och hörs. I den teorin vänder jag mig till Angela Davis bok Blues Legacies and Black Feminism som stöd för bluesens utveckling. Det jag ämnar närma mig hos Davis är just bluesens meningssökande och plats i samhället

Some children have difficulty communicating due to a lack of age-appropriate language and social skills. Researchers have explored how music and language share features that shape language processing. The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological analysis was to explore the experiences of caregivers of preschool children who participated in a music-based program and to understand their perspectives related to children's language and social skill development. Learning style and sensory integration processing theories were used as framework to provide foundations of skills in this study. Research questions addressed caregivers' choices related to this program for their children, their experiences of their children's participation in the program, and how the caregivers perceive their children's language and social skills change as they participated in the program. Data from 8 participants were collected using narrative journals and interviews and were analyzed by identifying relationships and themes. Identified themes included the importance of choice of quality music program, improved language skills, improved social skills, and improvement in other areas. Caregivers reported that their children's language and social skills developed in the early weeks of participation in The Listening Program. Primary recommendations included providing opportunities to educate other parents and professionals about the benefits of music-based programs. Contributions to positive social change include the value of music-based programs as a complementary technique to aid language and social skill development in preschool aged children, and that children who participate become more effective communicators and interact more appropriately with others.

Under mina tidiga år som gitarrist i utveckling, figurerade otalet myter och berättelser på musikaffärer, i konsertlokaler och bland gitarristvänner. Detta var myter om gitarrutrustning, hur man fick samma gitarrljud som på favoritskivorna, vissa gitarrmodellers bästa årgångar osv. Nu, äldre, möjligen klokare, och strävande efter att bli en mer upplyst musikproducent, har ett utforskande av dessa myter förändrats från att vara ett till synes omöjligt uppdrag, till ett realistiskt projekt. Den här undersökningen har fokuserat på uppfattningen av elgitarrförstärkarna i min ägo och tagit avstamp i mitt eget musikskapande, detta med utgångspunkt både från lyssnar- och användarperspektiv. Förstärkarmodellerna skiljer sig åt konstruktionsmässigt och slagkraften de haft i populärkulturen. Två intervjuer, två blindtester och en personlig utvärdering gjordes för att utforska gitarrförstärkarnas sound, spelbarhet och gensvar. Resultaten pekade i slutändan på att vi väljer förstärkare annorlunda då vi utgår från fördomar, tidigare erfarenhet och visuellt intryck än vad vi gör när vi enbart lyssnar på deras ljud. En antydan till variation mellan förstärkarnas påverkan på gitarristers spelkänsla verkar också kunna existera men på grund av de komplexa parametrarna involverade i en sådan analys är det svårt att fastställa några tydliga tendenser. Det som dock kan reflekteras över är att vi troligen lyssnar på, och spelar genom gitarrförstärkare med mer än våra öron och ögon, samt att en förstärkares taktila egenskaper, design och kulturella signifikans troligtvis är av större värde än vi kanske uppfattar enbart genom ljudande material. / During my early years as a developing guitarist, numerous myths and stories circulated in music stores, concert venues, and among guitarist friends. These myths revolved around guitar equipment, how to achieve the same guitar sound as on favourite records, the best years for certain guitar models, and so on. Now, older and possibly wiser, striving to become a more enlightened music producer, my exploration of these myths has shifted from being a seemingly impossible mission to a realistic project. This investigation has focused on the perception of the electric guitar amplifiers in my possession, based on my own music creation, taking into account both listener and user perspectives. The amplifier models differ in their construction and the impact they have had on popular culture. Two interviews, two blind tests, and a personal evaluation were conducted to explore the sound, playability, and response of the guitar amplifiers. Ultimately, the results indicated that we choose amplifiers differently when we rely on biases, past experiences, and visual impressions than when we solely listen to their sound. There also seems to be a hint of variation in how amplifiers affect guitarists' feeling of ease when playing, but due to the complex parameters involved in such an analysis, it is difficult to establish clear tendencies. However, what can be reflected upon is that we likely listen to and play through guitar amplifiers with more than just our ears and eyes, and that the tactile properties, design, and cultural significance of an amplifier are probably of greater value than we may perceive through purely sonic qualities.

Genom skrivandet av denna vetenskapliga essä ville jag utforska det slags utvidgade lyssnande som jag strävar efter och använder i mitt yrke som rytmiklärare.[1] Texten tar avstamp i två berättelser som rör sig kring detta lyssnande. Berättelsernas själva ordval gav mig sedan nyckelord som ledde undersökningen framåt: Tystnaden, En enad och gemensam handling, Rummet, Centrum, fokus, mitt, Blicken, Tiden, Rörelsen, Närvaron, Kroppen, Delarna och helheten samt Gesterna. Jag tar i texten hjälp av, eller spjärn emot, tankar av bland andra Don Ihde, Michael Polanyi och Marcia Sá Cavalcante Schuback. Med finns även koreografen och professorn i rytmik Susanne Jaresand, samt essäisten Ann Carson.  Arbetet har visat mig hur vår kultur, såväl som den filosofiska traditionen, sedan lång tid tycks ha kretsat kring den sedda världen framför den hörda, inlyssnade. Kanske detta är en av anledningarna till att jag i mitt yrke ofta stött på oförståelse. Nu finner jag genom skrivandet detta uppdelande av sinnena orättvist för dem båda – att det till exempel är möjligt att se på ett lyssnande sätt. Kroppen blir hemvist till detta lyssnande, som tar in tiden, rummet, rörelsen och de klanger som uppstår.  Går det att kläda detta lyssnande i ord? Jag ville försöka. Genom orden kan jag kanske nå en ny förståelse.   [1] Rytmikmetoden formulerades av Émile Jaques-Dalcroze runt sekelskiftet 1900. Se till exempel hans verk Rytm, musik och utbildning (Stockholm: KMH förlaget 1997). / By writing this scientific essay I wanted to investigate the notion of expanded listening, as I use it in my work as a Eurhythmic teacher[1]. The text begins with two experiences from my everyday work life, where this listening appears. These experiences, when written down, gave me some keywords that led the investigation forward: Silence, Common act, Space, focus, center point, Glance, Time, Movement, Presence, Body, The parts and the whole, Gestures. I found the work of, among others, Don Ihde, Michael Polanyi and Marcia Sá Cavalcante Schuback helpful, as well as something to contrast against. The choreographer and professor in Eurhythmics Susanne Jaresand is present in the text, as well as the author Ann Carson.  The essay also suggests that our culture, as well as the philosophic tradition, for a long time has had its focus on understanding the world as seen, instead of heard or listened to. Maybe that is why this expanded listening has been met with incomprehension by colleagues throughout the years. I now believe that this division of the senses is unfair, and that it is actually possible to see in a listening way – a listening that lives in the body, and incorporates time, space and movement.  Is it possible to dress this listening experience in words? I had to try. To me, this try has led to a new understanding of expanded musical listening.   [1] As formulated by Emile Jaques-Dalcroze in the beginning of the 20th century

Listening for learning during lectures has been established to be a staged process. Listening's role during didactic andragogical events in the Bulawayo Polyte9hnic Business Studies Department's Business Communication lectures was investigated. Both the qualitative and the quantitative data gathered contributed to a statistical groundstructure and an ethnomethodological outline, which together combined into a balanced description of the listened learning .p rocess in that tertiary learning environment. Data sources included student and lecturer responses as well as observed learning during communicativeness skills development, and whilst learning in lectures and tutorials. The related literature was supported by the study's findings, confirming that individuals perceive, interpret and evaluate information directly in accordancewith their own lifeworld. This includes own learned technique which derives from inherent oral or literate culture base as well as from personal cameral preferences and endowments. The consequent individually different listened learning range constitutes a conventional normal dispersion. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Didactics)