This thesis used the Brown-Carlsen Listening Comprehension Test to gather pre- and post-test scores in order to measure students' listening abilities at the beginning and the end of the Speech 210 class offered Spring Quarter, 1972.The results were then analyzed by means of two statistical designs: The Analysis of Variance and The Product-Moment Correlation Test for Missing Data. The findings indicated statistically significant relationships between sex and listening test scores, pre- and post-test scores, and listening test scores and final grades.In addition, this thesis has discussed numerous previous studies and their relationships to the field of listening research.

This study was undertaken in an effort to determine the effect of compensatory education on achievement and the self concepts of students in inner city schools. The subjects for this study were chosen from the third, fourth, and fifth grades of the Lincoln, Longfellow, Blaine, and Garfield public elementary schools of Muncie, Indiana. The experimental group received compensatory treatment which consisted of remedial reading, tutorial aid, and counseling, while the control group received the standard type of education given by the schools involved in the study. Both groups were selected by classroom teachers on the basis of personal judgment with no specific criteria given for the selection.Academic achievement was measured by the results of the Iowa Basic Achievement Test. This test was given twice (pre- and post-test) to both the control and experimental groups in grades four, and five. Grade three had been administered the Metropolitan Achievement Test (MAT) as a pre-test the previous spring at the end of grade two. Grade three was tested by the Iowa Basic Achievement Test in a post-test the spring of 1973.Self concept was measured by the results of the test by Waetjen and Liddle, Self Concept as a Learner (SCAL). This test was given twice to both the control and experimental groups; the' pre-test in the fall of 1972 and the post-test in the spring of 1973.The results were used to evaluate the eight basic hypotheses. Statistical analysis of the results led to rejecting only one hypothesis. Hypothesis 7 was rejected at the .05 level of significance.In general, any gains shown by the experimental group over the control group were of small statistical magnitude, whether in the area of academic achievement, reading achievement or self concept. The same may be said of any of the differences between the various schools, grades, and class groups. No strong relationship between compensatory education and the probability of success could be clearly established from the data.A strong relationship was established, however, between compensatory and the probability of success for grade three. Since the impact of counseling, tutorial aid, or remedial reading was not analyzed separately, this relationship was attributed to the compensatory treatment as a whole and specifically to any one part of the program.

This thesis has explored the problems of non-native speakers of English in listening and reading comprehension. Through analysis o f tests designed around particular features of the language which were thought to cause comprehension problems, the investigator was able to substantiate several factors of difficulty. These factors areA. knowing the meaning of vocabulary items,B. noting markers that; show relationships,C. ability to handle difficult sentence structures, D. answering questions where the answer is indirectly stated,E. drawing conclusions.The investigator also found that two additional factors strongly affected comprehension:F. answering questions where the wording is different from that of the original passage,G. finding answers when there is intervening material that interrupts the idea..The thesis has discussed formulation of the test questions, explaining what was expected from each question. It has also discussed results of the test questions in detail, suggesting possible problems that were working in each question.

Thesis (M.Ed. (Language Education)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / We live in a world in which communication plays a very crucial role in everything we engage in. The fact that the new Constitution of South Africa (Act No.200 of 1993) has given official status to the 11 major languages (something which was formerly granted only to English and Afrikaans) is irrefutable. In spite of all that, the English language has remained a major national language, as well as a Medium of Instruction in schools and universities in South Africa. However, effective communication has since been one of the most critical concerns in South Africa because English has been labelled as a nightmare. This is because the majority of learners at schools experience difficulties in acquiring Communicative Competence Skills in English, which is their Second Language (SL).The reality is, for one to communicate effectively, an individual should acquire Communicative Competence, which will enable him to engage with other people. To tackle this problem, there are effective and efficient strategies that need to be addressed. Literature reviews point out (a) the importance of the English First Additional Language (EFAL); (b) the challenges learners face at schools in acquiring Communicative Competence in English Second Language (ESL); and(c) solutions to overcome this situation. This study aimed at investigating the challenges experienced on the development of listening and speaking in EFAL. The study employed a qualitative Case Study design to investigate the challenges experienced on the development of listening and speaking in EFAL. Data for this qualitative case were obtained from interviews with learners and teachers. Observations were made at the two selected schools, and questionnaires were administered as well. The findings revealed various challenges that impede learners from developing Communicative Competence Skills in ESL. Learners do not understand English because their vocabulary in the language is limited. They also have challenges in pronouncing English words, and they cannot express themselves accurately in ESL because it is not their home language. Consequently, their proficiency in the language is low and impinges on their comprehension levels. It is recommended that teachers should ensure that they create a beneficial environment for learners to acquire Communicative Competence. Teachers should, in addition, introduce activities which will enable learners to communicate frequently. Learners should be given opportunities where they can read frequently, because reading improves vocabulary and helps one to become familiar with sentence structure, word order and correct pronunciations. Furthermore, learners should invest in a good dictionary to check unfamiliar words. Learners should build active listening and speaking skills that improve lines of communication with others and should be aware of their own communication barriers. They should learn different phrases/strategies that improve how they respond, and they should not fear to be offended. They should, furthermore, feel comfortable when they express their emotions and look at the speaker directly when communicating. Most importantly, learners should put aside distracting thoughts and should also listen to the speaker’s body language

Thesis (M. Ed. (Language Education)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / The Foundation Phase Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement’s objective is to equip children from Grade R to Grade 3 with the necessary and relevant knowledge, skills and values that will enable them to become productive, as well as functional participants in the Intermediate and Senior Phases of formal schooling as well as in global societies. However, literacy surveys at both national and international levels continue to demonstrate results that position South Africa at the least achieving levels. This signals that CAPS does not achieve its desired goals regarding learners’ performance and educational development. Given this background, there is a rise in the need for a research of this nature to explore better strategies of equipping learners with rich vocabulary for ease of language learning. This study investigates the development of oral skills (listening and speaking) in two receptive grades in rural foundation phases. The study is a phenomenological case-study which adopts a mixed methodological lens of enquiry to collect and analyse data. Data collection procedures include classroom observations, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. This investigation found that listening and speaking skills are not sufficiently developed in the investigated schools. An intensive exploration of the processes, activities, approaches and resources used for developing listening and speaking skills in both schools demonstrated that teachers lack knowledge and skills for administering activities, applying appropriate approaches and using the available literacy resources to develop listening and speaking skills. The study discussed the contributory factors to the above findings and, therefore, recommends that the Department of Education should provide Grade R teachers with in-service training and support programs. The programs should be intended to acquaint teachers with skills to use materials and to apply strategies in different ways to help all learners develop listening and speaking skills through understandable oral participation. Key words: Listening, Speaking, Literacy, Development, and Learning and Teaching

Increasing involvement with students at the University of Namibia has indicated their overall difficulty with comprehending and recalling information from oral content lectures. It has also been observed that in general very little attention is given to the development of listening skills in L2 ESP and EAP courses. For this study, I conducted a quasi-experiment to determine whether the recognition and interpretation of discourse markers will enhance students' listening comprehension in academic lectures. Students were tested to determine their comprehension of content information in a video-taped lecture. Qualitative data were collected by means of a questionnaire. After an intervention period of eight weeks, where the experimental group received strategy training in the recognition and interpretation of discourse markers in spoken texts, both groups were again tested. Their results were statistically compared. I also looked at related findings of other researchers. Finally, aspects for possible future research will also be considered. / English Studies / MA - (Specialisation in TESOL)

Increasing involvement with students at the University of Namibia has indicated their overall difficulty with comprehending and recalling information from oral content lectures. It has also been observed that in general very little attention is given to the development of listening skills in L2 ESP and EAP courses. For this study, I conducted a quasi-experiment to determine whether the recognition and interpretation of discourse markers will enhance students' listening comprehension in academic lectures. Students were tested to determine their comprehension of content information in a video-taped lecture. Qualitative data were collected by means of a questionnaire. After an intervention period of eight weeks, where the experimental group received strategy training in the recognition and interpretation of discourse markers in spoken texts, both groups were again tested. Their results were statistically compared. I also looked at related findings of other researchers. Finally, aspects for possible future research will also be considered. / English Studies / MA - (Specialisation in TESOL)