Background/Aim: The British questionnaire ECLiPS (Evaluation of Children’s Listening and Processing Skills; Barry & Moore, 2015) aims to profile listening difficulties in children. The questionnaire consists of 38 statements, divided into five subscales, and a short survey with six questions about general health. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether children diagnosed with Developmental Phonological Disorder (DPD) in their preschool years (3-6 years of age) show listening difficulties in early school years (7-10 years). Methods: 113 guardians of children with Developmental Phonological Disorder (DPD) and 44 guardians of typically developing (TD) Swedish children participated in the study. Comparisons were made between the Swedish TD-group and the English reference (ER) group presented in the ECLiPS technical manual. Mean scores between the DPD-group and the TD-group were compared, as well as were the responses on the short survey. The groups were categorized by age and gender. Results: In general, high consistency was found between the ER- and TD-group in half of the comparisons; 7-, 9- and 10-year-old boys and 8-year-old girls. The DPD-group tended to show more symptoms of listening difficulties than the TD-group. However, the symptoms varied in relation to age and gender. For example, girls in the DPD-group had more symptoms in younger than in older ages. The short survey revealed that the DPD-group had a higher prevalence of ear infections than the TD-group. The difficulties seen in the DPD-group were most profound in statements concerning language, literacy and laterality. Conclusion: Our results indicate that listening difficulties as measured with the ECLiPS are more common in children diagnosed with DPD in preschool years, than typically developing children. The strongest indication for difficulties is seen in the statements regarding language and literacy.   Bakgrund/syfte: Det brittiska frågeformuläret ECLiPS (Evaluation of Children’s Listening and Processing Skills; Barry & Moore, 2015) syftar till att kartlägga lyssningssvårigheter hos barn. Frågeformuläret består av 38 påståenden, indelade i fem underkategorier, samt en kort enkät med sex frågor rörande generell hälsa. Syftet med den här studien var att undersöka huruvida barn som hade diagnosticerats med fonologisk språkstörning (FS) i förskoleåldern (3-6 år) uppvisade lyssningssvårigheter i tidig skolålder (7-10 år). Metod: 113 vårdnadshavare till barn med fonologisk språkstörning och 44 vårdnadshavare till typiskt utvecklade (TU) svenska barn deltog i studien. Jämförelser gjordes mellan TU barn och den engelska referensgruppen (ER) som presenteras i ECLiPS tekniska manual. Barn med FS och barn med TU delades upp i mindre grupper baserat på kön och ålder, och medelvärdesjämförelser gjordes mellan grupperna. Jämförelser gjordes även av svaren på den medicinska enkäten. Resultat: Generellt sett hade ER-gruppen och barn med TU en hög grad av samstämmighet i hälften av jämförelserna; 7-, 9-, och 10-åriga pojkar samt 8-åriga flickor. Barn med FS tenderade att uppvisa en högre grad av lyssningssvårigheter än barn med TD. Dock varierade graden av symptom beroende på ålder och kön. Till exempel tenderade flickor med FS att uppvisa mer symptom i lägre än i högre åldrar. Svaren från den medicinska enkäten visade att barn med FS hade en högre prevalens av öroninfektioner än barn med TU. De svårigheter som barn med FS uppvisade var tydligast inom påståenden som rör språk, läs- och skrivförmåga och lateralitet. Slutsats: Våra resultat indikerar att de lyssningssvårigheter som mäts med ECLiPS är vanligare hos barn som diagnostiserats med fonologisk språkstörning i förskoleåldern än hos typiskt utvecklade barn. Den starkaste indikationen för svårigheter syns i de påståenden som rör språk-, läs- och skrivförmåga.

This dissertation study explored the feasibility of using authenticated spoken texts to test L2 Chinese listening comprehension. The spoken texts used in the study were created using an “authenticating” technique, in which scripted spoken Chinese texts were infused with characteristics of real-world, unscripted spoken Chinese. In the first part of the study, 101 “naïve” L1 Chinese speakers reported their attitudes toward various characteristics of the scripted spoken texts and the authenticated spoken texts in a survey questionnaire. Comparisons of the L1 Chinese participants’ attitudes showed that they believed that the authenticated spoken texts were more authentic-sounding than the scripted texts in every measure. This indicates that the authenticity of scripted spoken texts normally used in L2 listening tests can be enhanced by using the text authentication technique. In the second part of the study, L2 listeners’ test performance and listening and test-taking processes during the post-test were examined. For the quantitative data, 184 intermediate and advanced adult L2 Chinese learners completed two listening tests (one pre-test assessing their listening proficiency and one post-test) and questionnaires tapping into their use of listening strategies and test-taking strategies. For the qualitative data, stimulated verbal recalls and verbal reports were employed to elicit another 16 L2 listeners’ verbalizations of their listening and test-taking processes. The comparison of the test scores showed that the listening test using authenticated spoken text as listening input was significantly more difficult than the same test using scripted spoken texts. The comparisons of the questionnaire results showed that the test-takers did not differ in their use of listening strategies and test-taking strategies. Aligned with the quantitative results, the verbal recalls showed that the two groups, despite hearing spoken texts with different degrees of scriptedness, did not adjust their use of listening strategies and test-taking strategies. However, the authenticated spoken texts elicited a greater reliance on lower-level processes compared to the scripted spoken texts. The last part of the study involving the same 16 L2 qualitative participants investigated text-related sources of bottom-up listening difficulties of the two experimental groups through a series of diagnostic listening procedures using L2 oral and written (typing) repetition tasks. It was found that, first, compared to the scripted group, the authenticated group had more phonological decoding difficulties due to connected speech; second, even though the authenticated group had more word segmentation difficulties, this type of listening difficulty seemed to be less severe for both groups compared to the difficulty of phonological decoding; and third, other features commonly found in unscripted spoken Chinese such as filled pauses and false starts did not seem to greatly impede participants’ bottom-up listening processes. The results from the three parts of the study and my experience creating authenticated spoken texts suggest that L2 Chinese test developers should include at least some authenticated spoken texts in their listening tests, because (a) they are more “authentic-sounding”; (b) high-proficiency L2 listeners with extensive Chinese second language learning experiences find them harder to comprehend than scripted texts; and (c) they elicit cognitive processes that better represent the processes in real-world listening. Additional practical and theoretical implications pertinent to test development and L2 Chinese listening instruction are also provided. / Applied Linguistics

Yes / Growing evidence suggests that fatigue associated with listening difficulties is particularly problematic for children with hearing loss (CHL). However, sensitive, reliable, and valid measures of listening-related fatigue do not exist. To address this gap, this paper describes the development, psychometric evaluation, and preliminary validation of a suite of scales designed to assess listening-related fatigue in CHL- the pediatric Vanderbilt Fatigue Scales (VFS-Peds). Test development employed best practices, including operationalizing the construct of listening-related fatigue from the perspective of target respondents (i.e., children, their parents, and teachers). Test items were developed based on input from these groups. Dimensionality was evaluated using exploratory factor analyses. Item response theory (IRT) and differential item functioning (DIF) analyses were used to identify high-quality items which were further evaluated and refined to create the final versions of the VFS-Peds. The VFS-Peds is appropriate for use with children aged 6-17 years and consists of a child self-report scale (VFS-C), parent proxy- (VFS-P), and teacher proxy-report (VFS-T) scales. Exploratory factor analyses of child self-report and teacher proxy data suggested listening-related fatigue was unidimensional in nature. In contrast, parent data suggested a multidimensional construct, comprised of mental (cognitive, social, and emotional) and physical domains. IRT analyses suggested items were of good quality, with high information and good discriminability. DIF analyses revealed the scales provided a stable measure of fatigue regardless of the child’s gender, age, or hearing status. Test information was acceptable over a wide range of fatigue severities and all scales yielded acceptable reliability and validity. This paper describes the development, psychometric evaluation, and validation of the VFS-Peds. Results suggest the VFS-Peds provide a sensitive, reliable, and valid measure of listening-related fatigue in children that may be appropriate for clinical use. Such scales could be used to identify those children most affected by listening-related fatigue; and given their apparent sensitivity, the scales may also be useful for examining the effectiveness of potential interventions targeting listening-related fatigue in children. / Research Development Fund Publication Prize Award winner, Mar 2022.

本論文旨在探討臺灣國中生英語聽力的困難問題。本文從三個方面進行研究：一、國中生英語聽力困難問題的總體分析；二、高能力者與低能力者在聽力困難問題上的異同；三、從老師和學生的觀點研究國中生的英語聽力困難問題。研究對象包括桃園一所公立中學9年級11個班級中366個學生及17位英語老師。本研究工具為全民英檢聽力測驗，聽力困難問卷以及聽力困難訪談大綱。本研究的主要發現如下： 一、在五種影響聽力困難的因素中，學生認為最常見的因素為聽力文本，聽者本身為其次，接著依序為聽力任務、說話者因素，最後為聽力過程。在文本因素中，聽力困難主要來自於不熟悉的片語。在聽者因素中，聽者本身文法知識的不足是聽力困難最主要的原因。在聽力任務中，聽完後需要學生做聽寫是比較困難的。在說話者因素中，說話者速度是主要的聽力理解障礙。在聽力的過程中，學生最常遇到的問題在於無法將一連串的內容分成有意義的段落。調查問卷的44個分項中，學生認為他們所遇到的最常見英語聽力困難中文本因素佔大多數，而聽者因素其次，最常見的困難為不熟悉的片語，其次為不熟悉的單字與文法的不足。 二、高能力者與低能力者遇到的聽力困難有顯著性的差異。大致上的區別為，影響高能力者聽力的最主要因素為聽力文本，而影響低能力者的主因為聽者本身的因素，且高能力者遇到的聽力困難比低能力者顯著來得少。最常見英語聽力困難中，高程度者認為在文本方面無法重複聽為最大的困難，然而對低程度者而言，聽者本身的文法不足是導致聽力困難最主要的原因。三、以教師與學生觀點來說，兩者對學習者所遇到的聽力困難的認知有顯著性的差異。大致上的區別為，教師認為造成學生聽力困難的主因為聽者本身的因素，而學生認為文本因素為影響聽力困難的最主要障礙。最常見英語聽力困難中，教師認為說話者的語速為主要困難，然而學生認為文本中不熟悉的片語是導致聽力困難最主要的原因。最後，本論文指出研究限制以及對未來相關研究之建議提出說明。 / The purpose of the present study is to investigate junior high school students' listening comprehension difficulties. This study is mainly concerned with three aspects: (1) the overall difficulties that student encountered in junior high school; (2) the similarities and differences in listening difficulties between high achievers and low achievers; (3) the differences in the perspectives on students' listening problems between students and teachers. This thesis research was based on the data analysis of 366 ninth-graders from 11 odd-numbered class and 17 English teachers at a public junior high school in Taoyuan. The findings of the study were summarized as follows: (1) among five factors, the text factor held the highest frequency followed by the listener, task, speaker, and listening process. For text factor, the main difficulty emerged from unknown phrases and unknown words. For listener factor, weak grammar was identified as the foremost difficulty. For task factor, the task demanding dictation arose most difficulty. For speaker factor, the speech rate was the main obstacle. For listening process, the students suffered from the perception problem that they could not chunk streams of speech into meaningful segments. Among listeners’ top ten difficulties in taking a listening comprehension test, six of them were categorized into text factor, and five were classified into listener factor. (2) There were highly significant differences in listening difficulties between the effective and the ineffective listeners. The difficulties the effective listeners met with were fewer than those ineffective listeners encountered. The effective listeners in this study met with listening comprehension problems in text factor more frequently than the other factors; however, the ineffective listeners encountered difficulties in listener factor most often. Among the top ten listening difficulties, the foremost difficulty for the effective listeners was unrepeated materials, and for the ineffective ones was weak grammar. (3) Overall, the teachers’ perceptions about their students’ listening difficulties are significantly different from the students’. Specifically, there were significant differences in the perspectives between the teachers and the students in the factor of listening process and listener. The teachers reported that their students encountered listening difficulties in the listener factor most often, whereas the students indicated that the text factor was the hugest barrier to their listening. Among the top ten students’ listening comprehension problems, the individual difficulty with the highest mean acquired by all of the students was the text with unknown phrases (text factor) However, the foremost listening problem from the teachers’ perspectives was the fast speed rate of the speaker (speaker factor). Based on the findings of the present study, pedagogical implications and suggestions were provided at the end of the thesis.