THE EFFECT OF WRITTEN SCAFFOLDS ON DIFFERENT PROFICIENCY LEVELS OF SECOND LANGUAGE (L2) LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Reima Abobaker

This dissertation assesses the impact of written scaffolds on listening comprehension and listening skills. I investigated the role of written scaffolds in two experiments. First, I studied types of written scaffolds (keyword captions, full captions, full transcripts), and then I studied the timing of written scaffolds (before and during the viewing of audiovisual texts). Because the positive impact of reading captions on listening comprehension has been established relatively firmly by existing literature, the current study examined the most effective type of written scaffold on three levels of language proficiency: low level, advanced level, and native speakers. Less research has been conducted on the time of presentation of written scaffolds (before, during) and whether this has an effect on learners' listening comprehension. Three statistical analyses were conducted to test three hypotheses. Results of an analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated that each of the three written scaffolds was an effective aid in listening comprehension across all three language proficiency levels. Significant interactions in the ANOVA indicated that different written scaffolds were more helpful to different levels of language proficiency. Low level learners found full captions most effective whereas advanced learners favored keyword captions. Native speakers' performance was highest with full transcripts. Results from an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) suggested that timing has an influence on listening. Keyword captions were more effective when presented during the listening text whereas full transcripts were more useful when presented before. The findings indicate that written scaffolds have the potential for promoting the development of listening skills. Implementation of written scaffolds in a language course should follow the pedagogical model of gradual release of responsibility (Vygotsky, 1978). The discussion aligns the statistical findings to previous research. Contextual data through questionnaires and participants' reflections of the written scaffolds is also presented in the discussion. Pedagogical implications of the research call for incorporating appropriate written scaffolds into second language teaching curricula. Future research should unveil the precise process of decoding multimodal texts and whether learners simultaneously attend to all modes or focus on a specific mode more than the other. Other directions for future research include exploring, with reliable and valid measures, the effects of written scaffolds on the learners' engagement and interest as a factor in listening comprehension.

THE EFFECT OF WRITTEN SCAFFOLDS ON DIFFERENT PROFICIENCY LEVELS OF SECOND LANGUAGE (L2) LISTENING COMPREHENSION

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