Benefits and Disadvantages of Using Authentic Materials in Teaching Listening

Benefits and Disadvantages of Using Authentic Materials in Teaching Listening

Introduction

There are many references to authentic material in the ELT literature.  Books and journals contain thorough explanations of why it should or should not be included in lessons, and how it is to be used or best exploited. But those authors who support the use of authentic material have in common one idea: "exposure".  In other words, the benefit students get from being exposed to the language in authentic materials.

The definition of authentic materials used in this paper is taken from Peacock (1997): materials that have been produced to fulfill some social purpose in the language community.

Widdowson's (1990) differentiation of the terms ”authentic" and "genuine material" has been a seminal one in the field so I should like to mention it here: Authentic would be material designed for native speakers of English used in the classroom in a way similar to the one it was designed for.  For example, a radio news report brought into the class so students discuss the report on pollution in the city where learners live.

Most of the time, though, this material is used in a genuine way, in other words, not in the way it was intended, but in a somewhat artificial way. For example, a news article where the paragraphs are cut up and jumbled so students have to put them back together in the correct order.

Another view is the difference between artificial and authentic materials (see Shortall, 2001).

Listening is perhaps the most critical element in language and language learning, for it is the key to speaking, and beyond that, reading and writing. Particularly in the workplace, listening is used at least three times as much as speaking, and four to five times as much as reading and writing. At all levels --- from entry level to managerial --- listening is perceived as crucial for communication. Yet listening remains one of the least understood processes in language learning.

In this article, we will try to summarize what is known about the listening process including the factors affecting listening. We also suggest general guidelines for teaching and assessing listening, and give examples of activities for practicing and developing listening skills for the workplace.

The Listening Process

Listening is a demanding process involving: 1) the listener; 2) the speaker; 3) the content of the message; and 4) any accompanying visual support.

Imagine a workplace message being transmitted between listener and speaker using tools (a hammer, towels, a fax machine, etc.) or a video, as opposed to a message left on a telephone without visual support by an unidentified speaker. ("Put the xxx in the xxx tomorrow.") The message may be the same in both situations, but it is perceived in very different ways. Let's examine each component of the process.

1. The Listener. If the listener is familiar with or is interested in the topic, comprehension will increase. If not, a listener may struggle and then tune out the ...