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A Study on the Satisfaction and Performance of the First Year Students of Advanced Education Program at National Economics University when Applying Internet in Teaching English Listening Skills

Nguyen Do Huong Giang

Faculty of Foreign Languages, National Economics University, 207 Giai Phong Street, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi, Vietnam

Abstract: Among four language skills, it is well known that listening comprehension plays a very important role in foreign language teaching, especially with young learners. And in the era of 4.0 technology, applying internet in teaching listening skills is necessary. The application of internet-assisted learning in teaching English at Advanced Education Program at National Economics University is still limited and needs more thorough studies. Therefore, the researchers would like to conduct a research into the use of this teaching and learning approach to the development of English listening skills for first year students of Advanced Education Program (AEP) at National Economics University. Importantly and interestingly, the study focuses on analyzing their satisfaction and performance when applying internet in teaching listening skills. From the investigation and analysis, suggestions would be given to teachers and students to enhance the use of internet so as to increase students’ satisfaction and performance in listening lessons.

Keywords: internet-assisted learning, listening skills, students’ satisfaction and performance

Received March 11, 2022; Revised May 03, 2022; Accepted May 07, 2022

Citation: Nguyen Do Huong Giang, A Study on the Satisfaction and Performance of the First Year Students of Advanced Education Program at National Economics University when Applying Internet in Teaching English Listening Skills. American Journal of Educational Research, 10 (5). 288-297. January 2022. doi:10.12691/education-10-5-4

1. Introduction

Useful as it is, the application of internet-assisted learning in teaching English in Vietnam as a whole and at Advanced Education Program (AEP), National Economics University in particular is still limited and needs more thorough studies. Being a lecturer who has contributed to the growth of this course from initial steps, the researcher of the study has been aware of the benefits that internet-assisted learning has brought to the development of English language skills in general and in listening skills in particular. Generally, most students at AEP have difficulties in listening comprehension on the first day at a university specializing in English, while they have quite a good command of vocabulary and grammar. Accordingly, the listening courses are mainly designed for students who have learnt English at high school (in either the 3-year or 7-year program) and who haven’t got used to listening skills. These courses aim at equipping students with practical skills to improve their listening skills step by step. Therefore, the topic “A study on the satisfaction and performance of the first year students of Advanced Education Program at National Economics University when applying Internet in teaching English listening skills” is chosen for further research. It is hoped that the study will certainly benefit AEP students in their English listening skills development and will introduce some suggestions for further application of the benefits, not only to the listening course but also to the whole program of AEP at NEU. Furthermore, it is of expectation that the study would be of some help to departments of other universities in similar situations.

Dudeney and Hockly (2007) [1] mentions that the use of technology in language teaching is not new not to mention in the teaching of English. Tape recorders, language laboratories and video have been widely used in practice of English language teaching since the 1960s. In the early 1980s the use of technology in the practice of English language teaching has been improved in terms of using the computer-based materials for language teaching, often referred as CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning). In line with widespread access to Information and Communications Technology in the 1990s the use of technology in the practice of English Language teaching embraced to the use of internet and web-based tools that the term TELL (Technology Enhanced Language Learning) appeared (Dudeney &Hockly, 2007) [1]. The rapid development of the internet in the 1990s has had a wide impact on the teaching and learning of English. Since then, internet has been becoming an extraordinary source of information in the practice of English Language teaching. As Dang (2022) [2] emphasized that “the internet is widely used for language teaching and learning because it is rich in resources, especially audio and video”.

Regarding using internet in teaching listening skills, a lot of benefits have been listed. For instant, Mueller, 1980; Rubin, 1975, as cited in Suvorov, (2008) [3] pointed out that listening with visual support helps to promote students’ listening comprehension. Coniam, 2001, as cited in Suvorov, (2008) [3] showed that the advantage of using internet resources is to provide learners with more authentic content, context, discourse, cultural aspects, etc., which can aid listening comprehension. From Peterson’s point of view (Peterson, 2010) [4], Internet resources are effective in improving listening comprehension because listening to digital audio or watching a video clip on the Internet provides learners with the opportunity to control their listening processes through the use of repeated viewings, subtitles, transcripts, and feedback. In addition, according to Christensen, Garvin, & Sweet (1991) [5], teaching is not pouring knowledge into a student’s head anymore, “to teach is to engage students in learning.” Therefore, a great deal of effort has been exerted to increase student satisfaction in classrooms. As a result, different kinds of learning methods, such as problem-based learning, internet-assisted learning, etc… have emerged to promote student satisfaction. There have been a number of studies on student satisfaction and engagement in internet-assisted learning which are defined as the level of pleasure in participating in and fulfilling the learning experience (Dziuban, Moskal, Johnson, & Evans, 2017) [6] (Parsad & Lewis, 2008) [7]. Student satisfaction is dependent to one’s interaction with peers, instructors, and content; as well as technology, course design, and implementation.

This research was motivated by researcher’s interest in measuring students’ satisfaction when applying internet in teaching English listening skills for AEP students at NEU. This research was conducted by using descriptive research with qualitative approach. The population of this research was 50 students of Advanced Education Programme at National Economics University. The researcher used survey questionnaire and semi-structured interview as instrument in this research. The data was collected by distributing questionnaire to 50 students and conducting interview with 10 students. The result of this research proved that thanks to the internet, listening performance of the students was promoted. They got the chance familiarizing with multi-dimensional and numerous sources of listening activities. Logically, they could improve their self-study skills. At the same time, high satisfaction with internet-based classes was indicated. Most students showed their enthusiasm and eagerness about each listening class, which would be full of real world situations for them to explore.

2. Content

2.1. English Language Teaching (ELT) in 4.0 Era

It can’t be denied that nowadays technologies have become a part of our lives. In the past, teachers were supposed to be the most valuable sources of knowledge that students received. Apart from that, we also thought of libraries as a rich sources of information, students spent most of their time studying in libraries, but in the present, the Internet has become crucial. This is the reason why many countries all over the world, of which Vietnam is not an exception, are willing to invest in developing technological infrastructure, including the system of computers and Internet access in education, especially in the teaching and learning of English as a second language.

Obviously, the tradition of English teaching has been dramatically changed with the remarkable entry of technology. The use of English has been increasing rapidly all over the world. In the society nowadays, the role and status of English is that it is the language of social context, politics, sociocultural, business, education, media, communication, etc. across borders, and English is undeniably a key subject in the curriculum of most of schools. Because of the increasing importance of learning English, different teaching methods have been implemented with the aim at improving effectiveness of the teaching process. One method involves using Internet in ELT in order to create English context, this also helps students to get involved and learn according to their interest. The new era of 4.0 technology assigns new challenges and duties on modern teachers. Technology provides so many options for teachers to make their teaching interesting and also make their teaching more productive in terms of improvements. Along with the increasing popularity of English, there is also the need for qualified teachers to instruct students in the language. It is true that a variety of teachers are willing to apply technology in teaching, but there are still teachers who are in favor of traditional manner. As we see, none of these traditional methods are bad or not good for students, however, when teachers apply technology in ELT, there are many more opportunities for students to gain confident practice and extend themselves into the real world of modern life.

Chapelle (2003) [8], in her book on “English Language Learning and Technology”, stated that “A vision of the future of English language teaching and applied linguistics needs to be informed by the contributions of all three of the perspectives.” From three perspectives, technology is a force worthy of consideration, whether a teacher wishes to focus on the technological potential, to examine pragmatic technology use, or to criticize both, however, these three positions need to be balanced to suggest implications for the profession, as shown in Table 1.

Chapelle (2003) [8] emphasized “These perspectives on technology hint at the broader context where work in applied linguistics is situated, but to see how critical, technologically-informed pragmatism plays out, it needs to be linked to the specifics of English language teaching.” Particularly, the ways in which technology touches English language learners, their teachers, and teacher education need to be examined.

Table 1. Summary of three perspectives on technology and implications for ELT

2.2. The Growth of ELT through Technology

We are now in the age of globalization and English plays a very important role in that age. The concept English Language Teaching has been taken into consideration for many years and its significance continues to grow by the rapid development of technology, especially the Internet. The technology application into teaching, such as featuring audio, authentic videos, in other word, internet-based resources, comes into full play in English environment and it sets a favorable platform and exploration on modern English teaching model in the new era. Technology plays a positive role in promoting activities and initiatives of students and teaching methods in English classes all over the world. One important thing which has been approved is that technological innovations have closely gone along with the growth of English and are changing the way in which people communicate. It is obvious to say that the growth of the internet has facilitated the growth of the English language, especially at the period of time when computers are available everywhere and everyone owns at least one. Therefore, it is also important for language teachers to be aware of the latest and best equipment and know how to apply this into their teaching situation. In fact, there are many techniques applicable in various degrees to language teaching and learning. Some are useful for testing and assessment, some for teaching business English, some for spoken English, reading, listening, marketing or interpreting, etc. The teaching principle should be to appreciate new technologies in the areas and functions where they provide something quite new and useful. In short, there are a variety of reasons why language learners and teachers must know how to make use of the new technology.

2.3. Benefits of Integrating the Internet in ELT

2.3.1. The Internet as a Useful Source of Information

It is obvious that the internet contains the information of almost everything in the world. Furthermore, these pieces of information are regularly updated so that they are always current and correct. This is different from printed materials, especially books where the content is usually outdated. In addition, the information in the Internet can be easily accessed, hence, it can be used by teachers and students to facilitate the teaching and learning process. Internet access in lots of schools and universities nowadays provides an invaluable advantage to both teachers and learners. The authenticity of the materials found on the internet is completely beneficial to teachers and students because of the reason that authentic materials make teaching more real, more useful and much more interesting.

2.3.2. Interactive Online Education

To a certain extent, communication based on technology refers to interact in real time, it can stimulate learners and motivate learners to participate in activities to increase and improve communication skills and ideas. Checkering & Gamson (1987) [9] have emphasized that learners interact with each other and interaction between learners and teachers are important indicators of quality in universities. According to Means, Toyama, Murphy, Bakia & Jones, 2009 [10], the Internet used in education can provide support in various types of learning: expository, active, and interactive. The use of the Internet in teaching can facilitate the interactive learning process and thus improve educational outcomes. There are a variety of interactive activities on the internet, moreover, these activities are quite fun and enjoyable, and sometimes users are able to learn, do quizzes and play educational games simultaneously. In short, the internet enables training programs to be online and can be accessed globally.

2.3.3. Supporting Active Learning and Various Learning Strategies

With the use of internet in ELT, both the learner and the teacher have active participation in the learning process. In this method teachers don't teach but via dialogue between the learners and application of concepts and techniques, students will learn and develop. In addition, learners and teachers can achieve wide learning resources using this technology; increase their desire to learn, and various forms of learning.

2.3.4. Learner Centered Education

Internet education has made learning become more learner centered. Application of new technology in the classroom puts learners at the center of the educational process in a way that learners have the opportunities to become more active in the lesson, hence allowing the motivation to bloom. The learners’ interest, excitement and enthusiasm about the internet will enhance their passion for learning an obviously that will lead to the increase in learners’ performance.

2.4. Teaching Listening Skills

2.4.1. Importance of Listening

Listening plays a significant role in the lives of people. Of the four macro language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), listening is one of the language skills having an important role in teaching and learning process. Clearly, much of the educational process is based on skills in listening. Students have to spend most of the time listening to what the teacher says, for instance, giving lectures, asking questions, or telling directions. According to Wolvin and Coakley (1979) [11], the amount of time that students are expected to listen in the classroom ranges from 42 to 57.5 percent of their communication time. Taylor (1964) [12], on the other hand, estimates that nearly 90 percent of the class time in high school and university is spent in listening to discussion and lectures. Since listening occupies such a large percentage of the communication time of most people, it is therefore advantageous to possess effective listening skills in order to meet listening demands that occur daily.

In a language classroom, listening ability plays a significant role in the development of other language arts skills. When students first learn a language, they generally have to listen to the words several times before they are able to recognize and pronounce those words. Listening can also help students build vocabulary, develop language proficiency, and improve language usage (Barker, 1971) [13]. Cayer, Green, and Baker (1971) [14] find that students' ability to comprehend written material through reading as well as to express themselves through speaking and written communication are directly related to students' maturity in the listening phase of language development. Dunkel (1986) [15] also asserts that developing proficiency in listening comprehension is the key to achieving proficiency in speaking. Not only are listening skills the basis for the development of all other skills, they are also the main channel through which students make initial contact with the target language and its culture (Curtain & Pesola, 1988) [16].

According to the results of a lot of researches, listening is more than merely hearing words. Listening is defined as the process by which spoken language is converted to meaning in the mind. Listening is not only hearing but also including understanding, analyzing, and possibly acting on the basis of what has been heard.

According to Brown (2006) [17], students with good listening skills have better ability to participate effectively in class because they understand the explanations from their teacher better than the other students.

Rost (1990) [18] also emphasizes several reasons that make listening so important in language learning: (1) Listening is vital in the language classroom because it provides input for the learner. Without understandable input at the right level, any learning simply cannot begin; (2) Listening exercises provide teachers with a means for drawing learners’ attention to new forms (vocabulary, grammar, interaction patterns) in the language. Moreover, Rost (1990) [18] adds that listening can provide enjoyment and stimulate cultural interests, participation in target culture, appreciation of the beauty of the language, and fulfillment of social needs.

In language teaching, Rost (1990) [18] has stated about teaching listening to develop the listening skills of learners. He focuses on principles for developing listening ability as the followings:

1. Listening ability developed through face-to-face interaction. By interacting in English, learners have the chance to get new language input and the chance to check their own listening ability.

2. Listening developed through focusing on meaning and trying to learn new and important content in the target language. By focusing on meaning and reasons for listening in English, learners can mobilize both their linguistic and non-linguistic abilities.

3. Listening ability developed through work on comprehension activities. By focusing on specific goals for listening, learners can evaluate their efforts and abilities.

4. Listening developed through attention to accuracy and analysis of form. By learning to perceive sounds and words accurately as they work on meaning oriented activities, learners can make steady progress.

Despite the importance of listening practice in language instruction, English language classes in many countries still emphasize only the skills of reading and writing. This is especially the case of an English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) situation in which the English language is taught as a subject at school and used only inside the classroom, therefore, lots of students are afraid of listening skills. EFL students are studying English in their home countries where English is not the dominant language. Students who are from environments where English is not the language of the country have very few opportunities to hear the real language outside classroom; hence these students are not accustomed to hearing the language as it is produced by native speakers. Consequently, students from countries in which English is taught as a foreign language frequently have great difficulty understanding English spoken to them when they come into contact with native speakers of the language.

2.4.2. Reasons for Using Internet Resources in Listening Comprehension

According to Brett (1997) [19], a multimedia listening environment which includes video and audio in combination with text offers learners more effective listening comprehension and performance than either audio or video only. In fact, in listening lessons, CDs and tapes used provide only audio input while listening to materials on the Internet supplies students with multimedia input including visual support, such as texts, captions, illustrations, photographs, etc.,. That brings students much more fun, excitement and passion to learn.

There are five benefits from listening with multimedia materials as follows. First and foremost, listening with visual support helps to promote students’ listening comprehension (Mueller, 1980; Rubin, 1975, as cited in Suvorov, 2008) [3]. Second, research showed that the advantage of using internet resources is to provide learners with more authentic content, context, discourse, cultural aspects, etc. (Coniam, 2001, as cited in Suvorov, 2008) [3], which can aid listening comprehension. Third, according to Peterson (2010) [4], Internet resources are effective in improving listening comprehension because listening to digital audio or watching a video clip on the Internet provides learners with the opportunity to control their listening processes through the use of repeated viewings, subtitles, transcripts, and feedback. In addition, the audio-video input visualizes what is being said and facilitates the task of guessing what is going to be said next, hence it helps learners to enhance their comprehension. Regarding motivation, Nobar and Ahangari (2012) [20] agreed that the use of computers and the Internet into language classrooms helps improve language learners’ attitudes and motivation since language lessons become practical and enjoyable. Luu (2011) [21], in her paper on “Adopting CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning) to Promote Listening Skills for EFL Learners” in Vietnamese Universities, also suggested that “computer use in listening instruction should be given much more consideration so as to improve the listening skills of EFL learners, and to motivate both teachers and learners.” She emphasized that “through many websites, a great amount of authentic material, which is readily applicable, up-to-date, and free, can be used for language skills”. Finally, Chapelle (1999) [22] indicated that teaching listening skills with Internet resources contributes to enhancing EFL students’ listening comprehension not only in the classroom but also outside the classroom environment. For example, CALL software, online discussion boards, and online conference tools such as text chat, whiteboard, and audio and video can be used in an extensive listening program to offer opportunities for comprehensible input and output, and meaning negotiation.

2.5. Student Satisfaction and Performance

2.5.1. Student Satisfaction

Satisfaction is a core component of what keeps people motivated and engaged, and helps them achieve long-term goals. Student satisfaction is similarly important for universities as it represents both the level of well-being of students, and how well the institution is doing at meeting the expectations of their students. From a student perspective, service expectations can vary greatly, depending on the individual resources the student already has, their personal needs, values, goals and aspirations, as well as preconceptions based on experiences of their peers. What is important to mention is that satisfaction is a subjective and personal evaluation, and that even two people with similar backgrounds can experience and evaluate their service experience differently. However, few things usually stand out, students are typically satisfied when they feel supported by their institution, experience a diverse and stimulating learning experience and when the learning experience helps them advance their career goals. All these aspects have been included in measuring student satisfaction in a reliable and comparable scale. Nevertheless, satisfaction is based upon beliefs and feelings students have on their education; it often changes depending on the country, culture, and university students belong to, as well as their life and career goals.

2.5.2. Why should Students’ Satisfaction Be Taken into Consideration?

Understanding students’ needs or satisfaction enables teachers to react, adapt and help students create a fulfilling experience in collaboration. Therefore, measuring and understanding student satisfaction play an essential role in teaching and learning process. Measuring student satisfaction can also help universities understand which areas are exceeding expectations and can be used to promote the institution, and which areas are otherwise falling behind and need improvements. Satisfaction score can also be used to understand the ability of an institution to achieve students’ well-being and keep them motivated and engaged during and after their studies. This can help informing new students and correcting expectations so that is easier for them to find their most fitting course of study. Finally, a measure of student satisfaction is also relevant for prospective students, seeking to make the best decision for them personally. This measure can be used to make study choices easier and education more transparent. Understanding students’ perceptions allows universities to provide service improvements and align their strategy with their mission and objectives.

2.6. Student Satisfaction and Performance when Applying Internet in ELT

Student satisfaction is the most concerning issue for students themselves and their families. There is no one approach to learning that can suit everyone (Beecham, 2009; Fatani, 2020; Pham et al., 2019) [23]. Each person has different abilities, so learning methods should be tailored to everyone to be most effective. Students will be able to choose a good learning approach for themselves as a result of this research. At the same time, teachers and schools are considering and developing the use of smart technology in schools to replace traditional teaching-learning techniques to meet the needs of the 4.0 industrial era (Aldunate & Nussbaum, 2013) [24]. Learning is the process of training, accumulating knowledge, and perfecting skills (Aldemir & Gülcan, 2004) [25]. Therefore, student satisfaction with learning is always influenced by many factors, which are internal factors (hard-working, motivation, personal ability, self-awareness) and external factors (family supports, teaching quality, class schedule, supporting documents, etc). In this era, technology adoption and interpretation skills are crucial determinants of student satisfaction (Aldunate & Nussbaum, 2013) [24]. They determine how effectively lectures can be delivered to students and how efficiently they can absorb them via smart technology (Aldunate & Nussbaum, 2013) [24]. This research demonstrates that technology adoption positively influences student satisfaction. These results give several recommendations for teachers who teach listening skills at National Economics University to improve their teaching quality and the effectiveness of technology adoption to upgrade student satisfaction with their learning. On the other hand, students should pay more attention to technology in learning because of many benefits that help students save time, search, and synthesize knowledge more easily than traditional learning methods. However, whether the application of technology in learning has a large or small impact on student learning outcomes depends greatly on the students themselves. In addition, the school’s technological facilities and equipment also help students easily access technology, along with the use of technology in teaching also affects the student’s satisfaction.

Summary

Because of reasons mentioned above, the researchers are keen on carrying out the study on the satisfaction and performance of the first year students of advanced education program at National Economics University when applying internet in teaching listening skills. In the previous parts, the relevant literature needed to form theoretical and conceptual framework for the present study is presented. It has discussed issues concerning the use of the Internet in EFL teaching-learning in general and the use of the Internet in teaching-learning EFL listening in particular. The following parts of the study will detail the methodology for investigating research questions and the findings under the light of the above-mentioned theories.

2.7. The Study

2.7.1. The Purposes of the Study

The purposes of the study are as follows:

1. To identify students’ awareness and perception about listening lessons supported by internet usage

2. To explore students’ satisfaction and performance of internet used in listening classes.

2.7.2. Research Description

Innovation: Integration of Internet-based sources in listening class

Duration: 10 weeks

Research subject: Performance and satisfaction of students

Research participants: 50 AEP Students

Research questions: Thanks to the engagement of Internet in listening class,

1. What kind of listening resources for students to practice with?

2. What kind of learning approach do students experience?

3. How do students feel prior to each listening session?

4. How do students feel about listening resources?

2.7.3. Research Methods

Survey questionnaire

Teacher announced to the students the purpose of the study, which aimed at identifying their changes in terms of performance and satisfaction with Internet appliances in listening class. All of 50 students received questionnaire at week 11 of the semester. They all returned their responses with specific answers to the given questions.

Semi-structured interview

10 students were randomly selected to take part in the in-depth interview at week 12 of the semester. Each session lasted about 30 minutes. All interviewees agreed to be recorded.

2.7.4. Data Analysis

All data was qualitative.

Survey questionnaire: each questionnaire was encoded randomly and conveniently. Then, totally, there were 50 questionnaire numbered from 1 to 50. Key words presenting answers to significant questions were underlined or highlighted for further analysis.

Semi-structured interview: all sessions were coded from 1 to 10. All recordings were transcribed. Key words presenting answers to significant questions were underlined or highlighted for further analysis.

In specific, it was noticeable to seek for phrases, expressions, synonyms, antonyms showing:

Performance:

Noun: kinds of listening resources, e.g. social media, news, reality, etc

Adj: quality of listening activities, e.g. various, real, authentic, etc.

Verb: action of listening class, e.g. watch, hear, analyze, interact, etc.

Satisfaction:

Noun: attitude towards listening session, e.g. eagerness, excitement, etc.

Adjectives: feeling in listening class, e.g. happy, satisfied, surprised, etc

Verb: action in listening class, e.g. co-operate, work, acquire, etc.

The degree of repetition of those key words and synonyms can be transferred to estimate in percentages in order to measure the degree of performance as well as satisfaction of students in classes with the participation of Internet resources.

2.8. Findings and Discussion

2.8.1. Websites Provided Authentic and Multi-dimensional Listening Sources

In response to the question: ‘What do you think about using Website to practice listening skills?’, certain answers should be exemplified as the followings:

Code 13: Normally, we just listen to the radio and the exercises in the text book. I know that the topic and settings there are similar to real life. But we still feel like the book is just the book. When the teacher opens a link in Safari, we feel like a real world is happing in the class.

Code 20: The exercises in the book sound quite academic. Sometimes we meet native speakers and the situation is more casual. Even when we can listen very well at school, we find it hard to communicate in actual fact. However, the tracks directly downloaded from the Internet make everything completely different, including not only academic but also daily situations.

Code 35: It’s boring to look at the radio or the computer of the teacher, only the sound and the course book. But if the exercise is from the Internet, there are pictures, images, there are live, very lively.

Code 47: It’s like a cinema, we’ve got sound, we can also see what people are doing while they are talking. This shows real interaction, postures, gestures, body language, eye contact and I imitate the speakers very easily.

It can be easily seen that adjective original, real, actual, true, factual, exact; noun truth, accuracy, life, reality, etc… were repeatedly used by students. The estimate for these similar words accounted for around 100% of students. This revealed that they appreciated the value of internet in bringing about chances for them to listen to real sources, which are daily happening in different situations. At the same time, the inclusion of images, films, advertisements, etc… make the atmosphere more varied. As a result, students shared that they felt like sitting in the cinema watching multi-dimensional films. The class in general was more lively. Students might feel relaxing while listening but still be highly motivated to engage in each listening activity. Therefore, their performance in the class was kept at the most focusing manner.

Similar data was found out in regard of the interview question Why do you like to practice listening skills on the websites?

Nearly all interviewees stated that colorful and informative websites brought about great changes in the listening class, which had always been assumed to be extremely boring with the radio and text book only. Looking the screen was helpful in waking up some students. Especially, when they looked at the screen, they could not only see the listening guidelines but also felt motivated by colorful design, icon, font, etc. All of these would never appear through the speakers of the radio. Also, all of the respondents indicated that even with the same sound track, the one elicited from the website or internet appliance brought about the feeling of a real situation when they could watch people interacting with each other, see how they smiled and diversified their tone, intonation with different accent, etc.

To conclude, internet resources changed the world of the listening class by bringing about various authentic sources, which were attached with real images and characters in the actual setting. Consequently, the activities in the class would be felt more authentic and multi-dimensional as well.

2.8.2. Internet access Enhanced Self-study Competence

Another point that needs to be emphasized is the value of Internet in encouraging further practice out of classroom. As far as I am concerned, in the old days, the only facility to do listening exercises was the radio. At that time, students had to use audio tape, of which the sound quality was rather poor. Especially, due to lack of information and instruction, teacher was the only source of assistance. All of those factors might have led to resistance in further practice at home, which resulted in poor performance of listening skills. However, in these days of modern technology and digital age, students are provided with different tools to conveniently and easily do any listening practice. In fact, provided that there is internet access, learners can log in different websites and choose to do listening tasks online or download exercises to practice later. In addition, teacher in not the only instructor, which also means that students can actively find out further theory on different websites, even videos on youtube channel, which tell them a large number of tips and strategies for listening skills. Also, the information about numerous international English proficiency tests is already available on official websites of large organizations. Thanks to this availability, students would quickly find any specific and typical kind of practice that they need to do to achieve their target score.

Followings are some comments students gave in regard of doing extra listening practice activities thanks to Internet access:

Questionnaire data: question When you study or practice listening skills at the websites, can you learn by yourself without any body’s help?

Code 12: Listening requires practice every day, at least 1 hour. We just study 1 session of listening skill per week. So how can we further practice without the internet? There, we can listen to any thing whenever we want. We find a series of sources that are even free to download. Very convenient and saving.

Code 26: I want to know more about what we studied in class, it’s very easy because there is internet connection, which means knowledge connection. Normally, I search for similar sources on Youtube with the same topic in the course book. There is private instructor, you see. So we do not totally depend on the teacher at school, and we can study whenever we want.

Code 37: The point is that sometimes the exercises in class are very easy to some students. They might want to explore more and more. Internet is a great way to explore themselves because different types of practice are readily provided.

Code 49: I got not only my lap top but also my smart phone to store some practice of listening. It is not necessary to be formal exercises, I also listen to music, story in the target language. I think all of them help in self-study.

It cannot be denied that internet has become an available source at any places and any time. Only with internet access, learning activity can be carried out. Especially, there are plenty of exercises, which range from easy to difficult level, so all kinds of students can try. The tests can be done online or downloaded for further practice. In addition, there is presentation of theory. Also, there are various kinds of speakers who share experiences in acquiring listening skills, e.g, foreign teachers, youtuber, blogger, etc. All of these factors were stated to enhance self-study competence of learners.

Based on the great impact of internet in self-study, a concerning question to be discussed is the role of teacher. Does the internet availability reject the participation of the instructor? This leads to further exploration of data to the interview question: Why do you think you need somebody help when you use the websites to practice your listening skills?

Code 1: There are plenty of exercises to do, kind of a long list to choose, I do not know where to begin and what suits my ability.

Code 4: I listen to English everyday but I still got low score in the test. I find out that I have no strategies in practicing, so my exercises are not typically related to specific kinds of questions. Then, I fail.

Code 7: I still need teachers. They are professionally trained to teach rather than those speakers or instructors on the internet who share a lot but not focused.

Code 8: I have tried doing my own way and following the instruction of the lecturer. The latter approach was much time saving, it is strategic as well.

Obviously, thanks to internet access, students might find their self-study enhanced, however, they still need specific instruction by the teacher. This is the right person to provide academic strategies and appropriate selection of beneficial channels and listening tasks. In short, although it is admittedly demonstrated that the availability of listening practice choices in the internet helps students in further self-study out of classroom, teacher should still provide precise instruction for the best result of practice.

2.8.3. Students Were Excited and Surprised at Different Practices on the Internet

Survey question Do you like to go to the websites for practicing your listening skills? brought into the light students’ feelings in classes with internet connection. When being asked, most of them indicated personal emotions like eager, delighted, stimulated, curious, enthusiastic, pleased, awaiting for the practice in class. The first reason is that which selected exercises would totally depend on the teacher, which was a mystery rather than all exercises already printed and exposed in the course book. This would be the time for competition. In fact, the more challenging the task was, the more excited students would feel. As far as I am concerned, because students of AEP are normally excellent in English proficiency, there should be typical tasks designed for their capability like listening to a TED talk program, reproduce the information in front of the whole class, make questions for everyone to answer, etc. Especially, teacher was free to choose any kind of activity depending on students’ level. Therefore, this made learners find unpredictable contents of the listening tracks.

Also, in addition to the sound, internet sources brought about images, especially live or moving images. As a result, all the senses of leaners could be actively waken up. For example, they would not only listen to the process of making ice cream, but also watching real video of the producers, which might help them imagine the flavor and recall their memories about times of enjoying ice cream. The videos would bring about unreal and real feelings. The videos were real, the feelings might be unreal, but the impression would certainly be real. By this way, the lessons would become interesting enough to attract highly demanding and excellent students like those of AEP.

Further exploration into interview data shared the same result as the above presented ideas. (Question: Do you like websites for practicing listening skills?).

Code 3: Certainly yes. I like the design, the color, the information on the website. Without all of these, the radio would make me yawn all the time.

Code 3: why not? Today in the digital age, without internet, all will be so boring.

Code 5: I like the way the teacher presents something which is completely new and unpredictable. She got endless exercises and different activities for the class to join in.

Code 6: We need more than True/False questions. When there is long talk played, I find myself challenged enough. Interestingly, there is no specific question for detail but we have to reflect on the whole talk.

All ideas confirmed the high level of satisfaction of students in classes with internet support. They all agreed that this was the right trend of digital age in education and at the same time, it made them feel they were being challenged by various unpredicted requirements given by the teacher.

2.8.4. Internet Brought about the Real World of Communication

Regarding the same questions as mentioned above, which reflected students’ feeling about internet use in teaching and learning, it should be added that thanks to the internet access, the real world of daily and academic communication was brought to the class.

It cannot be denied that despite any efforts to produce authentic sources of listening activities, in the audio tape or the CD, there would be recorded speakers only without any visuals. However, the class would become lively when there appeared real people on the road, at the company, at school, etc discussing or presenting an academic or daily concerning topic. In the interview, students indicated that:

Code 1: When I was watching TED talk program, there was large audience clapping their hands and carefully listened to the presented. I just felt like I was in the same room. The speaker was really energetic with moving steps and emotional facial expressions.

Code 2: I was highly impressed by a situation of a fieldtrip to a clothing store. Oh my Goodness, I could identify trendy and colorful skirts, I also understood the manufacturing process. All came out as real as possible.

Code 6: I was really happy with the selection of videos. The teacher tried to use authentic context with real speakers, might be standing on the street or at a noisy place. It did not matter because then, we would know how smart we were.

Code 9: Like a television show, actual context was taking place on the stage of the class. The accent, the intonation, the facial expressions, all were real and true.

All of these examples proved that fact that students were highly motivated by the feeling of reality thanks to the tool of the internet engagement. If there were the radio with the teacher only, all instructions and lessons learnt were just theoretical. However, when there were illustrations on the real context, leaners would feel the truth and share the feelings of communicators in reality. By this way, both listening skills and social background knowledge could be improved at the same time.

To summarize, the above detailed analysis proved that thanks to the internet, listening performance of the students was promoted. They got the chance familiarizing with multi-dimensional and numerous sources of listening activities. Logically, they could improve their self-study skills. At the same time, high satisfaction with internet-based classes was indicated. Most students showed their enthusiasm and eagerness about each listening class, which would be full of real world situations for them to explore.

3. Conclusion

According to those data which was got from students’ investigation, using internet in teaching listening can be a good assistance for students to improve their language learning ability. Like Robin (2007) [26] mentioned, effectively use of Internet - website resources, such as easily repeatable video clips, captions, etc. will bring a wider variety of input at the proper level for a broader range of learning styles. The findings of this study have significant implications on the appropriateness of relying on websites assisted language learning and teaching process. Students had positive attitudes toward using the Internet as learning tool, adequate basic knowledge of the Internet, and viewed the learning environment as supportive of using the Internet for learning. After conducting the research, the group of the researchers found that there were four major critical factors for the perceived usefulness of websites assisted language teaching and learning. The first of these is the course work interactivity. Course materials could be available in different formats via the website and students can easily go and practice any of them. Those websites already include many other links to related materials and websites that widen students’ exposure to current information on their topics. The second usefulness factor is to enable students to accomplish their listening practicing quickly, because those websites can provide them with on-line components and they are really practical. The third factor is to make study course materials easier by having related study materials available anytime anywhere, facilitating student–student and student–teacher communications. The last factor is to increase the students’ satisfaction and performance. This factor is a result of enabling students to finish their practicing quickly and achieving their objectives efficiently using the tools available on the website. New technologies have forced teachers to reconsider their roles in teaching with computers. And nowadays, websites through Internet grow rapidly, teachers began to see computers more as “active partners” than “passive assistants” (Debski & Gruba, 1999) [27]. However, it is teachers who decide how the class should be conducted, not the computers, not the Internet. In other words, it is necessary to decide whether computers should be used, in which teachers may play an important role for guiding students to use websites properly (Levy, 1997; Fernandez, 2001) [28]. Teachers are not the only source of knowledge. With the rise of Internet, learners can have easy and free access to the “unprecedented amount of authentic materials as well as get into direct contact with global peers across cultures.” (Huang, 2006: 242) [29].

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my sincere thanks to National Economics University who strongly supported me to fulfill the research ‘A study on the satisfaction and performance of the first year students of Advanced Education Program at National Economics University when applying Internet in teaching English listening skills’, code: NEU-E2021.04.

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