Feasibility of Strategy Instruction in Teaching Listening Comprehension for High-Proficiency and Low-Proficiency Iranian EFL Learners

Abstract

The present study investigates how effective it is to teach listening comprehension strategies for High-Proficiency and Low-Proficiency Iranian EFL Learners. Two intact classes were selected randomly from a private language institute in Iran. An advanced-level class (n= 33) was chosen as the High-Proficiency group, and a Lower-intermediate class (n=32) was selected as the Low-Proficiency group. Before the start of the semester, both classes were pretested. During the intervention time, the strategies-based approach was adopted by the researcher while teaching the listening comprehension section of the regular curriculum in both classes. At the end of the term, both classes were post-tested. The t-test observed for the difference in the paired means of the scores obtained from the pretests and post-tests turned out to be insignificant for the Lower-intermediate class, while in the paired means comparison of the advanced class the results were revealed as significant.