Using Audio-Visual Aids and Computer-Assisted Language Instruction (CALI) to Overcome Learning Difficulties of Listening in Students of Special Needs

Sadeq Ali Saad Al- Yaari

doi:10.5296/jsel.v1i2.4740

Abstract

Background & aims: Audio-visual aids and computer-aided language instruction (CALI) have been documented to improve receptive skills, namely listening skill in normal students. The increased listening has been attributed to the understanding of other interlocutors' speech, but recent experiments have suggested that audio-visual aids and CALI should be tested against the listening of students of special needs to see the effects of the former in the latter. This investigation described the effect of audio-visual aids and CALI in the performance of these students. Methods: Pre-and-posttests were administered to 40 students of special needs of both sexes at al-Malādh school for students of special needs aged between 8 and 18 years old. A comparison was held between this group of students and another similar group (control group). Whereas the former group underwent a listening course using audio-visual aids and CALI, the latter studied the same course with the same speech language therapist (SLT) with the classical method. Outcomes of the two tests for the two groups were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed. Results: Significant improvement in the performance was found in the first group (treatment group) (posttest= 72.45% vs. pre-test= 25.55%) in comparison to the second (control) (posttest= 25.55% vs. pre-test= 23.72%). In comparison to the males’ scores, the scores of females are higher (1487 scores vs. 1411 scores). Suggested results support the necessity of the use of audio-visual aids and CALI in teaching listening at the schools of students of special needs.

Highlights

The increased listening has been attributed to the understanding of other interlocutors' speech, but recent experiments have suggested that audio-visual aids and computer-aided language instruction (CALI) should be tested against the listening of students of special needs to see the effects of the former in the latter
Significant improvement in the performance was found in the first group in comparison to the second
Suggested results support the necessity of the use of audio-visual aids and CALI in teaching listening at the schools of students of special needs

Summary

Introduction

To study how audio-visual aids and CALI affect the ability of the normal students and those of special needs, improve their productive skills, some researchers went further to investigate the process of recognizing the word in the brain before it is articulated. The operation takes place, according to Bradham when "Outer hair cells provide mechanical feedback into the organ of Corti, enhancing the input to the inner hair cells, which predominantly send information to the central nervous system." (Bradham, 2012: Abstract) Such findings inspired researchers to ask legitimate and reasonable questions relating to the ways information are processed in the brain and the relationship between motion representation and the visual motion system (Pavan & Baggio, 2013). This investigation described the effect of audio-visual aids and CALI in the performance of these students

Methods

Results

Conclusion