Factors That Influence Students’ Listening Comprehension at Misurata Preparatory Schools, Libya

Abstract

English language proficiency is the main goal of any learner of a language. Speaking and listening are major components of key skills and literacy qualifications. We need listening skills to understand and to be understood. It has become one of the most important factors of success and excellence for students who wish to speak, understand, advance their career path or continue their education abroad. When students listen to the English language, they face a lot of listening difficulties. This paper examines the teaching of listening comprehension at Misurata preparatory schools. It investigates the challenges that students face in learning listening comprehension skills. Students move to secondary education without a suitable foundation for listening comprehension skills. For this reason, the present study attempts to investigate some listening hindrances faced by students at preparatory schools to elicit their views about listening comprehension skills. This study reports the factors that the students believed had influenced their listening comprehension skills at Misurata preparatory schools. It is an effort to generate awareness among teachers, educators, language policymakers, and learners of English about the proper implementation of this important receptive skill. Data was gathered through a questionnaire from the students' responses. A qualitative method was adopted to analyze the obtained data. This study revealed that listening comprehension is hindered by: limited knowledge of words, accents, phonological difficulties, speech rate, insufficient practice of listening skills in the classroom, inadequate time to teach listening skills, and students are not encouraged to listen to programs outside the classroom.