Is Listening Comprehension in a Foreign Language Affected by Age?

Eva Stankova; Miroslav Hruby; Kamila Hasilova

doi:10.17323/jle.2022.11292

Ева Станкова Университет обороны в Брно https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4616-6191
Мирослав Груби Университет обороны в Брно https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9417-2513
Камила Хасилова Университет обороны в Брно https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1540-3489

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17323/jle.2022.11292

Ключевые слова: взрослые учащиеся, возраст, английский как иностранный, английский язык, слух, понимание на слух, тест НАТО STANAG 6001

Аннотация

Предпосылки исследования: развитие понимания иностранного языка на слух – это сложный процесс, связанный с развитием других языковых навыков. На него могут влиять многочисленные переменные, включая возраст. Данное исследование является ответом на жалобы взрослых среднего возраста на трудности в понимании на слух английского языка как иностранного (далее – EFL) путем изучения взаимосвязи между уровнем успешности в понимании на слух EFL и возрастом.

Пробел в знаниях и цель исследования: несмотря на то, что возраст считается одним из важнейших факторов при овладении языком, наблюдается нехватка исследований взаимосвязи между возрастом и пониманием иностранного языка на слух у взрослых учащихся. Целью данного исследования было выяснить, является ли возраст одним из значимых факторов, влияющих на понимание речи на слух по сравнению с другими языковыми навыками.

Методы: для определения взаимосвязи между уровнем успешного понимания на слух при изучении английского языка как иностранного и возрастом был использован количественный анализ данных. В исследовании участвовали 1 323 взрослых чехов. Для сравнения успешности понимания на слух в трех возрастных группах, тестируемых в течение пяти учебных лет, использовался дисперсионный анализ. Затем была использована обобщенная линейная модель для оценки взаимосвязи между успехом в восприятии речи на слух и возрастом.

Результаты и значимость исследования: дисперсионный анализ показал, что возрастная группа 21-30 лет достигла значительно лучших результатов в аудировании, чем возрастная группа 41-60 лет при p < .05. Кривая логист-регрессии показала постепенное увеличение процента «неуспешных слушателей» в возрасте от 25 до 52 лет в зависимости от возраста. Таким образом, исследование предоставляет эмпирические доказательства того, что существует отрицательная корреляция между показателями понимания иностранного языка на слух и возрастом. Преподаватели должны оказывать содействие взрослым учащимся в развитии знаний, навыков и стратегий для преодоления трудностей в понимании речи на слух в связи с увеличением возраста.

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Биографии авторов

Ева Станкова, Университет обороны в Брно

RNDr. Eva Stankova is a senior academic worker at the Language Centre at the University of Defence in Brno. She is engaged in teaching and testing the English language, and academic research including the development of English language skills in adult learners. Her recent publications focus on searching factors affecting language skills development, tracking the progress of language learners, and curriculum development in ESP. With regard to this paper, she has been responsible mainly for literature research and the interpretation of results in the discussion and conclusion sections.

Мирослав Груби, Университет обороны в Брно

Ing. Miroslav Hruby, CSc., is a senior academic worker at the Faculty of Military Technology at the University of Defence in Brno. Nowadays he works at the Department of Informatics and Cyber Operations. His main professional focus is a computer programming. Over the last two decades, he has been closely collaborating with the Language Centre on proposing research designs in quantitative research studies. Concerning this paper, he is the author of the research design and the classification which determines the success in listening in relation to other language skills.

Камила Хасилова, Университет обороны в Брно

Assoc. Prof. Kamila Hasilova, Ph.D., is a senior academic worker at the Faculty of Military Leadership at the University of Defence in Brno. She works at the Department of Quantitative Methods; apart from teaching basic courses on mathematics and statistics, she focuses on the application of statistical methods. Her main research interests are non-parametric statistical methods and numerical methods used in statistics. Her contribution to this paper lies in conducting statistical analysis.

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