My ideas on how to improve listening.
N.B. this is original material and as such, permission is required to reproduce it in any way shape or form.
Listening to CNN everyday is not going to work. How do I know? I listen to my wife's talkshows everyday and seven years later I still have no idea what they are on about (other than it's total rubbish and I don't need to know anyway).
So as an ESL student, this is not the way. Listening to many different things everyday also doesn't work as we forget way to quickly. 'Oh yeah, I think I've heard that before...'
Try this:
1. Choose a dialogue (low level students) or an article (advanced students) that is either a. interesting topic for you or b. a relevant topic for you. and c. isn't too difficult i.e. about 7 new words in it. (Of course there is an audio cd or mp3 with it to LISTEN to).
2. Listen to the CD. How much did you understand?
3. Read the dialogue/article. Highlight new words and find out what they mean. Study the dialogue/article so that your understanding of it is 100%.
4. Listen and read. Practice reading along and on difficult words stop and repeat the CD to get your pronunciation right. (Ok, that's improving speaking but why not kill two birds with one stone?)
5. Don't look at the dialogue/article and listen to the CD again. Now, how much did you understand? More than in 2. I hope so.
6. Everyday, listen to the CD again, in the car, on the MRT (put the mp3 on your mp3 player). If there is something you miss, then look at the dialogue/article again. After one week, listening to that dialogue/article you should really understand (if not be able to recite it, haha).
7. Next week, pick a new dialogue/article.
Repeat. Also, it's easy to just quickly listen to something you studied a few weeks ago. Just to make sure you're NOT FORGETTING!
