Easing down foreign language listening anxiety: Metacognitive intervention and dialogic interaction

Abstract

Listening comprehension (LC) occurs when listeners can reasonably interpret a speaker's intention; therefore, reducing foreign language listening anxiety (FLLA) among EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners significantly facilitates their comprehension. Accordingly, the present study was designed to determine the effect of metacognitive intervention (MI) and metacognitive intervention through dialogic interaction (MIDI) on EFL learners’ FLLA. A mixed methods approach was used to hire 90 all-male, advanced undergraduate students majoring in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), ranging from 18 to 22 years of age, who participated in three groups. The first two groups (N = 60) were experimental groups that received 8 weeks of intervention programs within an 11-session study focusing on MI and MIDI. Simultaneously, the control group (N = 30) listened to the same audio files the same number of times but without any attention paid to MI or MIDI, and there was no discussion of strategy use after each session. To fulfill the aim of the study, a validated questionnaire on the FLLA scale, IELTS listening recordings along with listening guide sheets and IELTS listening samples, and semi-structured interviews to investigate learners’ attitudes toward intervention sessions’ effect on their LC and anxiety level were used. The results provided some empirical support that learners benefit from MI and specifically MIDI to reduce the level of their FLLA and further improve LC.