A Narrative Inquiry of Two English Language Learners Experiences in Enhancing Listening Proficiency

Abstract

The objective of this research is to examine the experiences of two English language learners in enhancing their listening abilities through a narrative approach. This research employs a qualitative methodology with a narrative inquiry approach to explore the individual narratives and experiences of two English language learners with disparate backgrounds and learning contexts. The research was conducted at a private university in Malang, East Java, Indonesia. The research was conducted at the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, specifically in English Department. The participants in this study are two students at the university. Data were gathered through in-depth interviews, then analysed using thematic analysis to identify key themes related to the development of listening proficiency. The results indicated that both learners had their first listening lesson in high school. The first listening material consists of listening to songs. Furthermore, the participants encountered difficulties in their learning to listen in high school. These included challenges in understanding the accent and speaking speed of native speakers, as well as internal problems in the right ear in one of the participants. To overcome these difficulties, the participants employed a number of strategies, including Watching films, listening to music and podcasts in English. Furthermore, the participants engaged in repeated listening to the audio materials in order to enhance their comprehension of the content. During their college years, participants encountered several challenges in enhancing their listening skills. These included audios that played too fast, accents that were increasingly diverse, and difficulties in focusing on listening to audio. Nevertheless, they demonstrated effective adaptive strategies, including the practice of listening to audio materials with various accents, independent study, and found a comfortable place when listening to audio listening. This experience enriches the understanding of how English language learners can overcome listening barriers and develop their skills independently. The study offers several suggestions for language learners, including the recommendation that students become more active in identifying and utilising a range of listening strategies. This can be achieved by making effective use of authentic learning resources, such as podcasts, films or videos in English, and participating in discussions or conversation groups in English. With regard to teachers of listening in English, the study suggests that they integrate various teaching methods that involve listening, such as listening to songs, stories or news, as well as interactive activities such as role-playing and conversation simulations. Finally, the study recommends that future researchers expand the sample of participants. The sample size of this study was limited to two participants, which may not fully represent the diverse experiences of other English language learners. By expanding the number of participants, the results can be more widely generalisable and provide a more comprehensive picture of learners' experiences in improving listening skills. Keywords: Challenges, English Language Learners, Experiences, Strategies