Minimal response as the aid strategy to develop listening comprehension in a beginning level

INTRODUCTION

This research considers the notion of listening comprehension.The assumption that beginners of Englisch lack of understanding a conversation when they do not have some idea about the content that they are going to hear.We examine the term by using minimal responses, these are divided on 4 types: single words, phrasal utterances, short clauses and longer utterances,  as well as these could be non-verbal : gestures or body posture) from a conversation

The findings suggest that minimal responses are made in two ways: first that the listener makes minimal responses at the end or while the speaker is talking(Zimmerman, 1975).This result suggests that minimal responses increase  immediacy, signals that the listener comprehends the speaker´s message and reinforces the speaker´s role in a conversation. (S.M., Barzt, & Keckzkemethy, 2006)

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Beginners of the English language lack of listening comprehension in a conversation because the most of the time they do not listen to music, radio, conversation,etc., without an idea about the content as pronunciation and meaning of the words so they do not  understand the message that the speaker is trying to convey.In addition, the speaker has to speak accurately to make less difficult to the listener understand the idea or message.Such ideas are base on what J.C.Richards calls  ´script competence´, that is the knowledge we possess in advance about the subject-matter or context of the discourse (Richards, 1983)

There are some problems that the learners  face to get an effective listening comprehension in a conversation as the followings (Richards, 1983):

 Hearing the sounds when the listener does not perceive certain English sounds with any accuracy because these do not exist(at all, or separate phonemes) in their own language

Understanding intonation and stress.The English systems of stress, intonation and rhythm, though perhaps less obviously difficult tan problems of the actual sounds, can interfere with the foreign learner's proper understanding of spoken English.

Predicting.If the listener cannot make a guess as to the sort of thing that is going to be said next, he will be much like to perceive it and understand it well.

Understanding colloquial vocabulary.Much of the vocabulary used in colloquial speech may already be known to the  foreign listener, but this does not mean that he is familiar with it.

Fatigue.Anyone who has learnt a foreign language knows how tiring it is listening to and interpreting unfamiliar sounds, lexis and syntax for long stretches of time.

Understanding different accents.Many foreign-language learners who are used to the accent of their own teacher are surprised and dismayed when they find they have difficulty understanding someone else

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

This paper aims to identify the use of minimal responses a conversation in which the listener uses this strategy as an aid to develop  listening comprehension  in a beginning level because the most of learners make misunderstanding when they hear whatever as Radio, T.V., Music, in a conversation and so on.In this case, It   refers to a conversation in which is very important to know  the role of the speaker and the listener in it.For example in the model of communication: the speaker is who send the message and the listener is who pick up the message   as well as it is influenced by different factor external and internal so we need to use a strategy which can support the listener to make more easy to comprehend what the speaker is saying and at the same time to make some minimal responses that indicate that the listener is understanding the message.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

How do minimal responses help to beginners to develop listening comprehension  in a conversation?

What kind of activities does the teacher implement in a classroom to develop listening comprehension?

THEORICAL FRAMEWORK

Many foreign-language learners seem to lack the ability to use environmental clues to get at the meaning of an imperfectly grasped phrase: time and again I have come across instances of students who have misunderstood something because they are analysing words in isolation and not linking them to the context r accompanying  visual stimuli in the class of target language I in the faculty of languages at BUAP university.

For instance, they need a strategy that  help them to  understand what is said in a conversation so I am going to use the minimal responses as  an aid which is going to be useful to develop their  listening comprehension in a conversation because this strategy presents them different communicative situations that listeners can face in a conversation.For example, compliments, greetings, apologies, compliments. invitations, etc

Moreover, their expectations may often be linked to their purpose in listening so if they want to know the answer to a question, they are will  ask and expect to hear a relevant response.This leads to their ´listening out´for certain phrases or words.It depends from their  questions.For example, where are you going to be? Then they are going to listen carefully for the expression of a place.

So: This strategy has different kind of minimal responses that the listener can make a conversation.These could be non-verbal as gestures, positions and so on or verbal  as single words (yes, no, ok), phrasal utterances(oh really, oh my god), short clauses(that´s right, that´s true and I agree) and large utterances(what? For clarification).These are very short and easy to learn, so in this way they are going to be able to make a prediction about what they are listening and later on they are going  to make minimal responses in any conversation.Moreover, the listener will be connected with their purpose  and their expectations because minimal responses are indicators that the listener is understanding what the speaker is saying as well as they are going to get  self-confidence to participate even at the end or while the speaker is talking. (Zimmerman, 1975)

DEFINITIONS

Introduced the term Strategy  is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves the advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations (Review & Fréry, 2006).

Listening comprehension (LC) is a typical product of teaching methodology, and is matched in phonetic and psycholinguistic research by expressions such as ´speech understanding´ (Marslen-Wilson, 1983) ,´spoken language undestanding´ (Simón, 1987),´Speech Recognition´ (Ainsworth, 1976) and, of course, ´Speech Perception´.

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