Dichotic Listening Test Performance In Children

Dichotic tests evaluate binaural integration through simultaneous presentation of different stimuli to each ear of a listener who has normal hearing sensitivity in both ears. Dichotic listening deficits may lead to problems with language, communication, reading, or academic performance. If accurately identified, dichotic deficits may be treatable with listening training or managed with accommodation. However, it is not clear which of several commercially-available dichotic test recordings are best for audiologists to use when assessing binaural integration in children. Literature review revealed limited evidence of reliability, accuracy, usefulness, or value for dichotic tests applied to children. Of 11 dichotic tests identified, five reported some evidence of test-retest reliability. Correlation between results on repeated administration was moderate to good (r=0.59 to 0.92). Evidence of accuracy was identified for 5 tests but was not generalizable due to significant limitations in study design. No evidence was found to either support or dispute claims of usefulness or value. Since reliability is a necessary prerequisite for good test performance, we sought to directly compare test-retest reliability for three dichotic measures: SCAN-3 Competing Words (CW), Musiek\u27s Double Dichotic Digits (DD-M), and Bergen Dichotic Listening Test with Consonant-Vowel Syllables (CV-B). Sixty English-speaking children, 7-14 years old with normal hearing, had a single study-visit during which each test was administered twice. Changes on retest were compared to binomial model predictions, summarized by within-subject standard deviation (Sw), and compared among tests. Correlates of variance were explored. All 3 tests had reliability within bounds predicted by binomial model. Forty-item scores were more reliable (Sw=5%) than those based on 20-30 items (Sw=6-8%). No associations between participant characteristics and reliability were found. CW and DD-M were evaluated for evidence of agreement and decision consistency. Although participants were rank ordered similarly by right ear (ρ = 0.58), left ear (ρ = 0.51) and total (ρ = 0.73) scores, the tests did not agree on ranking by inter-aural asymmetry (ρ =0.18). CW and DD-M did not agree on direction of ear advantage (κ = 0.01, p = 0.93) and had poor agreement on which children displayed dichotic deficits (κ = 0.22, p \u3c 0.01). DD identified significantly more participants with deficits (n=18) than CW (n=3) (p \u3c 0.001). Although dichotic procedures show moderate reliability, their precision is limited. Assessment of their accuracy is limited by the absence of a widely-accepted gold standard reference test, but two commonly used tests failed to agree on which children had deficits. The data do not yet support routine clinical use of dichotic tests of binaural integration with children. Additional research is needed to determine if there are any conditions under which dichotic procedures demonstrate usefulness or value

Identifying student- and class-level correlates of sixth-grade students’ listening comprehension

Despite the importance of listening, little investigation of potential correlates of listening comprehension in the language of schooling is done. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate which student- and class-level characteristics are related to sixth-grade students' listening skills in Flanders. A sample of 974 students in 70 classes completed a listening test in order to gather information on their ability to understand and interpret oral information. Further, different questionnaires were administered to the students, their parents and teachers. The results of the hierarchical regression analysis with multilevel design showed that the differences in listening comprehension skills could be primarily attributed to differences in student-level characteristics. The results indicated that students with higher working memory ability, more vocabulary knowledge and lower extrinsic listening motivation performed significantly better on the listening test. In addition, the educational level of the parents and the language diversity in the class was significantly related to students' listening skills in the language of schooling. This study is an important starting point in unraveling the black box of listening skills in the elementary school context. Suggestions for further research and practice were made

Statistical Analysis of the Blizzard Challenge 2007 Listening Test Results

Blizzard 2007 is the third Blizzard Challenge, in which participants build voices from a common dataset. A large listening test is conducted which allows comparison of systems in terms of naturalness and intelligibility. New sections were added to the listening test for 2007 to test the perceived similarity of the speaker’s identity between natural and synthetic speech. In this paper, we present the results of the listening test and the subsequent statistical analysis Index Terms: Blizzard Challenge, speech synthesis, evaluation, listening tes

Towards the development of a universal listening test interface generator in Max

This engineering brief describes HULTI-GEN (Huddersfield Universal Listening Test Interface Generator), a Cycling ‘74 Max-based tool. HULTI-GEN is a user-customisable environment, which takes user-defined parameters (e.g. the number of trials, stimuli and scale settings) and automatically constructs an interface for comparing auditory stimuli, whilst also randomising the stimuli and trial order. To assist the user, templates based on ITU-R recommended methods have been included. As the recommended methods are often adjusted for different test requirements, HULTI-GEN also supports flexible editing of these presets. Furthermore, some existing techniques have been summarised within this brief, including their restrictions and how they might be altered through using HULTI-GEN. A finalised version of HULTI-GEN is to be made freely available online at: http://www.hud.ac.uk/research/researchcentres/mtprg/projects/apl

INVESTIGATING MEDICAL STUDENTS’ DIFFICULTIES IN TOEFL LISTENING TEST

This research investigated the students’ responses to listening difficulties in taking the listening section of the TOEFL test and their efforts made to overcome the difficulties. This study is descriptive qualitative research that used the online questionnaire attached in the google forms to gather data needed. The questionnaire was distributed to 100 medical students at UP3BI class (Unit Pengembangan Program Pendamping Mata Kuliah Bahasa Inggris (UP3BI) of Syiah Kuala Language Center. The questionnaire was divided into two. Part one consisted of students’ personal information on the listening skill questionnaire.  It was found that watching English TV programs or movies (65.10%) and listening to English songs (60%) as the highest rank of students’ efforts made to overcome listening difficulties of the TOEFL test. Section two of the questionnaire consisted of listening difficulties. It was found that most respondents were difficult to understand the native speaker’s pronunciation (64%). In addition, it is suggested that for English lecturers, other researchers, institutions, and testing organizers to contribute a standardized knowledge of the TOEFL test and also to provide a conditioned testing place for a better improvement of listening TOEFL in particular. Besides, the test takers or students should practice and learn more about listening TOEFL as often as possible. Therefore, they will get used to listening and can minimize the difficulties during taking the TOEFL test

Investigating the Validity of the IELTS Listening Test

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) has gained popularity in recent years and it is now accepted by many educational institutions worldwide. While IELTS offers a distinct academic version of the reading and writing test components, it uses the same listening module for the General Training and the Academic exam. The present article explores to what extent the listening subtest in the Academic IELTS test is a useful measure of test-takers listening ability and a predictor of their academic success. This study focusses on the test’s construct validity. A critical review of the major strengths and potential drawbacks of the listening test is followed by a comparison of the test scores with another traditionally accepted test of academic English. Conclusions about the validity of the IELTS listening test are drawn along with some suggestions for design improvement. Future research directions are also proposed

Subtitled Films and Learning Listening Comprehension: A Study in Bulukumba, Indonesia

This present study is aimed at finding out (1) the possible effect of subtitled and non-subtitled movies on students’ listening achievement, and (2) the difference between using subtitled and non-subtitled movies in students’ listening comprehension. A Comparative study using two groups with a pre-test and post-test design was undertaken in this research. The data were collected using the IELTS listening test. There were two results in the data analysis of IELTS listening test. The first, a general improvement was noted. It was found that both procedures (presenting the movie with or without subtitles) produced a positive effect. Second, the result of movie task data analysis indicated a positive effect for both groups; both groups significantly improved during six weeks. It was revealed that subtitled group exercised a better performance than non-subtitled group. Keywords: Subtitled movies, Non-subtitled movies, The IELTS Listening Test

Students’ Perception of The Challenges in Comprehending the English Language Listening Test

Listening is an essential component of the communication process. Of the four primary components of communication skills—reading, listening, speaking, and writing—it is the most crucial one. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the students’ perception of the factors that make it challenging to comprehend the "Listening Test" assessment. Eighteen (18) students from the DNS3B class at Politeknik Balik Pulau who took the "Listening Test" assessment for the course DUE 3012, Communicative English 2 participated in this study. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data collected via a yes-or-no questionnaire. The result showed that a few major factors influenced the students’ performance in their “Listening Test” assessment. They are; a) Language proficiency level, b) Listening skills, c) Passage length, d) Speech rate, e) Poor audio projection, and f) Testing Conditions. This paper also recommended several implications for practices based on this study and previous research for curriculum designers, teachers/lecturers/instructors and students

A Comparison of Using L1 (Indonesian) and English to Answer English Listening Comprehension Questions

English test results show that a lot of Indonesian students obtained low scores in listening. Students say they understand what speakers say in an English listening test but they have difficulties in answering the questions in English. This shows that students’ English receptive skills are higher than students’ productive skills. This research intends to find out what the difference in results is when students answer English listening comprehension questions in L1 (Indonesian) and English, and what the students’ perception is on the use of Indonesian language in English listening test. This research uses the mixed method along with a listening test, questionnaires, and interview as data collection tools. The findings show that these learners have difficulties to answer the test in English. The test answered in Indonesian received better scores than in English. Moreover, the questionnaires and the interview result show positive feedback on the use of Indonesian language. This shows that the learners actually have good listening skills and that their low-test scores are mostly due to their difficulty in expressing their thoughts in English