Exploring Students' Difficulties in TOEFL Listening
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29240/ef.v7i2.8065Keywords:
Analysis, Difficulties, Listening, TOEFL, TesAbstract
 The purpose of this study was to determine the difficulties that students face when listening to TOEFL Preparation Tests at the English Study Program, FKIP UKI TORAJA. The participants in this study consisted of 12 students from the 8th semester of the English Department at FKIP UKI Toraja. The research employed a descriptive qualitative method and collected data through interviews. The data was then analyzed using three main stages: data reduction, data display, and drawing conclusions. After analyzing and discussing the findings, it can be concluded that 8th semester English Department students at UKI Toraja encounter various difficulties when listening to TOEFL Preparation tests, which can be categorized into three main areas. Each category presents different challenges. Regarding the comprehension of listening materials, students face difficulties with complex grammatical structures, understanding every word in spoken discourse, interpreting the meaning of lengthy spoken texts, and encountering unfamiliar vocabulary. Additionally, students encounter difficulties related to listening itself, including anxiety, deducing the meaning of unknown words, lack of concentration, unclear pronunciation, difficulty with retention, losing focus, and listening without transcripts. Furthermore, students also face obstacles related to the physical setting, such as poor quality cassettes or discs, inadequate equipment, and background noise.
Downloads
References
Al-Rubaat, A. M., & Ali Alshammari, H. (2019). Analysis of Phonetic and Phonological Constraints of Saudi EFL Learners. English Language Teaching, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v13n1p63
Aprino, D., Elfrida, E., & Lubis, A. A. (2022). English Students’ Difficulties in Understanding Listening Section of the TOEFL Test. Journal of English Education and Teaching, 6(2). https://doi.org/10.33369/jeet.6.2.250-270
Aspers, P., & Corte, U. (2019). What is Qualitative in Qualitative Research. Qualitative Sociology, 42(2). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11133-019-9413-7
Baltacı, A. (2017). Nitel veri analizinde Miles-Huberman modeli (Miles-Huberman model in qualitative dataanalysis). Ahi Evran Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 3(1).
Caterine, W., Amalia, T., & Shaberina, S. G. R. (2021). Indonesian EFL Learners’ Ability to Comprehend and Produce Implicature. IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Literature, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.24256/ideas.v9i2.1924
Cogill J. (2008). CHAPTER 2 PEDAGOGY AND MODELS OF TEACHER KNOWLEDGE - sample of theoretical framework. Primary Teachers’ Interactive Whiteboard Practice across One Year: Changes in Pedagogy 2 and Influencing Factors, 1–17.
Gil Fernández, A., Sanabria, C. C., & RamÃrez Valencia, A. (2021). Smile room: a plataform for the practice and reinforcement of listening EFL. Revista BoletÃn Redipe, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.36260/rbr.v10i4.1270
Gilakjani, A. P., & Ahmadi, M. R. (2011). A Study of Factors Affecting EFL Learners’ English Listening Comprehension and the Strategies for Improvement. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 2(5). https://doi.org/10.4304/jltr.2.5.977-988
Gilakjani, A. P., & Sabouri, N. B. (2016). Learners’ Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English Language Learning: A Literature Review. English Language Teaching, 9(6). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v9n6p123
Gu, L., Lockwood, J., & Powers, D. E. (2015). Evaluating the TOEFL Junior ® Standard Test as a Measure of Progress for Young English Language Learners . ETS Research Report Series, 2015(2). https://doi.org/10.1002/ets2.12064
Hessel, A. K., & Strand, S. (2023). Proficiency in English is a better predictor of educational achievement than English as an Additional Language (EAL). Educational Review, 75(4). https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2021.1949266
Ikhsan, E. M., & Ismail, S. (2022). An Analysis on Students’ Listening Comprehension Problems at the Third Semester English Language Education of Universitas Islam Riau. Jurnal Kependidikan DISCOVERY, 1(1).
Javanmard, M., Steen, M., Vernon, R., & Newnham, E. (2017). Experiences of internationally qualified midwives and nurses in Australia and other developed nations: A structured literature review. Evidence Based Midwifery, 15(3).
Jumino, J. (2018). Application of Information Literacy Based on English Ability: Case Study of The Information and Library Science S-1 Study Program Students, Academic Year 2013. Anuva, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.14710/anuva.2.1.11-17
Jyoti, R. (2020). Exploring English Language Students’ Difficulties in Listening Comprehension. Journal La Edusci, 1(3). https://doi.org/10.37899/journallaedusci.v1i3.125
Kiliç, M., & Uçkun, B. (2012). Listening text type as a variable affecting listening comprehension anxiety. English Language Teaching, 6(2). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v6n2p55
Maharani, S., & Miftachudin, M. (2021). Revealing Teachers’ Methods in Teaching Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL). Journal of English Teaching and Learning Issues, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.21043/jetli.v4i2.12204
Mohammed, A. (2017). The Role of Language Laboratory in English Language Learning Settings. English Language Teaching, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v10n2p86
Nordlund, M., & Norberg, C. (2020). Vocabulary in EFL teaching materials for young learners. International Journal of Language Studies, 14(1).
Padang, F., Purba, D. V. M., & Saragih, E. (2022). Pragmatic Analysis of Speech Acts in Short Dialogue of Listening Comprehension Test. Jurnal Ilmiah Profesi Pendidikan, 7(2b). https://doi.org/10.29303/jipp.v7i2b.509
Silviyanti, T. M., Rahmadhani, R., & Samad, I. A. (2020). Efl students’ strategies in answering the listening section of the longman toefl. Studies in English Language and Education, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v7i1.13007
Stephan, U., & Pathak, S. (2016). Beyond cultural values? Cultural leadership ideals and entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 31(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2016.07.003
Szpyra-Kozłowska, J. (2013). On the irrelevance of sounds and prosody in foreign-accented english. Second Language Learning and Teaching, 10. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-24019-5_2
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Citation Check
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
