The effects of shadowing technique on the listening proficiency of Iranian intermediate EFL learners

Shadowing is a technique widely used by many EFL learners so as to enhance both their oral and their aural abilities. There is a body of research done on shadowing, proving this to be an effective technique to enhance oral proficiency such as fluency and pronunciation. There are also a number of studies done to investigate the impact of this technique on listening comprehension, however, in the region where we live, this area of research has not been done much; specifically, on Iranian EFL learners of a certain level. Therefore, the current study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the shadowing technique on the listening proficiency of EFL learners of the intermediate level over an ۸-week period. The study involved ۳۰ students selected from a language institute in Ardabil city, with ۱۵ in the treatment group and ۱۵ in the control group. A pretest and posttest design was used to measure the students' listening proficiency level before and after the intervention. The treatment group received the shadowing technique as an intervention, which involved listening to native speakers and repeating, while the control group did not receive any treatment. Having analyzed the data using the SPSS software, the results of the study showed that the treatment group had a significant improvement in their listening proficiency level compared to the control group. The findings suggest that the shadowing technique can be an effective intervention for improving the listening proficiency of EFL learners of the intermediate level in this region. The results also indicated that the intervention had a positive effect on the students' listening skills over an eight-week period. In conclusion, the study provides evidence that shadowing technique can be a valuable tool for improving listening skills in EFL learners of upper intermediate level over an ۸-week period.

کلیدواژه ها:

shadowing ، EFL learners ، listening proficiency