LISTENING COMPREHENSION DIFFICULTIES FACED BY ADULT LANGUAGE LEARNERS

Аннотация

This article explores the multifaceted challenges that adult language learners face in developing effective listening comprehension skills. It begins by emphasizing the significance of listening as an active, meaning-making process essential for communication and language development. The discussion highlights several common difficulties such as memory limitations, fast speech, limited vocabulary, pronunciation issues, and cultural unfamiliarity. Drawing on various studies, the article further examines how age-related cognitive and sensory decline affects auditory processing and comprehension, especially in second language (L2) contexts. It also reflects on the role of metacognitive strategies and learner confidence in overcoming these obstacles. The article concludes by urging educators to apply appropriate teaching methods and strategies that consider the diverse needs and limitationsof adult learners to foster effectivelistening comprehension. Key words:Listening comprehension, adult language learners, second language acquisition, hearing difficulties, short-term memory, speech rate, pronunciation, vocabulary limitations, metacognitive strategies, age-related decline, auditory processing, EFL/ESL, communication skills, language proficiency, listeningstrategies. Listening is more than just hearing—it’s the active process of making sense of what we hear. In both real-life communication and academic settings, listening plays a crucial role, especially when it comes to listening comprehension skills. These skills, often tested in language exams, measure a person’s ability to understand, interpret, and respond to spoken language. In my view, strong listening comprehension isn't just about catching every word—it's about grasping meaning, tone, and intention. It reflects how well we can process information in real time, making it a key indicatorofoverall language proficiency and effective communication. If learners want to learn to speak, they should first learn to understand the spoken language they hear. If learners want to communicate with native speakers, they should first learn to understand in real language situations to comprehend the main pint of what native speakers are telling. Therefore,listening is very important towhichteachersandlearnersshould pay enough attention to obtain communication aims. Listening is very important in language learning because it provides input for learners and it has also an important role in the development oflearners’language knowledge (Rost, 1994). Listening has long been recognized as an important skillamong thefour language skills that students at the tertiary level need to master. Although listening is important, it is a neglected skill that researchers only recently began to recognize as compared to speaking, reading and writing. A review of previous research regarding the four language skills used by EFL students indicates that listening is a skill that students are often not good at. This claim is page1037 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ISSN:2692-5206,ImpactFactor:12,23 AmericanAcademicpublishers,volume05,issue04,2025 Journal: https://www.academicpublishers.org/journals/index.php/ijai in agreement with some recent research studies which show that most students have problems in EFL listening comprehension. Studies reveal that if typical factors affecting language learners’ listeningcomprehension are recognized, studentscan overcomethedifficulty faced in comprehending listening tasks. Depending on the purpose of the research, factors influencing L2 listening can be grouped in different categories labelled with different names. The researchers in this thesis would like to group factors influencing language learners in three categories:linguisticfactors,cognitivefactors and affective factors recommended by because it seems by grouping this way, factorsthataffectstudents’listeningcomprehensionprocesscanbe easilyidentified. (Minh Trang Nguyen p68) Linguistic factors refer to language-specific elements such as vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and the complexity of spoken texts that affect L2 listening comprehension. Cognitive factors involve the mental processes used during listening, such as attention, memory, processing speed, and the use of listening strategies. These help learners interpret and make sense of what they hear. Affective factors include emotional and psychological aspects like motivation, anxiety, confidence, and attitude toward the language. These influence a learner’s willingness to engage with listening tasks and their overall performance. Together, these categories provide a comprehensive understanding of L2 listening challenges. There are such kinds of listening problems that many adults commonly face, particularly in the context of listening comprehension. One major issue is short-term memory, as adults often find it difficult to retain and process information while simultaneously listening to new input. This can cause them to m