English Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions of Listening Comprehension Difficulties

Abstract

This study examines the perceptions of listening comprehension difficulties among English preservice teachers at a university in Thailand. Survey-based research was conducted using a questionnaire designed by Ahkam Hasan Assaf. The questionnaire consisted of 45 close-ended questions on a five-point Likert scale. Out of 98 English preservice teachers selected through simple random sampling, 63 respondents completed an online questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results indicated that the greatest difficulties were associated with the physical setting (M=3.84) as the most challenging, followed by content of spoken text (M=3.77), the speaker (M=3.72), failure to concentrate (M=3.51), difficulties related to the listener (M=3.49), and linguistic features (M=3.45). Rated as moderate, the importance of listening skill (M=3.05) was rated the least. The study reveals how individual learner differences impact listening comprehension and trigger the need for effective educational approaches, such as diagnostic assessments to identify specific listening challenges faced by students, allowing for customized listening exercises. Additionally, curriculum designers can incorporate diverse and comprehensive listening components to directly target these difficulties. This also emphasizes the need for enhanced teacher training programs that focus on pedagogical strategies, including adaptive teaching methods and effective use of technology, to improve the engagement and effectiveness of listening lessons.