VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FALCUTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ THỊ HỒNG HẠNH

DEVELOPING COMPENSATION STRATEGIES IN LISTENING
FOR 10
TH
FORM STUDENTS AT NGUYEN VAN CU
UPPER-SECONDARY SCHOOL, GIALAM, HANOI

(Phát triển chiến lược bù trong kỹ năng nghe cho học sinh lớp 10 trường
THPT Nguyễn Văn Cừ, Gia Lâm, Hà Nội) M.A. Minor Programme Thesis M.A. Minor Programme Thesis

Major: English Methodology
Code: 60 14 10
Supervisor: VŨ MAI TRANG, M.A.

HANOI, 2010

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Declaration …………………………………………………………………………………… i
Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………………… ii
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………… iii
Table of contents……………………………………………………………………………….iv
List of abbreviations………………………………………………………………………… vii
List of tables………………………………………………………………………………….viii
List of figures………………………………………………………………………………… ix
PART A: INTRODUCTION 1
1. Rationale 1
2. Aims of the study 2

CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DEVELOPING COMPENSATION
STRATEGIES 30
3.1. Raising awareness of compensation strategy training 30
3.2. Integrating strategy training into the lessons 31
3.3. Teaching basic grammatical rules and phonological rules 32
3.4. Teaching discourse marker clues 33
3.5. Exploiting background knowledge 35
3.6. Recalling key words and structures 36
3.7. Making full use of visual aids 36
3.8. Providing pairwork and groupwork 37
3.9. Giving encouragement 37
3.10. Providing a variety of listening tasks 37
PART C: CONCLUSION 39
1. Conclusion 39
2. Limitations and suggestions for further research 40
References…………………………………………………………………………… …… 41

Appendixes…………………………………………………………… …………………… I
Appendix 1: Interviews for teachers………………………………………… ………… I
Appendix 2: Survey questionnaires for students III
Appendix 3: A sample of an interview transcript XI
Appendix 4: A sample of a class observation XIII
Appendix 5: A suggested lesson plan of integrating strategy instruction XVI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as a Foreign Language
LLS: Language Learning Strategies


PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
English language teaching in the recent years has moved from traditional approaches,
involving the explicit teaching of grammar and translation, to various versions of
communicative methodology. Consequently, a greater emphasis has been placed on learners
and what strategies they adopt to be successful. Well-known researchers such as Cohen
(1988), O‟Malley and Chamot (1990), and Oxford (1990) have pointed out that learning
strategies are among the main factors that help determine how well students learn a second or
foreign language. Therefore, it is the role of the teacher to help students discover and apply
appropriate learning strategies in their learning.
The necessary to equip students with listening strategies to help them develop their
listening skill at upper-secondary schools in Vietnam can be seen clearly. The new series of
English textbooks for students have been used in schools in Viet Nam for some years and it
seems that listening skill is the most difficult one for our students to master. Listening is also
the skill that causes a lot of difficulties for teachers to prepare and carry out the lesson because
the old textbooks do not have a separate part for teaching and learning listening skill. The
students who are using the new kind of textbooks often find it hard to catch up with the
listening text and as a result they fail to comprehend what is spoken. Besides, they come to
listening activities with little knowledge of how to listen effectively and successfully. The
situation at Nguyen Van Cu Upper-secondary School is the same, if not to say it is more

th
form students at NVC School in
applying compensation strategies in listening?
4. What recommendations should be made for teachers to help 10
th
form students at
NVC School develop compensation strategies in listening?
3. Scope of the study
Firstly, this study only focuses on compensation strategies used in listening (guessing
intelligently) although the new kind of textbook covers all of four skills, namely reading,
speaking, listening and writing as well as there are a lot of English language learning strategies
that can be employed.
Secondly, due to the small scale of the study the subjects are restricted only to 10
th

form teachers and students at Nguyen Van Cu upper-secondary school, who are using the new
kind of textbook.
4. Methods of the study
The author has applied the following methods in this study:
Data collection results from interviews (for teachers), survey questionnaires (for
students) and class observations.
Data analysis is done through coding, classifying, and reporting the information.
5. Design of the study
The study is divided into three parts.
Part A Introduction shows the research problem and the rationale for the research.
Subsequently, it presents the aims, the scope, the methods and the design of the study.
Part B Development consists of three chapters.
Chapter 1 provides a summary of theoretical background which covers a review in key
concepts relating to the research topic as well as the literature in the field.
Chapter 2 deals with the setting of the study and the data collection process. The results

listening process and also identifies two distinctive features of listening comprehension which
are selecting and interpreting. Selecting means listeners use only part of the incoming
information whereas interpreting means listeners make sense of the input from their
background knowledge as well as the new information.
More specifically, Richards and Schmidth (2002: 313) as cited in Helgesen & Brown
(2007: 3) views listening comprehension as “the process of understanding speech in a first or
second language. The study of listening comprehension in second language focuses on the role
of individual linguistic units (e.g., phonemes, words, grammatical structures) as well as the
role of the listeners’ expectations, the situation and context, background knowledge and
topic.” In this definition, the writers mention the role of non-linguistic units such as the
context, the background knowledge. These things are often neglected in traditional points of
views which regard the listeners as tape recorders. I agree most with this definition because it
covers all of the necessary factors relating to listening comprehension.
Besides the controversies over the definition of listening comprehension, there also
exist the concerns about the process of listening comprehension.
1.1.2. Listening comprehension process
Listening is different from hearing in the aspect of listeners‟ paying attention. Paying
attention results in the fact that listeners actively process what they hear.
According to Underwood (1989: 4) the aural process has three stages. Firstly, the
„echoic memory’ takes the sounds for a very short time and classifies them into „meaningful
units’ according to the background knowledge of the listener. Secondly, the information is
processed by the short term memory. In a matter of seconds, the meaning is taken out through
word-checking and word-comparing (with long term memory information). Finally, the
meaning extracted is stored in the long-term memory for the use in the future. It can be seen
that here Underwood relates the aural process in terms of time and memory. The background
knowledge of listeners is also mentioned in the listening process.
The two fundamental modes of information processing that are widely accepted by
researchers such as Rumelhart (1977), Nunan (2001), Flowerder and Miller (2005) are the
bottom-up and top-down processing. In bottom-up processing, listeners use their linguistic
knowledge to form final message. Linguistic knowledge includes sounds, words, grammatical

learning to listen.
Ur (1996: 111) refers to six major problems in listening comprehension which are
difficulties in perceiving sounds, following natural speed and native accent, catching up with
the load of information as well as the needs to understand everything, to get things repeated,
and to have a rest. Trouble with sounds seems to be the biggest problem as most students have
difficulty catching the actual sounds of the foreign language. The misconception that listening
means having to understand every word is a very common problem and is often unconsciously
fostered by teachers and/ or listening materials. The effort to understand everything results in
ineffective comprehension as well as feelings of fatigue and failure. The speed of the speakers
also causes many difficulties to students because they cannot hear the sounds clearly when
dealing with fast and natural native-sounding speech.
Underwood (1989: 16) shares some of the main points with Ur about problems in
listening comprehension. She states seven problems which include “lack of control over the
speed at which speakers speak”, “not being able to get things repeated”, “the listener’s limited
vocabulary”, “failure to recognise signals”, “problems of interpretation”, “inability to
concentrate”, and “established learning habits ”. Lack of vocabulary is really an obstacle for
people listening to a foreign language since they can sometimes hear the words clearly, but the
problem may occur in understanding the meanings of the words they do not know. An
unknown word can be like a suddenly dropped barrier causing them to stop and think about
the meaning of the word and thus making them miss the next part of the speech. Besides,
“established learning habits” mean students are traditionally taught to understand everything
in the English lessons by listening carefully to teachers who probably speak slowly and
clearly. As a result, students become worried and discouraged if they fail to understand every
word while listening.
Yagang (1993: 1) provides a little bit different point of view when saying that “The
evidence that shows why listening is difficult comes mainly from four sources: the message to
be listened to, the speaker, the listener, and the physical setting.” The message is considered
in terms of the content (topic, organization …) and linguistic features (liaisons, elision …).
The speaker factor includes redundancy, speaker‟s voice, accent and speech style. The listener
factor involves in linguistic knowledge, background knowledge, exposure to different kinds of

1.2.2. Classification of language learning strategies
Oxford (1990: 16 - 22) classifies second LLS into two major classes: Direct Strategies
(strategies which directly involve the subject matter) and Indirect Strategies (strategies which
do not directly involve the subject matter itself, but are essential to language learning). Direct
Strategies are classified into memory strategies; cognitive strategies; and compensation
strategies. Indirect strategies include metacognitive strategies; affective strategies; and social
strategies.
DIRECT STRATEGIES
INDIRECT STRATEGIES
I. Memory
Strategies
1. Creating mental linkages
2. Applying images and sounds
3. Reviewing well
4. Employing actions
IV. Metacognitive
Strategies

1. Centering learning
2. Arranging and planning learning
3. Evaluating learning
II. Cognitive Strategies
1. Practicing
2. Receiving and sending
messages
3. Analyzing and reasoning
4. Creating structures for input and
output
V. Affective Strategies
1. Lowering anxiety

a study space and a schedule, monitoring mistakes, and evaluating task success, and evaluating
the success of any type of learning strategy) are employed for managing the learning process.
Affective strategies, such as identifying one‟s mood and anxiety level, talking about
feelings, rewarding oneself for good performance, and using deep breathing, have been shown
to be significantly related to second language proficiency.
Social strategies (e.g., asking questions to get verification, asking for clarification of a
confusing point, asking for help in doing a language task, talking with a native-speaking
conversation partner, and exploring cultural and social norms) help the learner work with
others and understand the target culture as well as the language.
Oxford‟s classification is appropriate since it covers fully LLS, from direct strategies
to indirect ones. It is a combination of the strategy classification systems by different experts
such as Rubin (1987), Chamot and O‟Malley (1990). It is more comprehensive and detailed,
and more accessible for readers because the strategies are organized hierarchically. However,
there is some overlap among sub-strategies in Oxford‟s classification.
1.2.3. The importance of language learning strategies for students
LLS can enable students to become more independent, autonomous, lifelong learners
(Allwright, 1990; Little, 1991 as cited in Oxford (2003: 9)). Students are freer to act, and to
make their own decision and able to learn continuously and permanently thanks to appropriate
LLS. Besides, a study by O'Malley and Chamot (1990) also suggests that effective second
language/ foreign language learners are aware of the LLS they use and why they use them.
LLS “make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective,
and more transferable to new situations” (Oxford, 1990: 8). Oxford (1990: 1) argues that
strategies are important for two reasons. In the first place, strategies “are tools for active, self
– directed involvement, which is essential for developing communicative competence”.
Secondly, learners who have developed appropriate learning strategies have greater self –
confidence and learn more effectively. According to Oxford (1990: 9), LLS:
- contribute to the main goal, communicative competence
- allow learners to become more self – directed
- expand the role of teachers
- support learning both directly and indirectly

a. Using linguistic clues
Listening, Reading
b. Using other clues
Listening, Reading
2. Overcoming
limitations in
speaking and
writing
c. Using mother tongue for an
expression without translating it
Speaking
d. Getting help
Speaking
e. Using mime or gestures
Speaking
f. Avoiding communication
Speaking, Writing
g. Selecting the topic
Speaking, Writing
h. Adjusting/ Approximating the
message
Speaking, Writing
i. Coining words
Speaking, Writing
j. Using a circumlocution or synonym
Speaking, Writing
Table 2: Classification of compensation strategies (adapted from Oxford, 1990)
As can be seen from Table 2, compensation strategies in listening are accompanied
with guessing intelligently:
- Using linguistic clues: Listeners can use such clues as prefixes, suffixes, word order, stress,

for listeners in the listening comprehension process. “Learners who are aware of a range of
strategies, and who are able to match their strategies to their listening purposes, will be better
listeners and better learners” (Nunan as cited in Helgesen & Brown, 2007: 147). It is of vital
importance that our students be taught to listen effectively and critically.
1.3.3. Guidelines on applying compensation strategies in listening
These guidelines are constructed according to a lot of ideas from Oxford‟s Strategy
Inventory of Language Learning (Oxford, 1990), other researchers, language teachers and my
own experience. They are also applied in my survey to investigate students‟ current
application of compensation strategies in listening.
- Using grammatical clues (part of speech, prefixes, suffixes …) to guess the unfamiliar
language items in the listening passage.
- Using background knowledge to guess the meaning of the listening.
- Using the words and phrases surrounding the unknown word to make quick guesses
about its general meaning
- Using the titles, subtitles, pictures, diagrams accompanying the listening task to
understand the topic/ content of the listening.
- Using phonological clues (intonation, stress …) to guess the meaning of the listening.
- Using clues from discourse markers (markers of addition/ cause and effect/ sequences/
…) to guess the meaning of the listening.
- Using clues from body language of speakers to guess the meaning of the listening.
- Using clues from background noises to guess the meaning of the listening.
- Writing down the transcript for the word that listeners do not remember the spelling in
doing gap-filling exercises.
Conclusion
This chapter has provided an overview of definitions of key terms such as listening
comprehension, LLS, and compensation strategies. It also deals with the listening
comprehension process, classification of LLS, the importance of LLS in general and
compensation strategies in listening in particular. Finally, guidelines on applying
compensation strategies in listening have been proposed.
It can be seen that there have been quite a lot of studies related to compensation

form students are the newcomers to the new kind of textbooks for
upper-secondary schools in which listening is stressed equally to other three skills. Secondly,
the students are at pre-intermediate level for which compensation strategies are of great help
as these strategies help them overcome knowledge limitations.
There are five out of eight teachers of English at NVC School participating in this study.
These five teachers include one male and four females. Their ages range from 26 to 33 with at
least four years of teaching English. One of them has finished an M.A course at Vietnam
National University, Hanoi. The reason for this choice of participants is that they are all in
charge of 10
th
form classes at NVC School.
The samples of students here are restricted to four 10
th
form classes (among eleven 10
th

form classes at NVC School). These four classes, which were chosen randomly, account for
180 students. They are aged from 15 to 16 and all of them have had at least four years of
learning English at lower-secondary schools. They are not the same at English speaking
competence. Some of them are really good and active while a lot of them are quite passive and
unmotivated in learning English.
2.1.3. Methods and instruments
The process of collecting data was carried out in the following steps:
Firstly, semi-structured interviews were conducted with five teachers to obtain their
attitudes towards compensation strategies in listening.
Secondly, the author observed two classes of listening to get some more detailed
information.
Thirdly, the questionnaires were distributed to 180 students to investigate their
attitudes towards compensation strategies in listening, the frequency of use of these strategies
and their difficulties and preferences.

questions are adapted from Oxford‟s Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (1990) and
some other ideas. Students answered each item statement using a 5-point Likert-scale that
ranged from 1 (Never) through 5 (Always). B3 is made up from two multiple choice questions
and its purpose is addressing students‟ difficulties and preferences in applying compensation
strategies. Students can choose more than one option in this part.
The questionnaire questions were worded carefully and translated into Vietnamese to
make it easy for the students. The questionnaires were also piloted with the help of three
students before delivering to the large number. The specific strategies are carefully illustrated
with examples, so students can clearly understand them and increase the accuracy of their
responses. The students were encouraged to share their ideas frankly and accurately, i.e.
representing what they actually do rather than what they should be doing. Besides, the
questionnaire papers were collected anonymously in order that students can freely express
their ideas.
2.2. Findings and discussions
The data from questionnaire were keyed into the computer and analyzed by using
EXCEL. Descriptive statistics, including frequencies, means, standard deviations and
percentages, were implemented in order to investigate the use of language learning strategies.
Besides, information from interviews and class observation was also synthesized and
interpreted.
2.2.1. Teachers’ perception and evaluation of compensation strategies in listening
In general, three out of five teachers in the interviews were aware of the concept
“listening strategies”. As adapted from Oxford‟s definition of language leaning strategies,
listening strategies can be defined as “specific behaviors or thought processes” that students
use to enhance their learning listening comprehension. Listening strategies are techniques or
activities that contribute directly to the comprehension and recall of listening input. Three
teachers shared the same concept. For example, Teacher 3 stated that “listening strategies are
techniques and skills that listeners use to listen more effectively.” However, two teachers still
had vague ideas of “listening strategies” when they considered listening strategies as listening
for general or specific information.
In term of the concept “compensation strategies in listening”, four out of the five

the teachers‟ efforts of helping students to guess intelligently. However, these techniques are
not enough to develop a full system of specific compensation strategies in listening for
students because they only concentrate on some clues such as the topic and the key words.
In conclusion, the five teachers at NVC School held some understanding of
compensation strategies in listening but they failed to reach a full knowledge of the specific
strategies. The reason for this limited knowledge lies in the fact that compensation strategies
in listening have not been properly investigated and introduced to English teachers and
learners. Besides, all five teachers in this study acknowledged the importance of compensation
strategies in listening to students. By this, they all meant the necessity of teaching
compensation strategies in listening to students. However, they need to be equipped with more
useful techniques to help students develop guessing strategies effectively.
2.2.2. Students’ perception and evaluation of compensation strategies in listening
Most of the students in the survey (84%) admitted that they had never heard of the
term “listening strategies”. This term seemed to be quite new to them because even not all of
the teachers were aware of this concept (as mentioned in the previous part) and some teachers
taught listening strategies without naming them. Moreover, students can employ listening
strategies consciously and unconsciously, which means that students can exploit the strategies
with or without being aware of them.
The concept of “compensation strategies in listening”, therefore, was explained with
the term “guessing intelligently in listening” to make it easier for students as well as to collect
the reliable data. More than half of the students, namely 56%, reported that they were familiar
with “guessing intelligently in listening”. Guessing skill seems to be very natural to people,
even in mother tongue. However, the ability to guess intelligently requires a lot of practice.
The students who reported their familiarity may know some ways to guess but they still need a
lot of practice to be intelligent guessers. In the two classes of listening observed, the correct
guesses students made accounted for only about 50%.
It is noted that a very large number of students appreciate compensation strategies in
listening. 88% of the informants thought that compensation strategies are important in
facilitating their listening comprehension. This revelation matched Oxford‟s evaluation of
compensation strategies in listening when she stated that they were among the most important