The Language Teacher
November 2001
Using Cell Phones for Listening Practice
Michael D. Depoe
Kanazawa Institute of Technology
<mdepoe@neptune.kanazawa-it.ac.jp>
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Key Words: Listening, cell phone, 16 seconds
Learner English Level: All levels
Learner Maturity Level: College to adult
Preparation Time: 16 seconds
Activity Time: Varies
The percentage of young people who own portable telephones in Japan is incredibly high. As a language educator, I became intrigued with the idea of using this technology to my advantage. Specifically, I was interested in how to provide students with supplementary listening activities using a portable telephone.
Therefore, I purchased a cell phone which was equipped with the capability to record both outgoing and incoming messages. Equipped with this mini language lab, I was ready to begin. I was surprised at how easy it was to record and save the message. The only drawback is that the outgoing message could not exceed 16 seconds. I was not discouraged by this constraint and decided that 16 seconds of concentrated listening practice a day was worth the effort.
Here are some of the activities I devised.
Listening practice #1 -- Teacher introduction
On the first day of class, students are often given an assignment to interview their classmates and are asked to find out various things such as name, hobby, and family background. The first listening exercise was an extension of this exercise. For homework, students were asked to call the teacher's answering machine and write the answers to the following questions:
What's his name?
Where is he from?
How many people are in his family?
What is his hobby?
What time did you call?
The answers were given on the answering machine message. Students were allowed to call as many times as necessary in order to answer the questions. The final question was designed to discourage the students copying from each other.
Listening practice #2 -- Movie information
This listening exercise was used in the context of a lesson about movies (What kind of movies do you like?). Students were given a list of movie titles and times with some of the information missing. (See below.)
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Listening practice #3 -- Scavenger hunt
This listening activity was extremely popular. Students couldn't wait for the class to be over to begin. First of all, the teacher took a 5x7 index card and wrote a message on it such as "You Found It." Then the card was hidden somewhere on campus. In this case it was taped under a desk in a remote part of the library. Then the students were given instructions about what to look for and asked to call the teacher's telephone number for directions. The answering machine message gave specific directions on how to find the card. For example:
"Go out the north exit of building 1. Turn right. Find the tallest building and go to the 11th floor. Go to the northeast corner and look under a desk. You will find it there. Good luck!"
Furthermore, students were instructed to write their names or initials on the card to signify they had found it. As an added incentive, the first three students (marked on the card as First, Second, and Third place winners) were given a small prize.
Listening and speaking practice #4 -- Giving directions
On the topic of giving directions, students were asked to call the teacher's telephone number and answer the questions they hear. However, instead of writing their answers, the students were given a blank cassette tape and asked to record their answers on the tape. Students who didn't have a recording device were instructed to use the facilities in the language lab. For example, the questions were:
Where do you live?
How do you get to school every day?
Give directions from your house or apartment to the university.
Listening practice #5 -- Descriptions of people
This exercise is an ideal supplement to practice descriptions of people. Students were given a picture or clipart showing six different people each marked by a letter. The students were then asked to call the answering machine and identify which of the people were being described. For example:
She's short and has long, straight hair.
He has a beard, wears glasses, and is a little heavy.
The students were allowed to listen to the message as many times as needed and write down their answers.
Listening practice #6 -- Leave a message
In preparation for the final project, students were given a chance to practice leaving a recorded voice message. Students were given an opportunity to hear examples of telephone messages as well as practice during the class. For homework, students were asked to call the teacher's telephone and leave a message. The recorded message had to include the student's name, time, reason for calling, and their phone number.
Final listening and speaking practice
The final project in the course was to interview a native speaker on the phone and write a report of the results. Students were asked to write between six and ten interview questions. Guidelines for writing questions included such stipulations as no personal questions and at least two thought-provoking questions. The entire interview had to last no more than five minutes regardless of the number of questions asked.
Conclusion
Using the cell phone as a mini language lab provided students with additional listening practice outside of the class and proved to be an interesting and useful supplement to classroom activities. The students were highly motivated and the percentage of student participation was extremely high. The ease of access and high interest in portable telephones makes these listening activities a clever addition to the listening component of the English curriculum.
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