Storytelling in teaching listening comprehension in year 4 / Wan Abdul Rahman Wan Umar

Comprehension is a process whereby a listener takes in raw speech and holds it in the short-term memory. The listener will then identify the context and its syntax functions. Before the message can be stored in the long-term memory, it has to be converted into meaningful comprehensible messages. Unable to master listening comprehension one will not be able to comprehend messages and obstruct communication. Listening comprehension is an important language skill and should be in many interactive means. Language teachers should be able to manipulate adapts and adopts several measures so that listening skills can be further developed. Story-telling offers an alternative means to achieve these objectives. It creates a lively, creative and effective comprehensible input thus promotes effective language teaching and learning. In the long run story-telling methods inculcate reading habits; promote educational, moral and social values and the love for literature. Story-telling offers second language learners the opportunity to develop communicative competence, language awareness and the ability to use language skills with accuracy and appropriateness.