Use of Video and Audio Texts in EFL Listening Test

Abstract

The study aims to discover whether audio or video modality in a listening test is more beneficial to test takers. In this study, the posttest-only control group design was utilized and quantitative data were collected in order to measure participant performances concerning two types of modality (audio or video) in a listening test. The participants, first grade students from an ELT program, were recruited and randomly assigned to two groups: audio-only text (AOT) (n=30) and video-only text (VOT) (n=27). Audio-only text (AOT) and video-only text (VOT) posttests were administered to the two randomly selected groups. Based on the results, the spread of the scores was wide in the post tests. In a nutshell, apart from texts 1 and 2, the AOT group performed significantly higher than the VOT group, despite the visual elements of the video. When considered all twenty items of the four texts, the significant difference found indicates that the audio modality was more favorable. This study examined differences in the effects of video listening text or audio-only listening text in terms of their effect on L2 test-taker performance. The quantitative results showed significantly higher success for AOT test takers. In other words, a consistent pattern presented in the listening comprehension test towards audio modality. However, the findings of the current research are not conclusive since various elements may have affected the outcome, such as motivation, physical factors, and topic familiarity, note-taking habits, and initial preference for audio or video. Therefore, further empirical research comparing AOT and VOT listening comprehension assessments is suggested to take into account these variables.