ESOL Listening Skills 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is 'active listening' in the context of ESOL learning?
- Listening while doing another task
- Fully concentrating and responding to what is heard (Correct answer)
- Listening only to music in English
- Writing down every word spoken
Correct answer: Fully concentrating and responding to what is heard
Active listening means fully engaging with the speaker through concentration, understanding, and appropriate response.
Question 2: A speaker says: 'I'm not sure, but I think the meeting starts at three.' What does this signal about the information?
- The information is definitely correct
- The information is uncertain or approximate (Correct answer)
- The meeting has been cancelled
- The speaker is angry about the meeting time
Correct answer: The information is uncertain or approximate
Phrases like 'I'm not sure' and 'I think' signal that the speaker is expressing uncertainty, not a confirmed fact.
Question 3: Which of the following best describes 'bottom-up' listening processing?
- Starting with the overall message and working to details
- Decoding sounds and words to build meaning piece by piece (Correct answer)
- Listening only to the most important words
- Predicting what the speaker will say next
Correct answer: Decoding sounds and words to build meaning piece by piece
Bottom-up processing begins with individual sounds and words and builds up to overall meaning.
Question 4: You hear an announcement at an airport: 'Flight 204 to Chicago is now boarding at Gate B7.' What action should a passenger to Chicago take?
- Wait at the check-in counter
- Go to Gate B7 to board the plane (Correct answer)
- Proceed to baggage claim
- Call the airline for more information
Correct answer: Go to Gate B7 to board the plane
The announcement says boarding has started at Gate B7, so passengers should go to that gate immediately.
Question 5: What is the purpose of predicting content before listening to a passage?
- It allows you to skip the listening portion
- It activates background knowledge and improves comprehension (Correct answer)
- It ensures you memorize the vocabulary
- It replaces the need to listen carefully
Correct answer: It activates background knowledge and improves comprehension
Predicting activates schema — your prior knowledge — which makes it easier to process and understand new information when you hear it.
Question 6: A coworker says: 'Let's touch base later this week.' What does 'touch base' mean?
- Meet at the baseball field
- Briefly connect or check in with each other (Correct answer)
- Touch each other's belongings
- Complete a project together
Correct answer: Briefly connect or check in with each other
'Touch base' is a common idiom meaning to briefly contact or check in with someone.
Question 7: When listening to a lecture, which type of note-taking signal should alert you that a key point is coming?
- The speaker coughs or clears their throat
- Phrases like 'most importantly' or 'remember that' (Correct answer)
- The speaker slows down to drink water
- The speaker uses a foreign word
Correct answer: Phrases like 'most importantly' or 'remember that'
Signpost phrases like 'most importantly' or 'the key point is' alert listeners that critical information is about to be stated.
ESOL Listening Skills 3
What is 'active listening' in the context of ESOL learning?