Using Google Podcasts to Develop Prospective EFL Teachers’ Listening Comprehension Skills

Attempting to investigate the impact of using Google Podcasts in developing prospective EFL teachers’ listening comprehension skills, this study was conducted during the first semester of the academic year 2021/ 2022. One hundred and seventy participants enrolled in the Fourth Year, English Major listened to a Google podcast based on Charles Dickens’ Hard Times. Methodologically, the one-group pretest–posttest design was adopted. A valid and reliable listening comprehension test consisting of fifty items was administered to the participants. The experiment lasted for seven weeks in which participants received extensive listening sessions. After the posttest, data were statistically analyzed by the Paired Sample t-Test. Findings revealed that podcasts developed prospective EFL teachers’ recognition of literal meaning, purpose determination, reasoning analysis and conclusion drawing. Two listening comprehension skills were not significantly developed; namely: inference making and evidence finding. Thorough implications were provided and recommendations for further studies were suggested.

Keywords: Google Podcasts, Listening Comprehension, Aural Skill Development.