Licenciatura en Lenguas Extranjeras con Énfasis en Inglés · 2026

Using a genre-based approach and predictive podcasts to foster ninth graders’ listening comprehension

Resumen

Listening is an important skill that we all use from infancy to acquire vocabulary. We listened and repeated, listened and produced, making this perhaps the fundamental skill of our learning. Therefore, a key part of learning a second language is through listening, so that students start to make sense of what they hear. Many authors agree that when learners improve their listening skills, they also become stronger in other areas of communication, since listening helps them understand, respond, and use the language more confidently. In school settings, one approach that has shown good results in improving listening is the Genre-Based Approach (GBA). This approach helps students notice how different texts are organized, the steps they follow, and the purpose they serve, which leads to a clearer and deeper understanding. As Derewianka and Jones (2016) explain, knowing how genres work allows learners to predict how information will be presented and understand why certain language is used in each part of the text. This action research study examined how the Genre-Based Approach (GBA) could help 9th-grade students’ listening comprehension of predictive podcasts. One adapted GBA cycle was implemented, guiding learners through contextualization, genre analysis, schematic structure identification, and scaffolded listening supported by multimodal resources. The intervention included a Preliminary Listening task, comprehension activities during the lessons, classroom observations, reflective journals, and a final test. These results show that students were able to more accurately identify the main stages of predictive podcasts (introduction, predictions, and conclusion). Combining the GBA with multimodal supports increased students' engagement and comprehension.