International Journal of
Information and Education Technology

Abstract

The current study examined the effects of Virtual Reality (VR)-assisted listening instruction on language learners’ listening comprehension and vocabulary retention. Sixty-three English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners were divided into two groups and were tested on their listening comprehension and vocabulary knowledge before and after a one-semester L2 instruction. 360° VR videos were integrated into the pre-listening phase of the instruction in two conditions: Experience + Activity (EA) and Experience-Only (EO). The EA group engaged in watching and exploring the videos and was required to complete some pedagogical activities while or after watching them. The EO group watched and walked through the 360º VR videos without being expected to do any pedagogical tasks. Mixed between-within-subjects analyses of variance revealed that the EA group outperformed the EO group in Part 1 of the listening post-test, which involved multimodal listening tasks. Further analysis displayed a substantial main effect for time with both groups’ development of their listening comprehension from pre-test to post-test (ηp2 = 0.512). Also, a substantial main effect for time with both groups’ development of their vocabulary learning from pre-test to post-test was observed (ηp2 = 0.435). A significant interaction between learning conditions revealed that the vocabulary learning of both EA and EA groups improved from pre-test to post-test. The findings suggest the potential benefits of VR in boosting L2 listening skills and comprehension, and vocabulary learning when integrated into the cycle of teaching listening based on sound pedagogical practices.