Using Running Dictation to Reconstruct Listening Transcripts

(TESOL Ideas--Using the Transcript after Listening)

Example Activity 1--reconstruct the first several sentences: docs, pub

Example Activity 2--every other word is blanked out: docs, pub

Example Activity 3--10 sentences are blanked out, but they are spread out throughout the text: docs, pub

I've talked about running dictation a few times before on this blog.  See previous explanations HERE and HERE.

But, I've recently gotten the idea to use running dictation to reconstruct listening transcripts.

The idea is partially inspired by How to Teach Listening by J.J. Wilson.  He doesn't mention running dictation for listening transcripts directly, but he does talk about ideas for reconstructing listening transcripts.  And he also mentions running dictation as a listening activity.  (Running dictation, after all, involves one student dictating, and the other student listening to this dictation.  So it is, as J.J. Wilson points out, an activity that practices listening.)

The rules and theory of running dictation I've already described in a previous post.  I don't think I can improve on my previous explanation, so I'll just quote myself from the previous post:

In running dictation, the students are put into pairs.  The teachers places a sheet with some English sentences either at the front of the room, or outside of the room.  (I usually prefer to place it outside the classroom in the hallway somewhere, but it all depends on the size of your classroom, how much freedom you have to use the outside hallways, and how much you trust your students to be relatively well-behaved in the school hallways).  One student can run and look at the sentences, but they can't write down anything.  They must memorize as much as they can, and then run back and dictate the sentences to their partner.  Their partner, by contrast, is allowed to write, but cannot leave their seat to look at the sentences themselves.  They must simply listen to their partner, and write down what their partner dictates. (In my experience, constant vigilance is required to ensure that the rules are actually followed.)  The "runner" holds as much of the text in their memory as they can, runs back and tells their partner what they can remember, and then has to run back to the text to look again and memorize the next section.  

The game continues until one pair has successfully reconstructed all the sentences.

The variation with transcript reconstruction is that a small part of the transcript is placed outside the room.  (With longer listenings, students can't reconstruct the whole transcript, obviously, but they can reconstruct a small part of it.)  I gave students one sheet in which there was one blank line for every word.  On partner had to go outside and look, and the other partner sat and wrote.

After the students had done their best to reconstruct the text in this way, I then played the relevant portion of the audio twice.  Students got a chance to listen to the audio, and check to see that they had all the words correct.  (This practices micro-listening skills.)

Running dictation is traditionally done as a competition, and so I also did this as a competition.  After the students had had a chance to do the running dictation, and to listen twice to check their answers, I then had them change papers with another pair, handed out the answer key, and said that they get one point for each correct sentence.  (The sentence had to be duplicated exactly for them to get a point for it.) I then had them tally up the points, and we figured out who was the class winner.

For my class, I prepared two paragraphs from the listening transcript, so that we could run this game twice.  That way each student got a chance to be the runner, and each got a chance to be the listener.

Update: Variation 1: every other word is blanked out docs, pub

I was doing this activity with a listening in which most of the beginning sentences were too long.  So I decided to just make my students partially reconstruct the sentences.  I blanked out every other word instead of the whole sentence.

Update: Variation 2: 10 sentences are blanked out, but they are spread out throughout the text: docs, pub

I was doing this activity with a listening where I wanted my students to be exposed to more of the transcript.  So instead of just blanking out the first 10 sentences, I blanked out 10 sentences or phrases from within the middle of the text.

The example activity linked to above is from Video: The Sustainable City p.100-103, Reflect Listening & Speaking 5.

Llewellyn: ________, ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________, ________ ________, ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________, ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________, ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________, ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________. ________ ________ ________ ________  ________. ________ ________, ________. ________ ________ , ________ ________ . ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ .

El-Jisr: ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ .________  ________ ________ ________ . . . ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ . ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ . . . ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ . ________ , ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________,  ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ . ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ . ________ ________ , ________ ________ , ________ ________ ________ ________ ________ .

Llewellyn: Hello, and welcome to Fully Charged. My name is Robert Llewellyn. This is a series about the future of energy and transport, electric cars, all kinds of cool stuff like this. And today, I’ve just come along to see this normal town, just another town in Dubai. Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. And I don’t know, it’s very nice. It’s very quiet as you can tell. Not a lot of traffic. In fact, none. In fact, it’s amazing. This is the Sustainable City.

El-Jisr: First of all, thank you for coming. I mean this is . . . it’s a delight to show you all of this. So, this is the Sustainable City and we, we regard it as . . . Our goal is to have a net zero energy development. So, everything you see, first of all, the principle design element, is to reduce the energy intensity of the city. And so, if you notice, as we drive through those streets, the orientation of the villas. You know, these villas, they benefit from the shade.

Llewellyn: (1)Hello, and welcome to Fully Charged. (2)My name is Robert Llewellyn. (3)This is a series about the future of energy and transport, electric cars, all kinds of cool stuff like this. (4)And today, I’ve just come along to see this normal town, just another town in Dubai. (5)Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. (6)And I don’t know, it’s very nice. (7)It’s very quiet as you can tell. (8)Not a lot of traffic. (9)In fact, none. (10)In fact, it’s amazing. (11)This is the Sustainable City.

El-Jisr: (1)First of all, thank you for coming. (2)I mean this is . . . it’s a delight to show you all of this. (3)So, this is the Sustainable City and we, we regard it as . . . Our goal is to have a net zero energy development. (4)So, everything you see, first of all, the principle design element, is to reduce the energy intensity of the city. (5)And so, if you notice, as we drive through those streets, the orientation of the villas. (6)You know, these villas, they benefit from the shade.