Listening Skills Development in the Context of Learner-Oriented Approach

The article considers the issues connected with the second language (L2) learning and listening comprehension, in particular. The role of various characteristics of learners’ personality in the L2 acquisition is discussed. The results of experimental study including 35 Russian-speaking learners of English showed that the level of trait anxiety influences the process of mastering the L2 listening skills. Learners with high trait anxiety levels show low speed of the processes of logical thinking as well as rapid learning fatigue. Individuals with low trait anxiety are characterized by a relatively slow learning progress despite the stability of the results. The analysis of learning strategies including metacognitive, cognitive, memory-related, compensatory, social and affective ones allowed us to single out those compensatory strategies which mitigate the negative impact of certain psychological peculiarities.