Abstract:

This study aimed to investigate the effect of proposed multimedia activities in blended learning on students’ listening skills and satisfaction in a college English language course at the Royal University for Woman (RUW) in Bahrain. The study attempted to assess the effects of the proposed strategy on the students’ listening skills and satisfaction with the multimedia listening activities in the OPL (Orientation Program Lower). Results indicated that experimental group students scored higher level in their listening post-test than those in the control group. Experimental group students were satisfied with the courses designed.
The results showed that there are significant differences between scores of students of the experimental and control groups in their listening post-test, and these differences are in benefit of the experimental group students’ performance.
The study believes that these results were reached by the effectiveness of new teaching method that has been taught to students of the experimental group which was based on the use of the multimedia listening activities, which enhanced the listening skills in English language learning of the experimental group students compared to the students of the control group. The present study agrees with Brett’s conclusion that the strength of multimedia lays in the ability to create a situation in which the learner can interact with the learning material and the reference material, learners of interactive multimedia should not be passive they should need to think about the language, engage with it and respond to it (Brett, 1997).
The results of the present study is similar to the results of a study conducted by Brett (1997) results showed that more effective listening comprehension and recall was obvious while using multimedia activities, in this study a questionnaire was given to the student about the reason behind these results which was the efficient and ongoing feedback given to the students. Also a study done by Klassen and Milton (1999) showed that a multimedia-enhanced learning program does not adversely affect the development of language skills only but in actual fact enhances the learning too.
The results showed that there are no significant differences between the students’ satisfaction degree in both the experimental and control groups with the new teaching method that was given to each of them, whether the multimedia listening activities that was taught to students of the experimental group, or the electronic units that have been taught to students of the control group.
These results were due to the effectiveness of the program that was presented to the students of both groups, which is characterized by the flexibility which have contributed positively with the satisfaction of students of both groups in terms of knowledge, and appreciation that they got from the course. As well as method of delivery of the curriculum, and the virtual environment in which they received the curriculum, and interaction that took place between the course instructor and students, and between the students themselves.
But for a few students of the experimental who had some problems with viewing the multimedia activities on their personal laptops, they had low satisfaction with them. So that may be the reason to have no difference in the degree of satisfaction between the two groups.

Keywords:

Multimedia activities, Interactive multimedia, Listening comprehension, Blended learning.