Author(s): Mohamed Ouhejjou

Abstract: Listening comprehension remains one of the most challenging yet underemphasized skills in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction, particularly in input-limited educational contexts. In Moroccan secondary education, learners frequently experience persistent difficulties in understanding spoken English despite several years of formal instruction. This study investigates the nature and sources of listening comprehension difficulties among Moroccan high school students in the Kénitra region. Using a descriptive quantitative design, data were collected through a structured questionnaire administered to 80 second-year Baccalaureate students. The analysis focused on learners’ perceptions of listening difficulties across seven interrelated dimensions: listening materials, linguistic features, concentration processes, psychological factors, listener-related strategies, speaker characteristics, and physical learning conditions. The findings indicate that listening difficulties arise from a combination of cognitive, linguistic, affective, and environmental factors. In particular, learners exhibited overreliance on bottom-up processing strategies, limited ability to use prediction and inference, short-term memory constraints, and inadequate metacognitive awareness. These cognitive challenges were compounded by high levels of listening anxiety, low interest in certain topics, unfamiliar vocabulary, rapid speech rate, and difficulties with prosodic and connected speech features. The study highlights that listening comprehension problems are not merely linguistic in nature but reflect broader deficiencies in strategic competence and instructional practice. It argues for a pedagogical shift toward explicit listening strategy instruction, increased metacognitive training, and more systematic exposure to authentic spoken English in EFL classrooms.

Keywords: Listening comprehension; EFL listening difficulties; Moroccan high school learners; listening strategies; cognitive processing; metacognitive awareness; listening anxiety; strategy-based instruction.

Article Info: Received: 21 Mar 2021; Received in revised form: 19 Apr 2021; Accepted: 25 Apr 2021; Available online: 30 Apr 2021

DOI: 10.22161/ijels.62.72