The Effect of English Podcast on ESL Students Listening Comprehension Skills

Listening is a basic skill that is very important in learning English as a Second Language (ESL). However, many students face difficulties in improving their listening comprehension skills. This study aims to investigate the effect of using podcast media on improving listening comprehension abilities in intermediate level ESL students.
This research uses quantitative methods with a one group pretest posttest experimental design. The research subjects consisted of 35 ESL students from SMA Muhammadiyah 3 Jember grade eleventh. Data was collected through listening ability tests carried out before and after treatment.
The results of data analysis showed that there was a significant increase in listening comprehension abilities in the experimental group compared to the control group. This indicates that the use of podcasts as a listening learning tool is effective in improving ESL students' listening comprehension abilities.
The conclusion of this research is that the integration of podcasts in listening learning can provide significant benefits for ESL students. Based on these findings, it is recommended that educators and curriculum developers consider using podcasts as part of a listening learning strategy. Additionally, further research is needed to explore the long-term effects and effectiveness of different types of podcasts on students' listening abilities.