Developing receptive language skills in English for engineering purposes: evidence from reading and listening assessments

Introduction Despite the growing importance of English proficiency in engineering education, limited research has addressed gaps in receptive language skills (reading and listening) among undergraduate engineering students from diverse educational backgrounds in India. This study examines challenges students face in comprehending academic English and highlights the crucial role of receptive skills in academic success. Methods The study evaluates the effectiveness of a structured pedagogical intervention to improve reading and listening skills among first-year engineering students using pre- and post-test assessments. A mixed-methods approach was adopted with 227 students selected through mixed sampling, representing CBSE and State Board backgrounds. Quantitative data were collected through diagnostic, pre-test, and post-test assessments, while qualitative data came from student interviews. Students underwent a 12-week structured intervention integrated into their English for Engineering Purposes course. The intervention included guided academic reading (technical texts, comprehension exercises), listening activities (lecture-based audio/video inputs), vocabulary-building exercises, and AI-assisted adaptive learning tools for personalized feedback. Results Findings show statistically significant improvement in receptive language skills ( p < 0.05). CBSE students demonstrated overall improvement (t = 3.59, p = 0.0015), with significant gains among females (t = 4.41, p = 0.0013), while males showed no significant change ( p = 0.1186). State Board students showed highly significant improvement across all categories (t = 16.54, p = 0.00001). Based on medium of instruction, both State Board (Mother Tongue) (t = 3.45, p = 0.0028) and English Medium students (t = 16.38, p = 0.00001) improved significantly, with stronger gains among English-medium learners. Descriptive statistics indicate higher initial proficiency among English-medium students (Mean ≈ 85.9) compared to mother-tongue students (Mean ≈ 75.1). Discussion/conclusion The study confirms significant improvement in reading and listening skills among first-year engineering students, with English-medium students showing higher initial performance. It underscores the need for structured language support and targeted instructional strategies and highlights the effectiveness of AI-assisted adaptive learning tools in enhancing receptive language development.