Source of Gains in Listening Skill: Experimental or Pre-Test Experience?

In a study of incidental learning effects upon listening ability, 135 eleventh grade students, in four treatment groups, participated in a program of testing and training in note-taking skills. Pretesting provided data on critical thinking, study skills, note-taking, intelligence, PSAT math and verbal abilities, and listening ability (Brown-Carlsen). Posttesting included alternate forms of the listening and note-taking tests. Analysis of variance of scores on the listening tests by treatment groups showed apparent significant differences in gains of listening skills between groups. However, analysis of covariance, using the listening pretest as covariant, revealed that the indicated gains in listening ability were pretest effects rather than experimental effects. Implications for listening research are discussed. No significant correlations between pretest scores and gains in listening were found. However, when grouped according to sex, females were found to have made significantly greater gains than the males. Conclusions cast doubt upon the usefulness of the Brown-Carlsen test in pre- and post-treatment measures of listening ability.