My sincerest and deepest gratitude is expressed to my advisor, Dr. Tai- hsiung
Yang, for his persistent support, encouragement, and expert advice that made the completion of this thesis possible. Dr. Yang stimulated my interest in the field of language testing and led me into this thesis topic. Without his initiation and guidance, the accomplishment of this thesis would not have been possible. Gratitude is also presented to Pro. Chin-ching Peng and Dr. Hsuen-ying Yu for their valuable and constructive comments and suggestions to refine my thesis during the oral defense. Besides, I felt an immense gratitude to all my teachers in the Master of Arts in English Teaching Programs, National Chengchi University, for their devoted instruction. I am appreciative of my colleagues at Chu-shan Junior High School for their substantial help, consideration and encouragement during my pursuit of academic achievements. I also thank all of the students who took the listening tests and make the research data highly credible. Finally, a specially gratitude and love must go to my family for their unfailing support. I would like to present hearty thanks to my beloved parents for their unsparing affection and concern on me, to my parents- in- law for taking care of my children and sharing the housework, to my dear son and daughter for their understanding of my neglecting them during my pursuit of master degree. Particularly, I wish to tender my gratitude to my loving husband for his considerable tolerance and regaining my strength and confidence in the worst times of the work.