Abstract
Listening is one of the inevitable yet often overlooked skills in the process of learning a second language, especially for Indian undergraduate students learning English as a Second Language (ESL). Even after years of studying English in school, many students still struggle to understand spoken English. This occurs because students do not get sufficient exposure to real English as spoken in daily life, and they often feel nervous or uncomfortable in classroom settings. Various apps and tools are used to facilitate language learning, but there remains limited understanding of how audiobooks specifically contribute to enhancing listening skills. This study examines the effectiveness of audiobooks in developing listening skills through a twelve-week program involving 66 undergraduate students from Tamil Nadu. Students participated in a pre-test before the intervention and a post-test after completing the twelve-week audiobook listening program, which involved daily sessions of one hour. They listened to audiobooks with teacher support initially and then independently. The results indicated a significant improvement in listening scores, with an average increase of 25%. Additionally, students reported feeling less anxious about listening, better retention of new vocabulary, and improved ability to follow spoken English. The findings suggest that audiobooks are a vital component of language learning, providing autonomous, low-pressure, and long-term benefits in listening development. Consequently, audiobooks enhance confidence and foster consistent listening skills among ESL learners. The study recommends integrating audiobooks into regular classroom activities to support language acquisition.