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Running Head: FINAL PAPER: LANGUAGE ACQUISITION VIA POPULAR TV

Final Paper

“Language Acquisition via Popular TV”

Khadr El Chami (260638190)

McGill University

EDPE 640: Emerging Technology for Educational Change

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Abstract

Online on-demand movie and TV streaming websites have become a pervasive part of

society, both affecting it and being affected by it (Fragua, 2020). These programs take up large

portions of people’s time and are mainly consumed for entertainment purposes. However, there

is a large body of research that indicates many linguistic benefits to television viewing,

especially as a source of second language acquisition. As educators begin to incorporate more

multimedia into the classroom, the use of online streaming services could prove beneficial to

engage language learners in the target language beyond the classroom. Teacher-led scaffolding,

an audiovisual multimedia approach to learning, as well as situated, implicit and explicit models

of learning are utilized in transferring relevant linguistic knowledge from the screen to the

language learners’ minds.

Keywords: TV, ESL, language, educational, technology,

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Language Acquisition via Popular TV

In 2016, U.S. adults spent approximately 4 hours per day watching TV (Stoll, 2021). In

other words, over 16% of the average American’s year was spent watching, listening to, and

consuming various audiovisual information. Although this can be seen as having some

detrimental effects on a society, there are also numerous ways to derive benefit from such

pervasive technology, and transform it into a powerful educational tool. Indeed, given their

prevalence in the lives of many, the various accessibility features made available within them,

and their ability to diffuse cultural and linguistic content in an entertaining and engaging manner,

popular television series can be used as effective instruments in language acquisition among

second language learners.

Television as a Learning Tool

Long gone are the days when people would use the “channel up/down” buttons on their

remote control to browse through their favorite TV shows. Today, with the popularization of

mass streaming websites, such as Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Hulu, and others, it is much

easier for consumers to simply download their platform of choice onto their smart-device and

begin watching uninterrupted hours of television, being able to choose from among thousands of

available titles. Viewers can select the category of what show they will be watching, as well as

choose to enable some or all of numerous accessibility options, such as closed captioning (also

known as “CC” or “same-language subtitles”, initially developed for the hearing impaired) and

audio description (a play-by-play audio overlay of the non-verbal occurrences in a show, initially

developed for the visually impaired). These features do more than simply allow people with

disabilities to enjoy a TV show; they also enable language learners to develop their language

skills by breaking down the actions and dialogue and explaining them in a comprehensible and
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multimedia format, complete with the ability to pause, play, and rewind any scene at choice.

There are many beneficial ways to utilize these options in a second-language classroom and

beyond.

Deployment Context

Intentional Learning

Learning best occurs when it is intentional in nature (Trenkic, 2017). When a student is

aware of what the goal of an activity is, what the real-life applicability of this lesson will be, and

how best to acquire this information, he or she is better suited to internalize the important stimuli

and attempt to ignore those which are unnecessary or superfluous. This supports cognitive load

theory (Sweller, 2011), which predicates that there is a finite amount of information that the

human brain can focus on and learn from at any given time. Using intentional learning, a teacher

can use popular TV as a learning tool by assigning to the students a show to watch in class or at

home, and asking them to focus on a particular learning goal, such as the spelling of the words

spoken in a given episode, for example, via the closed captioning option available. Students

would then be more deliberate in their analysis of the vocabulary used, at the cost of potentially

missing out on some of the plot sequences or graphic information of the show (which would not

be relevant in the context of this particular lesson).

Incidental Learning

Alternately, research has also shown there to be incidental learning benefits to watching

television in the context of second-language acquisition. Trenkic (2017) argues that intentional

viewing is difficult to sustain, and that simply having students leisurely watch closed captioned

television series with no particular linguistic focus in mind can lead to a more positive

snowballing effect on language-learning, whereby learners will internalize aspects of a language

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without even noticing, and will have fun doing it. A study by Rogers (2017) also corroborates the

fact that even the grammatical rules of a language can be retrieved explicitly, despite the

grammar having been learnt via implicit means. Thus, having students simply watch their

favorite TV shows at home can be a valuable deployment method of the technology for learning

their target language.

Learning Theories

Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning

As previously stated, one of the greatest advantages of modern TV is the closed

captioning option, which enables language learners to see the scripted words as they are spoken

by the characters (or narrators, as in the case of docuseries), as well as view the associated

actions that follow (or occur during) speech. According to Mayer (2014), applying a cognitive

theory of multimedia learning is essential to effectively teach any subject. This theory entails that

whatever is being taught be presented in both verbal and pictorial forms.

In the case of language acquisition, the subtitles and speech serve as verbal cues, while

the characters’ actions act as pictorial stimuli. This enables the learner to fully make sense of

what is being said and gain a greater knowledge of how to use the information gained within a

similar context. This act of building knowledge from auditory and visual cues is what is known

as multimedia learning.

Dual Coding Theory (DCT)

Multimedia learning itself has its basis in another theory known as dual coding. Dual

coding theory views cognition as the merger of the two most important faculties of the brain:

language and mental imagery (Sadoski & Paivio, 2012). What sets DCT apart from other

concepts of cognition is its emphasis on constructing knowledge from “the external text and its
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internal representation in the form of verbal associations, mental imagery, and emotions”

(Sadoski & Paivio, 2012, p. 68). This fits within language learning via popular TV shows, as the

text being learnt is directly associated with verbal cues spoken, the mental imagery of the scene,

and, as argued by Loock (2018), a strong emotional attachment to the episode or characters

enacting the events.

Scaffolding Theory

The fact that the media can be intentionally selected with on-demand streaming websites

allows for educators to be better able to scaffold the knowledge to their learners’ needs.

Scaffolding is the process by which a learner is given tasks that are only slightly more

challenging than what he or she is currently able to do (this range of possibilities is known as the

Zone of Proximal Development) and is assisted in growing this zone by the educator (Vygotsky

& Cole, 1978). Used in such a way, TV series can be selected to target learners’ needs with

regards to the vocabulary level and speed of speech used (Stewart, 2006).

Another benefit of using this multimedia tool in language acquisition is the development

of the pronunciation of the words in a target language, as hearing the target language spoken this

slowly and being able to relisten to it at will provides an auditory benefit to pronunciation, which

is something that cannot be developed by other media, such as books or journal articles

(Bodorík, 2017). By the teacher scaffolding by selecting slower and more explicit language use

in various shows and documentaries, greater language learning can occur.

A study by Kayi-Aydar (2013) also found that, while scaffolding is beneficial to second

language learning no matter the context, it is better for it to be led by the teacher, rather than by

the student themselves or their peers. In the context of audiovisual learning from TV series, this

could be important in having the educator recommend certain shows that are relevant to the
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students and correspond to their zone of proximal development, before allowing them the

freedom to explore these massive streaming websites based on their own whims and desires, as

they may incorrectly judge their own abilities or levels. Eventually, once students have reached a

level of proficiency with the target technology, they can then begin to adapt their learning

according to their needs and the contexts in which they will apply the target knowledge in the

future.

Situated Learning

Brown et al. (1989) argue that learning always happens within a given context. The

information must be observed within the context in which it is to be later retrieved by the learner.

The language that is learnt from books or dictionaries cannot thus be easily retrieved by a learner

when in a real-life interaction with another person or in the context of a job or other scenario

disconnected from academia.

This substantiates other research about language learning being primarily a factor of

acquisition within a cultural or authentic context (Castillo Losada et al., 2017). The fact that TV

shows enable learners to experience the target language in a real-world environment will

enhance their ability to apply their learning in the appropriate situation.

Alignment of Technology to Learning Theories

Contextual Application of Content Knowledge

According to Loock (2018), Netflix multiplied their production output by more than

500% over 4 years, and this number is steadily increasing. With such a plethora of categories and

sub-categories of TV shows available on Netflix, learners can select the appropriate context of

their learning and build a vocabulary relevant to the language corpus of their area of interest. For

example, someone interested in improving their vocabulary related to cooking can watch “The
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Big Family Cooking Showdown” or “Nailed It!”, while another learner with an invested interest

in construction could view shows such as “Dream Home Makeover” or “Big Timber”. Even

within the context of developing language for various job opportunities abroad, learners can

watch shows related to categories of law (Suits; Law & Order), medicine (Grey’s Anatomy; New

Amsterdam), or search from among hundreds of documentaries or docuseries, and thousands of

other shows available on just the one platform.

Another contextual benefit that goes beyond the professional domain is that of learning

within a cultural framework of a target language. According to Porto (2019), language is

inherently connected to the culture of the people who use it, and vice versa. The use and

development of a language is engrained in the society which speaks it, and the learning must thus

be situated within that culture in order to be truly authentic and meaningful. For example,

knowing what vocabulary to use in formal versus informal contexts required knowledge of

societal customs and interpersonal interactions. These types of interactions are clearly observed

in the context of popular television series, while not being clear in other forms of media, such as

books and even news reports. Language acquisition via TV-watching thus enables students to

develop their knowledge of various sociolinguistic sensitivities, which is an essential part of

learning a language (Porto, 2019).

Multimedia Learning

Bahrani & Sim (2011) conducted a study which found that, compared to watching the

news in a target language, being exposed to a combination of audiovisual text and pictorial cues

is more effective at language acquisition. They also found that exposure to mass media helped

develop learners’ speaking fluency. Although there is some literature that critiques the use of

authentic, fast-paced materials in the context of foreign language learning, the authors found that
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this obstacle was easily overcome by language learners after greater amounts of exposure to fast

speech (Bahrani & Sim, 2011). Use of multimedia modes of language delivery such as enabling

closed captioning on a TV program can thus help students develop linguistic fluency in a target

language.

This aspect was further researched by Bozavli (2017), who analyzed the effects of

audiovisual engagement with foreign language television shows versus conventional methods of

language instruction on successful vocabulary retention among adult language learners. The

study found that the group of students who learned the language via audiovisual representation

(French TV with French subtitles) were far more successful in retrieving target vocabulary in the

post-test. The researcher attributes this to a number of factors unique to TV programs. Among

them, it was cited that the fact that the audio was spoken by a native speaker of the language had

implicit benefits to the teaching process. It is sometimes the case that foreign or second language

instructors are not native speakers of a language, and may struggle with certain aspects of the

target language, such as pronunciation errors in case of heavy accents or other errors due to the

heavy cognitive load placed on speaking a language other than their own. When watching

television shows broadcasted within the context of the target language and spoken by native

speakers of the language, these risks are minimized, or erased entirely. The benefit of using

multiple sense organs in the acquisition of language via multimedia input is also noted as being

relevant to the higher success rate for vocabulary retention in this case (Bozavli, 2017). Finally,

higher motivation and student engagement was also found to be among the contributing factors

for successful vocabulary acquisition in the target language.

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FINAL PAPER: LANGUAGE ACQUISITION VIA POPULAR TV
Student Engagement

Perhaps among the most relevant causes for the overarching success of television viewing

in the pursuit of language learning is that it fosters motivation and engagement within learners.

Fioriella & Mayer (2016) discuss the importance of student motivation on learning. They argue

that motivation will largely stem from whether or not a student is interested in whatever learning

task they are engaged in. Learner interest thus leads to higher engagement and motivation to

learn, which are essential parts of the learning process. This is very helpful in identifying TV

shows as beneficial language learning tools, as students can select the programs that best fit their

own interests, thus self-directing their learning towards higher levels of motivation, and,

ultimately, learning.

Critical Pedagogy & Accessibility

While the various accessibility options on Netflix and other on-demand streaming

websites do cater to a large audience of people with visual or hearing impairments, there are still

many accessibility considerations upon which to reflect. For instance, Netflix, in particular,

requires a very fast and strong Internet connection to be able to watch anything. This is not

possible for all households in America, and especially not for many houses in some other

countries. In fact, the required bandwidth is so large that in some countries and regions, such as

in Cuba or Africa, Netflix is basically obsolete, except for among the upper and richer class of

society (Fragua, 2020). This can create a social divide between the various socio-economic

backgrounds which exist within a given area. Even locally, a family who cannot afford a Netflix

membership, or who cannot support the required Internet compatibility, would be disadvantaged

if such a task would be assigned to their child in an educational context.

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One possible solution could be for teachers to play short clips during class time. Schools

can also host television or movie viewings as part of language development workshops. While

these options might increase screen time for children, and thus be tainted in a negative light, it is

important to recognize the linguistic benefits that such programs can provide. In regions of the

world where this is not possible, perhaps a return to older technology formats, like DVD box

sets, could be beneficial, until the technological structures allow for more advanced viewing.

How TV Shows Can Change Learning

Television is often seen as something negative or of no use, with expressions to define

people who spend too much time watching tv like “couch potato” or even more demeaning

categorizations. While it is indisputable that spending large amounts of time sitting down, being

inactive and isolating oneself from outside human interaction is detrimental to one’s health, there

are also many advantages to television viewing that cannot be ignored, especially in the context

of language acquisition, as can be seen by the large breadth and depth of research on the matter.

Foreign and second language educators should not shy away from assigning the viewing

of television series to their students for homework. It should not be regarded as “lazy teaching”

for teachers to play a part of an episode in class to have students engaged in and with the TV

show, in order to encourage them to go home that evening and finish the episode themselves.

There are many great advantages to utilizing television, a technology that has been evolving for

nearly a century, for the benefit of our students. The reality is that they are already spending

numerous hours of their days and nights watching it, and educators need to further investigate

how to make the best use of this time. Via a scaffolded, multimedia, contextual, and implicit as

well as explicit teaching approach, schools and educators can use popular TV series to help their

students effectively learn a language.

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