Page 8 - ELG2207 Jul Issue 481

RESEARCH NEWS .

Watch, listen and read

How English-captioned videos stimulate learning

By Gillian Ragsdale
Learning new vocabulary from
videos is improved with full captions
(glossed, if possible) combined
with pre-viewing activities, as
demonstrated in a study by Mark PHOTO BY VIDMIR RAIC FROM PIXABAY
Feng Teng at Hong Kong Baptist
University.
Learning new vocabulary is
demanding and relentless for
language learners, and strategies
to make it more interesting and
efficient are welcome. Watching
videos is a popular method for
all ages, but there is some debate
over how best to support this and
whether reading text at the same
time is helpful or just too much
extra work, producing cognitive
overload that interferes with the
learning process.
Teng set up a rigorously
designed study to test the use
of captioned videos, as well as
the use of pre-viewing activities.
Two hundred and forty 11 to There were 20 target words in however, so a much less efficient overload. On the contrary,
12-year-old Chinese EFL students the videos, nouns (eg, twilight), use of time compared to four having both streams running
were recruited from six Chinese- verbs (eg, nibble) and adjectives times 4-minute videos. In simultaneously leads to more
medium primary schools. All the (eg, extravagant). The students practice, with limited classroom efficient storage in memory (as
students taking part were of a were pre-tested on a larger bank time to devote to vocabulary per dual coding theory).
similar intermediate standard. of target words and the final set activities, these activities would Clearly students were making
The 240 students were split were selected as being unknown most likely need to be added as use of the glossed term links
into two groups. One was given to all the students. Each target extra homework and there may and these significantly improved
pre-video tasks involving pictures word appeared only once in well be other, higher priority vocabulary learning. Glossing is
from the videos to match with the video. tasks. Further research would be attention enhancing in itself – and
captions. Each of these two After viewing, the students were useful to find out the minimal, anything that improves learnes’
groups was split into a further tested on their comprehension most efficient way to prepare attention is a winning strategy.
four groups. Each of the four of the videos – but none of the these activities, eg, is it worth The most straightforward
groups viewed videos with students were aware that target preparing just 10 minutes of pre- application of these findings is
different kinds of captioning: vocabulary was the focus of viewing activities or does the to favour videos fully captioned
glossed full captions, glossed this testing. effect become so small it isn’t a in the target language. Suitable
keyword captions, full captions It requires a sturdy effect to good use of either the teacher’s videos that are not already in
and keyword captions. So, there produce significant differences or the students’ time? English could be used if they
were eight groups in total. between so many groups of fairly Of the captioned videos, the have a target language narration
Each group watched four videos modest size, but Teng did find order of effectiveness was glossed inserted: for this study, new audio
of about 4 minutes. Each video significant differences between all full, glossed keywords, full, then files of English narration were
showed an animated story and groups (properly using a MANOVA just keywords – and scores were prepared using Wondershare
had an English-speaking narrator. with Bonferroni corrections for significantly different between Filmora and glossing was added
Full captions were verbatim multiple comparisons). all groups (with or without pre- using MAGpie2.5. Investment
transcripts of the narrator Overall, the choice of captions viewing tasks). It’s clear from in a bank of such videos has
speaking, while keyword captions accounted for 63% of the these results that reading full potential as a relatively time-
showed only one to four difficult variance in post-viewing test captions in the target language efficient and entertaining way to
words/phrases, eg, ‘extravagant’ scores, while the use of pre- while watching the video and also learn vocabulary.
and ‘abide by the rules’. viewing activities accounted for listening to the narration actually
The glossed captions had links 37%. Clearly the use of both improves learning rather than REFERENCE
under some difficult words so glossed full captions and pre- being a burden. n Teng, M F (2022), ‘Vocabulary
that when the viewer clicked on viewing tasks produced the best This makes sense given current learning through videos: captions,
the link a pop-up box showed the scores, although the choice of models of working memory, which advance-organizer strategy, and
meaning in Chinese. The video caption style had the strongest have separate ‘loops’ for visual their combination,’ Computer
paused while the pop-up was influence on scores. and auditory information, so Assisted Language Learning, 35:3
open and continued again when The pre-viewing activities took that both can run concurrently 518-550, DOI: 10. 1080/09588221.
the viewer clicked again. up to 50 minutes to complete, without interference or cognitive 2020.1720253
8 July 2022