Notes on Using Video in the Language Classroom

These notes are intended to help you think about how you can use video in your classroom

Because it is so close to language reality – containing visual as well as audible cues – video is an excellent medium for use in the language classroom. It can be used in many different ways and for teaching or revising many different language points. These notes are intended to help you think about how you can use video in your classroom. They are not exhaustive, because ultimately the ways in which you use video are limited only by your own imagination.

Types of Video

authentic	made for language teaching
Bought, or recorded from television.* Feature films (fiction) Cartoons Documentaries News/Weather Interviews Game shows (often based on words) Ads/Commercials	Specifically designed for learning the target language. Produced by all the major publishers or DIY. General courses Listening practice Business English How to (e.g. presentations)
Strong points realistic interesting up-to-date original inexpensive Weak points mainly for higher levels no prepared workbook/exercises	Strong points adapted to level practise specific structure/vocabulary come with work books/exercises cued with minutes/seconds Weak points rather unrealistic can be boring (esp. for teacher) expensive date easily

Methods of Exploitation

playback

language

picture with sound picture without sound sound without picture uninterrupted interrupted freeze-frame with subtitles (target/native) without subtitles

Grammar eg tenses what’s he doing/going to do/just done? retell the sequence eg prepositions where’s his hand? Vocabulary description (scenes/people/objects) Listening  general comprehension specific information (names, dates, numbers) Speaking discussion (before/during/after: opinion, body language, acting, filming etc) prediction (guess the end/create interest) Reading conceivably Writing summary journalist’s report critic’s review

Tips

• Be fully conversant with the video (contents, length, order etc).
• Always check the video beforehand: quality, format etc.
• Always check the equipment beforehand: power supply, connections, remote control, channel etc.
• Always try to work with a remote control.
• Make sure you are familiar with the equipment and its controls (play, pause, rewind, volume, channels etc).
• Before the lesson: insert the video, cue it and zero the player.
• Check the volume, tone and angle of view from different parts of the room.
• Make sure you rewind to the right place. Take your time. Nothing is worse than losing your place.
• Try creating your own worksheets tailored to an authentic sequence.
• Give students something to watch or listen for while the tape is playing. This can get increasingly difficult or detailed with each repetition.
• Don’t play a video without giving an introduction or setting the context (unless there is a good reason for not doing so).
• Let the video do the work. Don’t say yourself what the video says.
• Don’t play a video for too long without stopping.
• Be sensitive and realistic as to what students can be expected to memorize.