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      Films are realistic slices of life but will that serve the interests of most students
      Submitted by miklós on 3 January, 2011 - 12:41

      I just came across a study that claims to have looked into the matter of using films in the ESL classrom with the help of creating gap-fill exercises! 

      Here's an excerpt from that study to start with:

      "One of the greatest advantages of using flms for English language instruction is that films encourage learners to engage with what is happening on the screen on both an intellectual and creative level." 

      I absolutely agree with that.

      "Films are realistic slices of life and, therefore, an excellent vehicle for focusing learners on situational language, where an understanding of both verbal and non-verbal communication tends to be a prerequisite for the negotiations of meaning."

      I quite agree. Having said that this idea is miles away from actually presenting a meaningful and lasting experience for English language students. You just cannot get round the problem of finding quality film scripts for the benefit of students by relying on either your luck or your personal preference. What you do need is a careful approach based on thorough research.

      To learn more on 'Film-based activities to overcome the ‘Gap-fill Syndrome’ by Arizio Sweeting – Find the article in the ’Classroom Talk’ section:  http://www.englishaustralia.com.au/index.cgi?E=hsvalidator&template=journal08&PT=dd&Lev1=pub_journal&Lev2=jnl_25-2

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      dmac's picture
      dmac
      Are films really realistic slices of life
      Submitted on 6 January, 2011 - 18:00

      Your right to point out the problem of finding quality film scripts that would benefit a student, most films I have seen are not really representative of real life in my opinion.

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      miklós's picture
      miklós
      Films with artistic & language values are worthy of attention
      Submitted on 24 January, 2011 - 15:06

      Selecting films and working with them in the ESL classroom pose real obstacles of many kinds. There are and will probably be very little help from sourcebooks in that field. So are the troubles worth it at all? Well, if you are dedicated to these unique resources, they are certainly worth it.

      Having been watching films regularly and for long I'm convinced there's no point in using films that give some entertainment but very little educational benefit. Most films are made to be popular with today's viewers. However, one can easily acquire the taste for films that show artistic values as well as language values. When one can see that these are in balance they will most certainly give useful language practice for not only forty-five minutes but weeks, or shall we say for years to come.

      Whether films are realistic or not, is beside the point. Develop a taste for films that have something to teach both in terms of art and language. They are the ones that can teach you to learn the lesson and to go for it time after time till you remember most words and can tell them by heart! 

      Here's a site that might guide you towards taking the opportunity to choose and make use of English films for ESL studies: http://strawberryltd.weebly.com/nyelvoktataacutes-angol-filmekkel.html