This volume, part of the “Teaching with New Technology” series, aims to provide teachers with practical techniques and lesson plans that employ computer-based technologies in second language (L2) classrooms. The volume helps promote teaching and the development of media literacy utilizing digitized video clips, and it provides access to both practical and research-based approaches. The author presents pertinent research summaries and issues in order to help teachers understand the theoretical bases behind various teaching techniques and eventually allow them to conduct action research in their own classrooms.
The volume is divided into five chapters. In each chapter, topics are introduced along with relevant concepts and research findings that support the teaching and learning of these topics. Additionally, teaching suggestions and lesson plans are provided, and issues are raised for future exploration.
Chapter 1, “Seeing Digitized Video as Text,” introduces videotext to teachers and students and lists criteria for selecting authentic videotext. The chapter presents an analysis of visual elements of videotext, such as shot types, camera movement, edits, and visual narrative structure, with the goal of helping readers understand videotext construction and its connotative meanings.
Chapter 2, “Making Sense of Videotexts,” proposes Gruba's (2004) seven-part sequential framework for videotext comprehension. Students first identify text type, gain an initial understanding of the videotext macrostructure largely based on visual features, and test hypotheses about this initial macrostructure. Next, students confirm and refine interpretation using visual and aural elements. Gruba emphasizes that whereas visual elements can facilitate student comprehension of videotext, they can also impede students' understanding, lead them off track, or yield little assistance.
Chapter 3, “Genre Awareness,” explores genre identification in media text in order to help readers appreciate cross-cultural and cross-textual differences that might help them develop L2 media literacy skills in the target culture. The author explores intertextuality; that is, how one type of medium such as a movie can use references to other works such as songs.
Chapter 4, “Exploring Newscasts,” investigates how watching the news—one of the most demanding text types in terms of comprehension and recall—contributes to developing media literacy. The author discusses the components of newscasts as well as how the placement of visual and verbal elements can reinforce or hinder learner comprehension.
Chapter 5, “Commercial Language and Advertisements,” focuses on understanding commercial messages with a critical perspective. This chapter helps students decipher underlying commercial intent through connotation and denotation, discover the problems and solution structures often encountered in advertisements, and make informed commercial choices.
The appendix, “Teaching Media Literacy,” provides practical advice for teachers. It explains teaching methods for promoting media literacy among beginner-level students and offers advice for locating digitized videotext and gathering more information about media literacy on the Internet. The bibliography, which includes future readings as well as reference materials, is classified by chapter and is located at the end of the book.
The highlight of this volume is its well-crafted lesson plans, which offer practical teaching techniques and suggestions. Also helpful are the guidelines for further lesson plans embedded throughout the volume. The volume is slim, readable, and straightforward, which renders it accessible to nonspecialists. It is most appropriate for language teaching professionals due to its strong practical application in L2 classrooms. Although this volume attempts to make connections between practice and research, as indicated in the introduction, practical techniques far outweigh theoretical foundations. It also lacks empirical evidence to support the author's view that his suggested teaching techniques are effective strategies for promoting media literacy. It is unfortunate that other media text genres commonly utilized in L2 classrooms, such as drama, movies, and comedies, are not discussed.
Nevertheless, this volume is a valuable guide for teachers who plan to introduce digital video as a medium of language learning in their L2 classrooms. The L2 teaching and learning applications of this volume clearly go beyond the Australian context in which this research was conducted.
