Embracing Native Content: Watching Films Without Subtitles 🎥

The Advantages and Challenges of This Form of Total Immersion in Language Learning.

This week’s newsletter is published a bit later than usual, as I am frantically doing some last-minute shopping and packing for my trip back home. And even though my summer break only started yesterday, I’ve already attended a fireworks festival and seen the latest Studio Ghibli movie! 君たちはどう生きるか was nothing short of brilliant, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Hayao Miyazaki.

The film title originally translates to “How Do You Live?” However, it is called “The Boy and The Heron” in English. Although I felt like I understood the film despite it being set in World War II, I’m curious about what might have been lost in translation. I’ll probably see it again when I get back or wait until English subtitles are available.

🌐 No Subs: The Challenges of Consuming Pure Native Content

Speed and Natural Speech: Speakers in films and shows converse at a natural pace, often utilizing colloquial expressions and slang. Complex grammatical structures or unfamiliar vocabulary may impede understanding.

Accents and Dialects: Characters feature different accents and regional dialects, making fast-paced dialogue occasionally challenging to comprehend.

Context and Cultural References: Understanding and interpreting nuances, humor, or subtle emotions conveyed through language can be challenging, as they may not be immediately apparent from the dialogue alone.

Lack of Visual Cues: Subtitles can aid in providing context and visual cues, allowing us to associate spoken words with their written counterparts, thus reinforcing vocabulary and grammar. Depending on what we’re watching, it can sometimes be challenging to follow the storyline or keep up with the plot without subtitles.

💪 Why We Should Do It Anyway

Watching movies and shows without subtitles can be beneficial for language learners for several reasons:

Improves Listening Skills: Watching movies and shows improve our listening skills by making us focus on the spoken language. We’ll get accustomed to the speed, pronunciation, and accents, which will enhance our understanding.

Acquires Slang and Informal Language: Movies and shows often use slang and informal language that textbooks rarely cover. This exposure can make your language use more natural and fluent.

Enhances Cultural Understanding: They provide a wealth of cultural context and nuances that can deepen our understanding of the language beyond just the words and grammar.

Boosts Confidence: Over time, as comprehension improves, it boosts confidence in the ability to understand and communicate in the new language.

Teaches Real-life Language Use: Depending on what we watch, it can expose us to real-life situations in which the language is used, teaching us how to use it in a practical way.

📚🔬 What Some of The Research Says

• Sánchez-Auñón, Férez-Mora and Monroy-Hernández’s 2023 study shows that use of cinema in EFL instruction was found to have a positive impact on students’ learning holistically.

  • Takeaway: Movies are an effective teaching tool because they provide visual context, improve listening skills, enhance vocabulary, and introduce students to different cultures, all of which contribute to the holistic development of a language learner.

• A 2012 study by Bahrani and Sim shows that learners immersed in cartoons and TV shows/films showed more progress than students than learners immersed in news programs.

  • Takeaway: Cartoons and TV shows/films are typically more entertaining and engaging than news programs making learning more enjoyable. Additionally, it provides more context for language use, such as different situations, emotions, and non-verbal cues. This could help learners understand how to use language in various real-life situations.

• A paper published by Kabooha in 2016 stresses that carefully chosen movies can improve students’ language learning and make them more motivated to learn the target language.

  • Takeaway: Be strategic about the content you consume. Selecting appropriate films can make learning more engaging, which increases motivation to learn the language they are studying. However, this is only possible with comprehensible input.