Lesson 3: The Case for Visual Medial to Teach Culture

Video Exploitation

So how do we "exploit" the video material we have selected. How do we use it to the best advantage and effectiveness in the classroom? Approach the task as you would a reading text. Think about how you would approach introducing a new reading to your class. How would you get them ready to read it? What kinds of questions would you pose as they work their way through the text? What do you do after they finish the text and ask: "Why did we have to read THAT?" How do you follow up a reading assignment? The approaches you use for dealing with these question will all almost certainly work with video, too!

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Video exploitation: adjust the task, not the text.

Duration: 05:05


In summary, use reading strategies in approaching video material: previewing, guided viewing, and follow-up.

Previewing

Previewing makes the material (linguistic and non-linguistic) of the video segment more readily accessible to the learner by:

  • Introducing new concepts (lexical, grammatical, functional, cultural, etc.) before the first viewing of the segment;
  • Providing background information to help the learner develop native-like schemata or "prior text" to understand video material (basis for cultural literacy);
  • Allowing the learner to apply native language strategies to new material;
  • Preparing the learner to comprehend the material without giving away the "punch" of the segment.

Task Viewing

Task viewing guides the learner in peeling away the various layers of the video segment, to discover and master the linguistic, paralinguistic, and cultural material contained in it. Task viewing involves:

  • Having students view and re-view the video material in order to solve the assigned task.
  • Focusing the learner's attention on relevant elements in the segment.
  • Organizing and structuring the viewing to make the material memorable and relevant, not testing his/her memory.
  • Maintaining the integrity of the original segment.

Follow-Up

Follow-up activities help the learner understand the broader application of the material covered in the segment by:

  • Adding to or building on the layers of information presented in the video.
  • Extending the frame of usage of the material already learned.
  • Providing additional material to complete or supplement the portrait created by the video material.
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