A study comparing the use of movies and American sitcoms for listening classes

Kim, Hye Jeong

Article

Journal of English Teaching through Movies and Media 2010;11(1):81-102.
Published online June 30, 2010.

A study comparing the use of movies and American sitcoms for listening classes

Hye Jeong Kim

듣기 학습을 위한 영화와 시트콤 비교에 대한 고찰

김혜정

Abstract

This study compares the use of movies and American sitcoms in a listening class. A lot of teachers tend to use these visual media without recognizing the difference between them. This study considers two differences to be the connection of contexts and the reflection of culture. With a longer running time, American sitcoms have a larger amount of lines. They connect a context and a context more closely and reflect the culture of the second language more clearly. An attempt was made to make learners aware of the difference between them. Based on two tests, the study concluded that movies have a more positive effect on listening classes. Learners were graded into high, middle, and low language levels, with middle and low levels showing a better test results after watching movies. The stronger the connection of contexts becomes and the more cultural vocabulary is provided, the more difficulty many students have with listening. It can be inferred, then, that the less specific and the more general the context and culture are, the better listening score will be obtained. For this reason, many students find movies easier for listening than sitcoms. Teachers need to aware of the difference between movies and American sitcoms. In particular, the characteristics of American sitcoms have to be recognized and explained in detail when they are used as listening material.

Key Words: American sitcom;movie;listening material;a connection of contexts;a cultural reflection