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DOCUMENT RESUME CS 214 624 ED 376 498 MacLennan, Carol H. G. AUTHOR Media, Metaphor and English Language Teaching. TITLE PUB DATE 91 24p.; Paper presented at the International Conference NOTE 1991). on Language Education (6th, Hong Kong, Reports Speeches/Conference Papers (150) PUB TYPE Research /Technical (143) MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. EDRS PRICE Communication Problems; Foreign Countries; Higher DESCRIPTORS Education; *Learning Activities; *Mass Media Use; Media Research; Native Speakers; Preservice Teacher Education; *Second Language Learning; *Student Development; Student Surveys; Use Studies Hong Kong IDENTErIERS ABSTRACT A series of studies examined the media use habits of Hong Kong students trying to improve their English. Subjects for the first three studies, 138 pre-service student teachers in Hong Kong, completed questionnaires. Frequency of media use provided some indications of students' level of commitment to the study of English. In study four, students were asked to list the kinds of language items they learned from each type of media. A checklist developed from their responses became the data collection instrument for study five, which asked students to give examples of items they recently learned. None of the students felt they could provide any examples of items learned from the media. In study six, students were given one week to complete the checklist. Students indicated that they learned results of study seven a wide range of vocabulary from media, but indicated that students supplied correct meanings for 29% of the eight examples of items they said they learned from the media. Study analyzed a random sample of 50 essays from a total of 2000 on the topic of "Using the media to improve your English," written by first-year students at a tertiary institution. Study nine examinee much the main reason offered by subjects as to why they did not make understanding native English use of the media--the difficulty of speakers. Findings suggest that the resources provided by the Hong be Kong media in English are being seriously underutilized and could (Colitains exploited far more profitably in terms of student learning. 2 tables of data and 10 references.) (RS) ,.********************* *********************,%. ****************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * from the original document. *********************************************************************** MacLENNAN, Carol, H.G. Kong Sir Robert Black College of Education, Hong TEACHING MEDIA, METAPHOR AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE ABSTRACT exhort learners to 'use language Teachers, lecturers and examiners continually This study examines the by reading, writing, speaking and listening more.' Hong Kong and challenges media use habits of a group of tertiary students in will, of itself, increase either the the assumption that exposure to the media quality of language learning. amount that is learned or improve the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office el Educabonai Rrzatch and improvement -PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY CENTER (ERIC) Iktrhts document has been reproduced as \ mewed from the person or organization originating it O Minor Changes have been mach to improve reproduction quality Points of view or opinions stated iv this docu. mint do not necessarily represent official TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES OERI ocethon or policy INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC).- 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE MEDIA, METAPHOR AND LANGUAGE TEACHING A HONG KONG EXAMPLE Introduction about Although teachers and examiners constantly offer students advice Kong, as in other using the media to improve their English, students in Hong with their study places, do not seem to use the media in English to help them of the language, as often as might be expected or desired. the media? What do teachers and examiners tell students about using I. 1987 Hong Kong Certificate of Education The writers of the encouraged to read Examination Report comment that candidates should be English (HKEA, 1988, p.98). newspapers and magazines printed in English are The advantages of using the media to develop spoken of the further emphasised as follows: subjects are strongly advised to make use their oral skills media available to widen their horizons and to improve (HKEA, 1988, p.97). Television in English As a result of listening to the radio arid watching pronunciation, since it is assumed that learners will develop more accurate 1 3 modeltheir own hearing words pronounced correctly will encourage learners to The point is further speech and intonation patterns on what they hear. feelingly that emphasised again by the Hong Kong examiners who state rather English of the what Hong Kong students desperately lack is exposure to the easily be real world outside the language classroom. This exposure can most suitable gained according to the writers of the report 'by regular listening to radio and television programmes.' discrepancy The present investigation was undertaken to find out if a students do does, in fact, exist between what teachers advocate and what and if there is a discrepancy what the reasons for it might be. What do students report about using the media? IL STUDIES 1, 2 & 3. this The first three studies were designed to obtain some answers to question. Subjects and data Three groups of pre-service student teachers (138 students in all) daily, weekly or monthly, their media were asked to indicate which category, radio in English; using habits most closely approached for: (a) listening to the in (b) reading a newspaper in English; (c) watching television programmes English. (d) my reasons Study I only, included the following sentence completion item the results of which are reported in for not using the English media are . , . . 2 Study 9. Data analysis categorised according to Responses to each questionnaire item were tallied and data will now be the frequency with which they occurred. The analysis of this discussed. 3 Results each of the Table 1 shows the total number of times students tallied them. three types of media to indicate the frequency with which they use recorded by students Media use frequencies Table 1 Monthly +/- Weekly +/- Daily +/- S3 S2 S2 S3 S1 S3 S2 S1 S1 N=46 N=48 N=44 N=44 N=48 N=46 N=44 N=48 N=46 30 39 23 03 00 02 04 Radio 01 11 00 30 14 00 14 03 04 31 17 Newsp. 08 00 22 16 30 27 06 08 TV. 10 RADIO overall who make use The fifst point to note is the small number of students of the radio as a source of authentic learning. that they listen to Only 5/94 of the prospective teachers of English say of the NE group record the radio in English almost everyday while only 2/44 listening to music or in this category. Even so, much of this time is used for idiosyncratic vocabulary and grammar. The pop songs which often contain 4 6 who say largest number of responses as Table 1 shows are listed by people less. they listen to the radio in English only about once a month or the rich What is disturbing about these figures is that they suggest that for independent study which are sources of authentic material available provided by English radio programmes are being ignored. NEWSPAPERS reading Although, as Table 1 shows, the EE students spend more time on who are studying other subjects. The newspapers in English than do students provide an figures, however, are again disappointing since newspapers material which cover inexpensive, easily attainable source of authentic The fact that local and international news can be wide-ranging topics. has been monitored in Chinese to check how well the English version stimulus. understood does not, as one might hope, seem to act as a TELEVISION television Table 1 shows that of the three media types considered here figures recorded still is the most popular with the students in this study. The 18/94 EE students in the first two studies seem fairly low with a total of only Even the highest stating that they watch TV in English almost everyday. indicate that only frequencies recorded which are for weekly television viewing watch television in English even as often as once a little over half the students 5 7 a week. Although the frequency of media use may provide some indications of students' level of commitment to the study of English figures alone do not tell with the media is spent. This point us how effectively the time in interaction leads to Study 4 which addressed the following question: III. What do students say they learn from using the media? STUDY 4. In Study 4 Students were asked to complete the following sentences by listing the kinds of language (or other) items that they learn from each medium: (a) I listen to English radio to learn . . . (b) I read English newspapers to learn . (c) I watch English television to learn . . . . Since the contention in this paper is that most students do not structure their media involvement very carefully but listen, read or view somewhat These randomly it was not surprising that some responses were very general. headings, vocabulary, grammar, speaking responses were categorised under the From these a checklist, which became and ideas/information. the data collection instrument for Study 5, was compiled 6 8 learnt IV. What examples do students give of items from the media? STUDY 5 to learn from To find out if these learners do, in fact, consciously try In this investigation students were asked the media, Study 5 was carried out. had recently learnt, or were in the to give examples of items which they media. The rationale for this study was that when process of learning, from the being learnt it is present in the mind. Opportunities a new language item is meaning in different contexts, are constantly to try it out, or to check its use or In be difficult to supply. sought, therefore, examples of learning should not would find this an easy practice, however, it was not expected that students task. less positive than The outcome of the study was not surprising but even provide any examples of anticipated since none of the students felt they could allowed to keep the checklist items learnt from the media at all and asked to be for a week to fill it in. given one week to Study 6 was therefore, set up and the students were collection instrument was used complete the checklist. Although the same data obviously quite different. in Studies 5 and 6 the focus of each study was now intended to discover how Study 5, which received a nil response, was independent learning from the consciously the students were involved with 7 In Study 6 the students received advance knowledge that they were media. coming week. going to record what they were learning from the media in the regarding While Study 5 attempted to tap students' normal level of awareness think about their learning from the media, Study 6 advance organised them to what they might learn and to record items they noted. STUDY 6 of EE who The students who participated in Study 6 were the same groups checklist to took part in Study 5. At the end of a week in which they had the listed guide their listening, reading and viewing they produced the responses which includes in appendix / . The range and difficulty level of the vocabulary, viability, haphazard, notoriously, ooze, agony, vigilant and lapse is interesting. listed solely The possibility cannot be ruled out, however, that the words were been learned in response to the checklist, were not in fact, words which had made of independently from the media and that no further active use had been them. least Students were asked to carry out one additional activity in order, at this assumption. in some measure, to test the quality of learning along with the words they Since it was not evident if students could now accurately use asked to give had supplied in Study 6 these were listed and students were dictionary. meanings for them in their own words and without the use of a