At Knysna English School, we love to embrace technology in our classrooms and what better way than to include video when teaching our students English? Watching television and film are not considered to be educational and can be seen as passive activities, but you’d be surprised what benefits they have when used in an English class.
As we use the Communicative Approach to teaching English at Knysna English School, it is important for students to be engaged with what they are being taught. Showing an interesting and topical video clip can be a fantastic way to get students interested in a particular topic that will feature in the class and also to keep the class varied and fun. Another important factor is that many students are visual learners and by showing them a video, they will be more likely to take on board what is being taught.
Another benefit of showing students film or television shows is that they are able to hear accents and colloquial language. As learners progress higher in their English levels, these two elements become more desirable and necessary for them to learn. Once the rules of grammar are mastered and vocabulary has been learnt, it is important for them to try and sound as much like native English speakers.
There is even the possibility of students making their own films, which can be a fantastic task-based learning lesson. With just a phone and simple free editing software, the students can go to town with their films! So many different English skills can be taught and practised with the activity, such as creating logical narratives, research in English, listening to others, offering suggestions and chairing meetings, to name a few. And by working in groups, students are forced to communicate effectively in order to achieve a goal. At Knysna English School we do not fear technology, but embrace it to improve the English-learning experiences of our students.