Short Films in Language Teaching E-Book

• Herausgeber: Narr Francke Attempto Verlag
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Serie: Studies in English Language Teaching /Augsburger Studien zur Englischdidaktik
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 262

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

The second volume in the new academic series SELT (Studies in English Language Teaching) is also divided into three parts: A. Theory – B. Methodology – C. CIassroom. Part A highlights the topic from the perspectives of different academic disciplines, in this case from a TEFL as well as from a film-didactic and a cultural-literary viewpoint. In part B, methodological contributions on selected short films and suitable procedures are assembled. Part C is a collection of concrete sample lessons for teaching English with short films at various levels. These lesson plans have been designed at university, carried out and evaluated by 11 experienced teachers, and finally revised by the editor. Peer reviewing is guaranteed by an academic advisory council consisting of six well-known TEFL professors. The new series, above all, aims at bridging didactic research and classroom practice. Thus it is intended for foreign language lecturers, students, teacher trainers and teachers.

Leseprobe

Short Films in Language Teaching

Engelbert Thaler

Narr Francke Attempto Verlag Tübingen

© 2017 • Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH + Co. KG Dischingerweg 5 • D-72070 Tübingen www.francke.de • [email protected]

Das Werk einschließlich aller seiner Teile ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwertung außerhalb der engen Grenzen des Urheberrechtsgesetzes ist ohne Zustimmung des Verlages unzulässig und strafbar. Das gilt insbesondere für Vervielfältigungen, Übersetzungen, Mikroverfilmungen und die Einspeicherung und Verarbeitung in elektronischen Systemen.

E-Book-Produktion: pagina GmbH, Tübingen

ePub-ISBN 978-3-8233-0040-3

Inhalt

ContentsIntroductionA. TheoryShort Films in English Language Teaching1 Term2 Justification3 Resources4 Types5 Selection6 Objectives7 Methodology8 ConclusionGoose Bumps – How the Language of Film Enters into Language Teaching with Films1 Didactic Reasons and Directions of Working with (Short) Films2 A Short Film as Rich Learning Object3 Conclusion: Film Analysis and (Language) TasksAfrofuturist Interventions into the Postcolonial: Wanuri Kahiu’s Pumzi1 Cultural Analyses of Power, Politics, and Culture2 From Science Fiction to Afrofuturism and Back3 Pumzi: Afrofuturism beyond Postcolonial FuturityB. MethodologyViral Videos in the EFL Classroom1 Introduction2 Viral Videos: Shorts Go Viral …3 Obama’s ›Yes, We Can‹ (2008) Went Viral …4 Viral Videos: Methodological Aspects5 Viral Videos: Practical Teaching in the EFL Classroom6 ConclusionAmazing Short Animation: »Must See/Teach« Films for the EFL Classroom1 Audiovisual worlds in English language education2 Competence development: what is »film literacy«?3 The potential of – short – animation films4 Must-see/teach films? … and where to find them5 Challenging topics in animated short films6 »Do it yourself« approaches: animate and motivate?Exposing Learners to Authentic Language in Short Video Clips in the EFL Classroom1 Using authentic videos in the EFL classroom2 Exposing Learners to real-life language and interaction through »shorties«3 What makes videos difficult to understand: Characteristics of authentic language4 How to improve language comprehension: Implications for the classroom5 ConclusionDumb Ways to Die – a Morbid But Fun Way to Learn with a Shorty1 Where to Find the Shorty and the Legal Implications of its Use2 The Content of the Clip Explained3 Why This Particular Short Clip? Didactic Reflections Beforehand4 Ideas for Classroom Use5 Dying – Not a Laughing Matter: Reflections Beyond Language6 All Things Said and Done – One Shorty and a Range of Didactic Choices»Father and Daughter« – An Animation Film for All Foreign Languages1 The Film2 The Teaching Unit3 ConclusionC. LessonsNew Silent Short Films1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsCommercials1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsAnimated Shorts1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsInfrographic Films1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials3 SolutionsSocial Shorts1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsViral Shorts1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsDocumentaries1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsWeather Forecasts1 Genre2 Procedure3 Materials4 SolutionsContributorsProf. Dr. Gabriele BlellProf. Dr. Matthias HutzProf. Dr. Christiane LütgeProf. Dr. Klaus MaiwaldGenia MarkovaProf. Dr. Annika McPhersonJana PessozkiProf. Dr. Engelbert ThalerChristoph Werth

Contents

Introduction

Why is a short film a perfect medium for teaching English as a foreign language? The simple though tautological answer is … because it is short, and it is a film. »If it moves, they will watch it« (Andy Warhol).

Looking back at the history of film, one realizes that the very first films shown to the public in 1894 were very short films presenting celebrities, current affairs and everyday life scenes. With the advent of feature-length films, due to recording and editing advances, commercial cinema gradually discarded short films. Yet technological progress in the fields of digital video, mobile devices, editing tools, and video sharing websites, has led to a renaissance of the short film (Donaghy 2015: 24). The internet turns out to match producers and consumers of short films in a marvellous way: The first can post their films online with no expenditure and reach millions of viewers; the latter can indulge in short bursts of entertainment anywhere and anytime.

This omnipresence should not exclude the classroom. Donaghy (2015: 24f.) propounds several convincing arguments for exploiting the ascent of the short film in TEFL. Short films …

can be easily integrated into the classroom, in contrast to feature films,

tell a whole narrative in a short period of time, allowing teachers to focus on narrative structure and character development,

are often open to different levels of interpretation,

can captivate, surprise, inspire and provoke learners as they are usually unfamiliar to them,

often have little dialogue, enabling intensive filmic experiences,

are excellent prompts for oral and written communication,

can promote film literacy better than long formats as they are less intimidating.

For all these reasons, this book is dedicated to the use of short films in TEFL. As all edited volumes in the SELT (Studies in English Language Teaching) series, it follows a triple aim:

Linking TEFL with related academic disciplines

Balancing TEFL research and classroom practice

Combining theory, methodology and exemplary lessons

This triple aim is reflected in the three-part structure of this volume. In Part A (Theory), the topic of short films is investigated from the perspectives of three academic disciplines, i.e. from the viewpoints of TEFL, film studies and cultural studies. Part B (Methodology) assembles five contributions on selected films, media and techniques. Eight concrete lesson plans can be found in Part C (Classroom). These lessons were designed by lecturer (editor) and students in university courses, then conducted and assessed by teachers at German schools, and finally revised by the editor. Each of these eight chapters is divided into genre (brief background information on the film type), procedure (source, synopsis, competences, topics, level, time, phases of the lesson), materials (texts, worksheets, board sketches), solutions (expected answers), and bibliography.

Part A is introduced by the TEFL perspective. Engelbert Thaler attempts to answer what is meant by short films, why they should be used in the TEFL classroom, where teachers can find suitable material, what subgenres can be distinguished, what criteria of selection may be applied, what objectives can be determined, and how short films can actually be exploited in language classes. The theoretical argumentation is supported by the description and analysis of several film examples.

The perspective of film studies is adopted by Klaus Maiwald. First he outlines didactic reasons and directions of working with (short) films. Then he takes a closer look at the innertextual and intertextual qualities of a particular short film (Goose Bumps / Gänsehaut), showing how the language of film, its formal means and aesthetic techniques, is integral to language learning with film. He concludes by claiming that while film analysis is no end in itself, it is required in defining and fulfilling language oriented tasks.

Annika McPherson adopts the perspective of cultural studies. She analyzes the award-winning 2009 short film Pumzi (›Breath‹ in Swahili). Building upon different readings of the film, her contribution highlights the film’s Afrofuturist dimension. It draws on cultural studies and postcolonial studies frameworks in order to show how broader questions of agency surrounding cultural power and cultural politics can be addressed through the analysis and discussion of Pumzi in educational contexts.

Part B is introduced by Gabriele Blell. She treats the teaching potential of viral videos in school on a theoretical, a methodological and a practical level. The outstanding Yes, We Can by Will.I.Am (2008) is used as an illustration, and a possible teaching scenario initiated by a complex task is offered.

Christiane Lütge recommends short animation films. She explores the potential of this genre, suggests a list of »must-see / teach« films, and encourages teachers to have learners produce their own animated videos.

Matthias Hutz exposes his learners to real-life language and interaction through shorties. After examining the difficulties of authentic language, he proposes several ideas how students can cope with authenticity.

Christoph Werth uses the children’s Schadenfreude to instigate learning processes concerning vocabulary and grammar as well as to make them reflect their attitudes towards a topic as serious as death and dying. However, he adopts a humorous approach to this topic by working with the short movie Dumb Ways to Die.

Genia Markova and Jana Pessozki recommend the short silent animation film Father and Daughter, which tells a very special story of a loss. Artful and elaborate, using only music and pictures to convey the message, this wonderful film can promote visual comprehension, writing and film analysis.

Part C comprises eight contributions, which demonstrate how certain subgenres of short films can be employed in the English language classroom:

New silent short films are recommended by Lena Heinze, who suggests inspiring lesson ideas for the film Gift. While watching, one wonders whether the family has really adopted a girl … or is it a …?

What genre has got »shock, beauty, atmosphere, glamour, drama, comedy, all in the space of 15–30 seconds?« (Sherman) Right, it’s the commercial. Anja Boneberger, Zeynep Direk, Dominik Eberts and Demet Gürsoy present two examples, i.e. a car commercial with the famous actor Pierce Brosnan, and a MetLife clip, in which a young girl exposes her father to be a liar.

Why not take a closer look at animated shorts? Susanne Klohn introduces us to a young boy, who gets a present from his mother, but there’s something wrong with the puppy: One of its legs is missing.

Infographic films can transform complex information into graphics, which are both easy to grasp and visually appealing. Hence Susanne Neumann makes us familiar with the fast food industry and a study of Twitter users.

»How do you turn a life around?« If you are stumped for an answer, watch this thought-provoking example of social shorts about First (?) World problems presented by Lea Mittelstädt, Maria Sachsinger and Linda Ringwald.

The same ladies convince us that people become unsocial by using social media. Ironically the viral videoLook up, which calls upon us to look up from our mobile phones, has gone viral.

A long-established yet still vigorous genre is the documentary. Stefanie Rödel allures us to visit South Africa by revealing »Top 10 amazing facts« about this country.

Everybody talks about the weather. Taking the phatic function of weather in communication seriously, our meteorologist Angelika Pfeil presents weather forecasts.

In short, short films can be wonderful media for TEFL classrooms. Due to »their accessibility, brevity, innovation and creativity, short films are the perfect vehicle for using moving images in the language learning classroom – and for promoting both oral and written communication« (Donaghy 2015: 25). And the importance of short films is likely to rise as newer, simpler and cheaper forms of creating, distributing and viewing short films are about to develop.

A.Theory

Short Films in English Language Teaching

Engelbert Thaler

»I hate it when my house is so big I need two wireless routers« – this is what a poor black man, standing in front of a tiny, decrepit wooden hut, is complaining about in the short film First World Problems (www.viralvideoaward.com/first-world-problems). This viral video, directed by the American Alec Helm (2012), is a tongue-in-cheek jab at complaints that are only voiced by privileged individuals in wealthy countries. Although it lasts only 1:01 minutes, it can be exploited for all the competences asked for in the educational standards (KMK2012, Fig. 1).

Competences

First World Problems

Functional communicative competences:

Listening-viewing

Recognizing the satirical clash between words and visuals

Speaking

Discussing trivial inconveniences

Reading

Reading the subtitles

Writing

Adding a comment on YouTube

Mediating

Transferring statements into L1

Lexical competence

Explaining unknown words, e.g. »mint gums«

Grammatical competence

Revising passive voice, e.g. »… my leather seats aren’t heated …«

Pronunciation

Repeating the statements in RP

Spelling

Distinguishing between BE and AE, e.g. »neighbours« / »neighbors«

Text and media competence

Investigating the make-up and impact of viral videos

Intercultural communicative competence

Exploring the chasm between First and Third World

Language awareness

Bringing multilingualism, ESL and lingua franca to mind

Language learning competence

Making students aware of the language learning potential of short film platforms

Fig. 1: First World Problems video & educational standards

The following paper attempts to answer what is meant by short films, why they should be used in the TEFL classroom, where teachers can find suitable material, what subgenres can be distinguished, what criteria of selection may be applied, what objectives can be determined, and how short films can actually be exploited in language classes. The theoretical argumentation will be supported by the description and analysis of several film examples, which are described with the help of six criteria: title, type, source, synopsis, features, and learning potential.

1Term

According to length, films can be divided into long formats, medium formats, and short formats (Thaler 2014, Fig. 2).

Types

Length

Examples

Short formats

1 sec – 20 min

see below

Medium formats

20–45 min

drama series

sitcoms

soap operas

talk shows

game shows

documentaries

educational films

Long formats

45+ minutes

feature films

live coverage of (inter)national events

Fig. 2: Film formats

2Justification

Why should we employ short films in our classrooms? A circular and tautological answer would be because they are short and audiovisual.

Apart from the general benefits of using films in TEFL such as popularity, motivation audio-visual appeal, authenticity, personal relevance and teachers’ preferences (Stempleski/Tomalin 2001, Thaler 2007a), short formats exhibit additional didactic assets:

Time: Compared to long audiovisual formats, e.g. movies, and medium formats, e.g. sitcoms, short films can be comfortably dealt with in a 45-minute lesson including viewing and working phases.

Repetition: Due to their brevity, double or even triple viewing is possible.

Focus: Certain details like camera perspective, character development, leitmotif or central message can be studied in detail within a manageable context.

Flexibility: The three time-saving approaches to presenting films, i.e. segment, sandwich, and appetizer approach, are dispensable as the very short format allows for a simple straight-through mode (cf. Thaler 2014). The working phases may be structured according to the PWP (pre – while – post), GTD (global to detail), TBLL (task-based language learning), 10-step listening-viewing approach, or MVC (7-code music video clip) patterns (Thaler 2012).

All these benefits are not hard to be detected in the famous 40-second Berlitz commercial called The German Coast Guard (Fig. 3, also see Thaler 2014).

Title

The German Coast Guard

Type

Commercial

Source

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yR0lWICH3rY

Synopsis

In this hilarious Berlitz commercial, a young German coastguard is being given instructions in his new job by an elderly man. As soon as the experienced man leaves, the trainee receives a distress call from an English boat:

»We are sinking!«

After a pause the coastguard asks:

»What are you sinking (thinking) about?«

Features

Brevity (40 sec)

Humour

Polyvalence

Learning potential

Pronunciation: problems with /th/

Linguistics: minimal pairs »thinking / sinking«

Grammar: present progressive

Mediation: L1-L2 (first part)

Speaking: sources of humour

Lingua franca: sea travel

Intercultural learning: critical incidents

Advertising: form, function and impact of a commercial

Fig. 3: The German Coast Guard

Moreover, not only media literacy / film literacy, but basically all competence domains and individual sub-competences that are postulated in the educational standards (KMK2003, KMK2012) can be fostered with the help of short films:

Functional communicative competences ▶ particularly listening-viewing

Intercultural communicative competence ▶ culture-specific references

Text and media competence ▶ cinematic devices

Language awareness ▶ sociolects, regiolects

Language learning competence ▶ Extramural English with online platforms

3Resources

Where can teachers – and learners – find suitable material when they want to make use of short films? The following table provides a few suggestions (Fig. 4).

Film guides

http://www.filmsite.org

http://www.imdb.com

http://www.filmclub.org

http://filmeducation.org

http://www.eslnotes.com/synopses.html

Learner film sites

www.english-attack.com

http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/film-uk

Lesson plans

http://lessonstream.org

http://viralelt.wordpress.com

Film scripts

http://www.dailyscript.com

http://www.script-o-rama.com

Animated movie makers

http://goanimate.com

http://www.zimmertwins.com

Subtitling and revoicing

http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv

http://clipflair.net

Kieran Donaghy

http://filminaction.com

http://film-english.com

Fig. 4: TEFL resources

4Types

Short films may be classified according to length (one-second films, one-minute films, short shorts, etc.), genre (comedy, drama, documentary, horror, romance, sci-fi, thriller, etc.), topic (animals, coming-of-age, dance, superhero, etc.), or artistic claim (Heinrich 1997, Monaco 2009, Keddie 2014). Although in the era of post-modern hybridity, the boundaries between ad and art, or trash and treasure, are blurred, short films with rather aesthetic ambitions can be detected. These art shorts are also awarded prizes at international short film festivals such as the Tampere International Short Film Festival or the New York Short Film Festival. An example well worth seeing is Father and Daughter (2000), a multi-award winning 8-minute animated film directed by Michael Dudok de Wit, which completely forgoes any dialogues (see Pessozki in this volume).

Apart from art shorts, one can find several traditional types whose artistic ambitions are limited (Keddie 2014, Thaler 2014, 2000):

music videos

sketches / skits

trailers

TV news

weather forecasts

interviews

commercials

Brave new digital world has recently given birth to further innovative short film genres (Donaghy 2015: 25ff., Fig. 5).

New types of short films

1. Branded Shorts

short films created for a company / brand ▶ fusion between advertising and entertainment, innovative narratives, high production standards

2. Social Shorts

dealing with social themes such as poverty, homelessness, discrimination ▶ social awareness, emotional involvement, dramatic appeal

3. Literal Music Videos

music videos in which the original lyrics have been replaced by lines that depict the content of the visuals ▶ parody, wit, musical appeal, cinematic analysis (!), working with lyrics (vocabulary)

4. Infographic Films

animated representations of information, data, knowledge ▶ full of facts, appealing to visual learners

5. Viral Shorts

short films that become very popular through being shared rapidly and widely on the Internet ▶ funny, strange, powerful, discussing the impact

6. Animated Lectures

lectures created by pairing leading experts in a field with talented animators ▶ intellectual challenge, reduction of complexity by combining audio, text and attractive animation, presenting world-renowned experts (example: RSAANIMATE: Changing Education Paradigms, talk given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson, www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U)

7. Split-screen Shorts

films with a visible division of the screen into two halves, with different moving images in each half ▶ discussing similarities and differences between the two screens

8. Response Films

shorts which criticise or parody the content and message of another film (viral or branded shorts), often in a humorous or hard-hitting manner ▶ criticism of the original, promoting critical thinking, learners producing their own film as a reaction to a manipulative clip

9. New Silent Short Films

shorts without any dialogue, produced recently ▶ lack of text, suitable for various proficiency levels

10. Mash-ups

montages or combinations of two or more already existing films ▶ promoting genre competence, producing one’s own mash-ups

Fig. 5: New short film genres

An example of a viral short, which treats a current problem in an illuminating yet non-obtrusive manner, is delineated in Fig. 6.

Title

I Forgot My Phone

Type

Viral short

Source

www.youtube.com/watch?v=OINa46HeWg8

Synopsis

The two-minute film, a hyper-real vision of everyday life, shows various social situations, in which groups of people are utterly engrossed by their phones instead of the world around them. Whether it is taking in a spectacular view, holding a conversation with friends, innocently enjoying a swing, or lying in bed with a partner, the phone takes precedence over real life.

This satirical jab at society’s obsession with their mobile phones highlights our inability to enjoy the here and now (mindfulness).

Features

Huge popularity

Current social problem

Language (words) not relevant

Learning potential

First viewing: vision off approach

Discussing excessive mobile use

Reading / responding to YouTube comments

Fig. 6: I Forgot My Phone

5Selection

The preference for a certain film genre may be one guideline when having to choose an appropriate film for one’s class. Further criteria of selection are the following (Thaler 2017a):

linguistic complexity

audio-visual comprehensibility

language quantity

didactic exploitability

pedagogic concerns

topical relevance

length

sound-vision relation

aesthetic quality

An example that fulfils quite a lot of these criteria is outlined in Fig. 7.

Title

Splitscreen: A Love Story

Type

Split-screen story

Source

https://vimeo.com/25451551

Synopsis

Two lovebirds wake up on opposite sides of the world (New York, Paris), and start parallel journeys to meet each other. The story is told simultaneously through the eyes of the two characters, and each shot is meticulously matched to its transatlantic counterpart, e.g. a truck in Paris seamlessly becomes a New York City taxi.

Features

Split screen

Paris and New York

No text / dialogues

Winner of Nokia shorts competition 2011

Completely shot on Nokia N8 mobile phone

Learning potential

Usable in various languages

Analysis of cinematic devices

Description, retelling, discussion

Fig. 7: Splitscreen: A Love Story

6Objectives

In analogy to the model of film literacy (Thaler 2014), one can postulate three domains and three skills for short films as well (Fig. 8).

Fig. 8: Short Film Literacy

Short films are predestined for cinematic analysis, so Fig. 9 outlines a literal music video which abounds in film devices.

Title

Total Eclipse of the Heart

Type

Literal music video

Source

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsgWUq0fdKk

Synopsis

A literal music video is a parody of an official music video clip in which the lyrics have been replaced with lyrics that describe the visuals in the video – so you really hear what you see in this spoof on Bonnie Tyler’s classic music video of the 80s, e.g. (Pan the room) Random use of candles, empty bottles, and cloth, and can you see me through this fan? (Slo-mo dove) Creepy doll, a window, and what looks like a bathrobe. Then, a dim-lit shot of dangling balls. (Metaphor?) …

Features

Parody and humour

Deconstructing a cult song / video

Cinematographic techniques

Learning potential

Comparing original and parody

Film analysis (cinematic devices)

Lexical work and ICC

Creative production of one’s own literal music video

Fig. 9: Total Eclipse of the Heart

7Methodology

When structuring a teaching unit on short films, one can resort to the well-known lesson planning patterns (Thaler 2012, 2007b):

PPP (presentation, practice, production)

PWP (pre-while-post)

GtD (global-to-detail)

TBLL (Task-based Language Learning)

Music Video Approach (3 codes, 7 combinations)

In order to focus on listening-viewing or / and cinematic analysis, the 10-step approach can be recommended (Thaler 2014, Fig. 10).

Step

Phase

Content / Functions

1

Lead-in

Introducing the situation: who, what …

Justifying the need to watch

2

Prep work

Key phrases

Intercultural background

3

1st purpose

Intention (global understanding)

Tasks

4

1st viewing

Whole film

5

Global comprehension

Students’ answers

6

2nd purpose

Intention (detailed understanding)

Tasks

7

2nd viewing

Film

8

Detailed comprehension

Students’ answers

9

(optional: 3rd viewing)

Focusing task

Part of film

Discussion

10

Wrap-up

Follow-up activities

Analysis

Discussion

Transfer

Fig. 10: 10-step approach to listening-viewing

This 10-step approach can be exemplified with the hilarious black humour skit Fatal Beatings (www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZMoB6ms2mE), in which a meeting between a strict headmaster (Rowan Atkinson) and a worried student’s father rapidly goes downhill after the headmaster mentions casually that he has beaten his son to death (Fig. 11).

Step

Phase

Content

1

Lead-in

T activates background information on Rowan Atkinson / Mr Bean.

2

Prep work

The communicative situation of the clip is introduced: who, where, what.

A few key phrases may be pre-taught.

3

1st purpose

T announces that the presentation of the film will be stopped three times in order to elicit feedback from the S.

4

1st viewing

The whole film is shown, the pause button is pressed at the following points, and S have to guess:

0:29 (»Tommy is in trouble«): what trouble?

0:52 (»If he wasn’t dead, I’d have him expelled«): why dead?

3:46 (»I’ve been pulling your leg«): what punchline?

5

Global comprehension

With each freeze frame, answers from the S are collected.

6

2nd purpose

S are asked to focus on the different sources of humour during the second viewing of this skit.

7

2nd viewing

The video is presented straight through.

8

Detailed comprehension

S answers on humour are discussed.

9

3rd viewing

A subtitled version of the video with several spelling and lexical mistakes is shown, and S are asked to shout »Stop!« whenever they identify a mistake. The correct versions are written on the board.

10

Wrap-up

The appropriateness of this video concerning its content and the role of black humour are discussed.

Fig. 11: Fatal Beatings

While this 10-step model is intended to foster the first two skills of short film literacy (see Fig. 8), promoting the third skill, i.e. creating, can be guided by the 10-level pyramid, in which the autonomous production of a short film by the learners takes centre stage (Fig. 12).

Fig. 12: Ten – Level Pyramid

8Conclusion

When employing short films in TEFL, teachers should resort to Balanced Teaching, i.e. a synthesis of closed and open methods (Thaler 2008). Fig. 13 elucidates how this basic approach can be adapted for short films.

Balanced Teaching

Closed Teaching

&

Open Learning

teacher-fronted

cinematic analysis

closed exercises

one film

deskbound approach

student-centred

listening-viewing for gist

open tasks

intermediality

independent study

motivating & effective

TEFL

Fig. 13: Balanced Teaching with short films

Bibliography

Donaghy, Kieran (2015). Film in Action. Peaslake: Delta Publishing.

Heinrich, Katrin (1997). Der Kurzfilm. Geschichte, Gattungen, Narrativik. Alfeld: Coppi.

Keddie, Jamie (2014). Bringing Online Video into the Classroom. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

KMK (Hg.) (2003). Bildungsstandards mittlerer Schulabschluss. www.kmk.org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2003/2003_12_04-BS-erste-Fremdsprache.pdf

KMK (Hg.) (2012). Bildungsstandards allgemeine Hochschulreife. www.kmk.org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-Bildungsstandards-Fortgef-FS-Abi.pdf

Monaco, James (2009). How to Read a Film. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Stempleski, Susan/Tomalin, Barry (2001). Film. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Thaler, Engelbert (2016). Kurzfilme im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 6, 7–11.

Thaler, Engelbert (2015). Literal Music Videos. Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 3, 6–7.

Thaler, Engelbert (2014). Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: UTB.

Thaler, Engelbert (2012). Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Thaler, Engelbert (2008). Offene Lernarrangements im Englischunterricht. Berlin: Langenscheidt.

Thaler, Engelbert (2007a). Film-based Language Learning. Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 1, 9–14.

Thaler, Engelbert (2007b). Schulung des Hör-Seh-Verstehens. Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 4, 12–17.

Thaler, Engelbert (2000). Monty Python. Paderborn: Schöningh.

Goose Bumps – How the Language of Film Enters into Language Teaching with Films

Klaus Maiwald

Part 1 of the following article outlines didactic reasons and directions of working with films and short films. Part 2 will take a closer look at the innertextual and intertextual qualities of a particular short film, showing how the language of film, its formal means and aesthetic techniques, is integral to language learning with film. Part 3 concludes that while film analysis is no end in itself, it is required in defining and fulfilling language oriented tasks.

1Didactic Reasons and Directions of Working with (Short) Films

Why work with (short) films in language teaching? A simple answer to that question is: because they exist. We study music; we study painting; we study architecture; we study literature; so we study film. (We might even consider film a form of literature.) In any case, film is an art form with a history spanning well over a hundred years (see Faulstich 2005). Film has developed genuine aesthetic codes, for example cut and montage, and specific genres, for example the Western, the Road Movie, the Thriller (see Hickethier 2007: 201ff.; Kammerer 2009). And film has brought forth renowned auteurs and œuvres – or slightly less pretentious: film makers and works. Think about Sergei Eisenstein, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Woody Allen, to name but a few. In his voluminous yet highly readable study The Big Screen. The Story of the Movies and What They Did to Us, David Thomson (2012) traces more than a century in which films have been shaping our thoughts and feelings, about the world and ourselves. If one purpose of higher education is to open up legitimate cultural objects and processes, there is no way around film – unless we exclude film from an elitist concept of a supposed »high culture«.

To pronounce film a legitimate part of our culture and the cultural heritage (Bildungsgut