An Attempt to ESLize EFL through Video Making

An Attempt to ESLize EFL through Video Making

Gurbuz, Salim

Leaving aside the subsidiary discussions about specific distinctions between ESL and EFL in literature, ESL as a learning situation in which the learner has a chance to be exposed to the language outside the class stands out more advantageous than its counterpart most of the time. EFL students start the language race with not only this disadvantage but also the lack of real communicative tasks in the class which creates a real gap between ESL and EFL curriculum (Al-Hashash 2007). Specifically in the English language preparatory programs (or year) of Turkish higher education the gap is aggravated by the unmotivated students who consider this year as the Berlin Wall between themselves and their branches of study. In MUYDEM (Meliksah University Foreign Languages Education Center) which offers such kind of one year extensive English program and has about 650 students as of 2012, Muydem TV started as a project to replace these three problems with a tripod. Compared to the studies describing various criteria and several benefits of video making in ESL and EFL teaching (Cogill, 1999; Hoelker, Nimmannit, and Nakamura 1999; Hada, Ogata and Yano 2002; Ryan, 2003;Goulah 2007; Long & Doughty, 2009; Masats, Dooly & Costa, 2009;Gromik, 2006) Muydem TV rather focuses on encouraging students from different levels and classes to work in video shooting teams organized on Facebook to use English outside the class for authentic purposes and online audiences on Youtube and Moodle. The participants of this workshop will prepare and present an episode whose parts will be merged into the prefabricated format of Muydem TV, and through this, will have a chance to experience communicative, creative, and especially motivational aspects of this method or pack of activities for the teachers in closing the gap between ESL and EFL by immunizing the language for further use outside the class.

Conference or Workshop Item
PeerReviewed

2012-05-04

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