The Use of English Captioned Videos in EAP Classes

This classroom research was conducted to investigate students’ perceptions of, and preferences for, the use of English videos in EAP classes. Previous research (e.g. Dinh in Applications of CALL theory in ESL and EFL environments. IGI Global, 2018; Stempleski in Short takes: Using authentic video in the English class, 1987; Yang in Technology and psychology of second language learners and users. Palgrave Macmillan, 2020) has highlighted the benefits of authentic video materials such as enriching language input, increasing students’ motivation and facilitating comprehension in L2 classrooms. Translating the educational potential of authentic video materials into practice, I incorporated short English captioned videos into my EAP teaching to second-year university students in China throughout a semester. Specifically, I selected English videos lasting around 3–5 minutes from video-sharing platforms, added English captions to them and designed interactive activities as an introduction to lesson topics in my EAP classes. Analyses of data from 23 questionnaire respondents and 4 interviewees show that the use of English captioned videos brings both affective and cognitive advantages to students’ EAP learning, mainly due to expanding their topical knowledge and making course topics more connected to their life. In addition, students show preferences for videos that have English captions, last less than 5 minutes and are narrated by speakers in standard English accents. Implications of findings for EAP instruction are also discussed in this chapter.