How do I teach video material?

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Radmehr
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Joined: 01 May 2006, 20:54

How do I teach video material?

Unread post by Radmehr »

Dear Lucy,
I am going to show my Intermediate-level students a movie and I am very much confused with what to do and when to do. The movie comes from Hollywood (The Recruit). It’s a kind of workshop for them. At first I would like to know whether such video material is advised or not? And I would like to know what I should do before, during and after the class. I have some Ideas but I would like an expert to help me too. Please note that the students are adults and the duration of the class is about 4 hours. I am anxiously looking forward to your useful answer.
Regards
Radmehr
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Lucy
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Joined: 13 Jan 2004, 15:09
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How to teach video material

Unread post by Lucy »

Dear Radmehr,

I’ve never heard of this film but it is perfectly suitable to use authentic video material with intermediate level students.

However, four hours is a long time to spend on a video so you’ll need to have a variety of activities. Before showing the video, awaken students’ interest in what they are about to watch. If you think they don’t know the film, show them the video cover and ask them to guess what it is about, who the characters are, etc. If you think they know the film, play a game of hangman where students call out letters of the alphabet to find the name of the film. When they have the title, ask them to tell you what they know about the film.

You can then start to work on the film. Show it in short sections and pre-teach some vocabulary that they’ll need to understand each section. Do some exercises on the vocabulary, especially pronunciation work, to enable students to understand the spoken word. Some vocabulary work could be done by the students at home before class.

While students are watching, give them some general comprehension questions. To add variety, you can show them the film without sound; students in groups guess what was being said. Each group presents their ideas to the class. They watch again with sound to see which group guessed most accurately. A similar exercise is to ask students to sit with their backs to the television. They listen and guess what is happening. They discuss this in groups, report to the class and then watch the video clip.

To introduce some creativity, you could ask students to discuss in groups what you think is the personal history of some of the characters. When the film ends, what do the students think the characters will do the following day? As follow up work, students can write a letter either recommending or not recommending the film to a friend.

I hope this will help. Please write in again if you would like more ideas.

Lucy
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