Foreign Language Learning from Audiovisual Input: The Role of Original Version Television

This edited volume brings together studies that test the effectiveness of original version television for foreign language learning and the possible ways to enhance this learning process. The wide availability of on-demand streaming platforms and the popularity of television as a leisure activity grant language learners access to massive amounts of authentic original version television input, which warrants further research to maximise language learning opportunities. The edited volume features a set of empirical studies, encompassing different target languages (Dutch, English, and French) and participant profiles (young learners, adolescents, and adults), which will be of interest to applied linguists, pre- and in-service language instructors, and second language acquisition researchers working on audiovisual input. Importantly, this book includes studies on a variety of linguistic features, the majority of which have been traditionally underrepresented in audiovisual input research: vocabulary, formulaic sequences, pronunciation, pragmatics, and humour. It thus offers a comprehensive view of how original version television may contribute to foreign language development, addressing the dynamic and holistic nature of the language learning process.

Anastasia Pattemore, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the Department of European Languages and Cultures at the University of Groningen (The Netherlands). Her research focuses on uncovering optimal conditions for language learning from audiovisual input, exploring factors such as different types of subtitling, textual enhancement, viewing time distribution, cognitive individual differences, and attention and processing, as measured by eye-tracking. Her work has been published in international peer-reviewed journals, received both internal and external funding, and recognised by several awards.

Ferran Gesa, PhD, is a lecturer and researcher at the Departament d’Educació Lingüística, Científica i Matemàtica at the Universitat de Barcelona (Spain). His research interests include vocabulary learning from video viewing, vocabulary size, and the role that individual differences play in language learning. His research has been published in renowned international journals as well as in edited volumes, and he has also participated in national and international research projects. In 2021, he was distinguished with the Extraordinary PhD Award by the Universitat de Barcelona.