Informal learning in new media environments: Translanguaging, sociality and interaction on YouTube(HK GRF-funded project RGC840211)

Phil BensonLinguistics, Macquarie University

AILA 2014

Globalization, the Internet, foreign language learning

The Internet is a “worldwide literacy practice environment” - “an informal learning environment for English as a second/foreign language’.

Koutsogiannis & Mitsikopoulou (2004: 83)

“Globalization and networking technologies have transformed the contexts, means, and uses of foreign language learning”.

Kern (2014: 340)

‘…globalization has changed the conditions under which FLs are taught, learned and used”

Kramsch (2014: 302)

Research problem

• How do we go beyond general statements about the affordances of the Internet for foreign language learners – How to gather empirical evidence of language

learning– How to theorize relationship between

globalization of social media and language learning

Key concepts

• Social media– Social networking (Facebook, Twitter, etc)– Media-sharing (YouTube, Flickr, etc)

• Translanguaging (= presence of more than one language in a communicative event)

• Sociality (= how people orient toward each other within interactional environments)

• ‘Commenting’ as an interactional activity

Techonology-mediated learning beyond the classroom

• teacher-initiated/guided learning• collaborative intentional language learning in

formal and informal groups• autonomous intentional language learning• incidental language learning from learner

interaction through technology mediation as a by-product of some other goal or activity

张学友 / Jacky Cheung singing 吻別 / Wen Bie(Cantonese original of ‘Take me to your Heart’

by Michael Learns to Rock)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GW24kXpT1sI• (sung live on Hong Kong TV)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3esUMTQGc34• (MV - Chinese title)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec3tb_7rnH4• (MV - English title)

张学友 / Jacky Cheung - 吻別 / Wen Bie

• Sung live on Hong Kong TV– Orientation to context of performance– Comments in Chinese

• MV - Chinese title– Partial orientation to MLTR cover– Comments in Chinese and English

• MV - English title– Stronger orientation to MLTR cover– Comments in English

What is going on?

• YouTube offers technological affordance for interaction among globally dispersed (Chinese and non-Chinese speaking) fans of Cantonese songs

• Anyone can comment, using any language, but…

• Cues in the video / title predict language choices in comments

Translanguaging on YouTube

• Translanguaging (explicit) = the use of more than one language in video text

• Translanguaging (implicit) = implicit problematization of language difference– Jackie Cheung MV with Chinese title contains no

English, but the fact that the song is based on an English song implicates translanguaging

• Translanguaging in video text predicts comment on language and intercultural issues…

Language and intercultural learningJay Chou – ‘Hair like snow’

A sequence of commentsJay Chou Fa Ru Xue

A: Honestly can someone tell me the meaning of this song. The English subtitles is no help bc it makes no sense at all. Great video n music singing, but i am so confuse of the music video n the lyrics. =)B (replying to A): i think this song is represented of eternal love since then most of the lyrics talk about being with the personC (replying to B): well, going through all these comments helped a little. But thanks too. =)

A (replying to B): well, that explains a little. Thanks!D (replying to A): I'm not really sure but i think he's trying to say that he'll love her even if she turns old and her hair is white as snow. like eternal loveA (replying to D): Now that sounds a little better; it explains about her hair like snow. Lol Thanks

What is going on?

• Translanguaging in video text predicts comment on language and intercultural issues

• Commenters orient towards the video and other comments as interactional participants (sociality)– Comment to video / Comment to comment (Adami 2009; Sindoni 2013)

• Interactions involve observable negotiation of language and intercultural meaning (Tudini 2007)

Summary

• Globalisation of social media creates affordances for translanguaging

• Translanguaging creates affordances for sociality across language/cultural boundaries

• Interaction creates affordances for negotiation of meaning Language and intercultural learning

References• Adami, E. (2009). ‘We/YouTube’: Exploring sign-making in video-interaction. Visual

Communication. 8(4), 379-399.• Benson, P. (2015). YouTube as text: Spoken interaction analysis and digital

discourse. In R. Jones, A. Chik, and C. Hafner (Eds.), Discourse and digital practices. London: Routledge.

• Kern, R. (2014). Technology as Pharmakon: The promise and perils of the internet for foreign language education. The Modern Language Journal. 98(1), 340–357.

• Koutsogiannis, D., & Mitsikopoulou, B. (2004). The internet as a glocal discourse environment. Language Learning and Technology. 8(3), 83–89.

• Kramsch, C. (2014). Teaching foreign languages in an era of globalization: An introduction. Modern Language Journal. 98(1), 296–311.

• Sindoni, M. G. (2013). Spoken and Written Discourse in Online Interactions: A Multimodal Approach. London: Routledge.

• Tudini, V. (2007). Negotiation and intercultural learning in Italian native speaker chat rooms. The Modern Language Journal. 91(4), 577–61.