Multimodal analysis of visuals used in two foreign language degree courses (Spanish and Mandarin)

Action research

Lourdes Hernandez-Martin & Dr Lijing Shi

London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

WHY VISUALS

OUR COURSES AND RESEARCH PROJECT

PROCESS AND DATA

SOME CONCLUSIONS

Bibliography

Why do we use visuals in teaching?

1. To make materials more attractive, especially still images

2. The visual is central to the cultural construction of social life in contemporary (Western) societies. Do you imagine a language class without images today?

3. Materials from classes are the only source of students’ knowledge. Visuals help us to show students the sociocultural contexts of the languages they are learning.

Context

What

How

Design of

course

Our courses

Context and content

LSEspecialises in social, political and economic sciences

Language CentreML -Certificate and Degree

ML Degree students Diversity

ML Degree coursesAcademic purposes within LSE areas

Content

Intercultural awareness

Socio-cultural

Linguistic

How? Spanish courses Mandarin courses

Textbook No Yes

Complementary

materials for topics in

textbook

No Yes

Tailor-made materials Yes, all materials For topics not included

in textbook

Complementary book

for tailor made

materials

Yes, grammar book No

Courses chosen for project

Materials LN122 Spanish Language and Society

(B1-B2)

LN340 Chinese Language and Society

(C1-C2)

Topic- based

units• Study Pack of12 topic-based

units created and/ or updated

by the teacher

• 12 Topics from a textbook

• Tailor-made materials by the teacher to

supplement textbook topics

• 2 topic-based units created to cover

themes which are not included in the

course-book Project-based

learning• Press observer (7 weeks)

• In a certain place in London (18

weeks). Exploring the Spanish speaking

communities in London.

• Research project

• Video interview project

Complementary

materials• In Moodle • In Moodle

Why this research?

“By using them (materials in general), students also shape their perceptions, construct and enlarge their knowledge and express their attitudes towards both the language and the culture” (Rico, 2010).

“It is necessary to look very carefully at visual images, and it is necessary to do so because visual representations have their own effects” (Rose, 2012).

We need to “take images seriously”.

How have visuals been applied to develop linguistic, socio-cultural and intercultural competences?

Research method

Action research

• Which visuals did we use? • What were intended purposes?• Were intended purposes realised?

Multimodal analysis ＋ stimulated recall ＋ reflective notes

Stimulated recall method (Gass & Mackey, 2000). Action Research Cycle – enhanced: Hampel & Stickler, 2015

Data analysis 1 : stimulated recalls to revealteachers’ intention in using visuals

Data analysis 2: colour coding the differenttypes of visuals employed in the courses

Reflections

Findings 1

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

LN340Mandarin

LN122 Spanish

Pictures

Moving Images

Others

Others: • Posters• Map• Drawings• Cartoon• Graphs

Findings 2: Intended use of Pictures

Chinese_LN340 Pictures

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Spanish_ LN122 Pictures

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Findings 3: Intended use of Moving Images

Chinese_ LN340 Moving images

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Spanish_LN122 Moving images

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Findings 4: Intended use of other visuals

Spanish_LN122 Others

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Chinese_LN340 Others

Linguistic

Sociocultural

Intercultural

Enhance

Prompt

Further thoughts

1. Our activities with visuals do not necessarily explore all aspects suggested for the analysis of media messages (Centre for Media Literacy, 2003):

a. Site of production: author (“constructedness”)b. Site of image itself: composition, format (and techniques of production)c. Site of reception: audienced. Content (or message) (semiotic analysis, discourse analysis)e. Motive (purpose)

2. Our project brought us to more questions:

• Whose social communities/groups are most commonly represented in our images?

• Which discourses are deployed in the visual in relation to the topics?

• Who speaks in the images we see in our classes?

• Are we simplifying, stereotyping, and creating prejudices? Which consequences this may have for

the opinions-judgements students make about the Target Communities?

Analyse Reflect Plan Act

Action 1 in LN122: Site of image itself

Action 2 in LN122: Meaning embedded

Images from: http://www.abc.es/economia/20130425/abci-casi-millon-jovenes-espanoles-201304251049.htmlhttp://www.elconfidencial.com/espana/2016-03-02/el-demoledor-diagnostico-del-financial-times-la-crisis-crea-jovenes-enfermos_1162398/http://aspa-andalucia.org/220-000-jovenes-espanoles-emigraron-en-el-ultimo-lustro/

Action 3 in LN340 – Content analysis

88%

12%

Educational background

univesity + non-university degree

Action 4 in LN340 – Students as Producers of images

Conclusion

Cross section collaboration cross-cultural

Take visualseriously in the language classroom:

• Teachers’ awareness• Students’ awareness

Thank you! Gracias！ 谢谢！

Lourdes Hernandez-Martin l.hernandez-martin@lse.ac.ukDr. Lijing Shi l.shi3@lse.ac.uk

Bibliography

Material preparation• Dorney, Z. (2001). Motivational strategies in the language classroom. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University

Press.• Dorney, Z. (2003). Attitutes, Orientations and Motivations in Language Learning. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.• Gulbahar Becket, H. and Miller, P. (eds.) (2006). Project-based Second and Foreign Language Education: Past,

Present, and Future. Information Age Publishing• Tomlinson, B. (2013) (ed.). Developing Materials for Language Learning. London: Bloomsbury.• Tomlinson, B. and Masuhara, H. (2010). Research for Material Development in Language Learning. London,

Bloomsbury

Language and culture teaching and research• Hall, J. (2012). Teaching and Researching Language and Culture. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited

Multiliteracies• Thoman, E. and Tessa Jolls, Literacy for the 21st Century, Centre for Media Literacy, 2003

http://medialit.net/sites/default/files/mlk/01_MLKorientation.pdf• The New London Group, A pedagogy of Multiliteracies: Designing Social Futures, 1996

http://eps415gse.pbworks.com/f/A_Pedagogy_of_Multiliteracies_Designing_Social_Futures.htm

BibliographyMultimodal discourse analysis

• Gabriella Vigliocco, Pamela Perniss, David Vinson (2014) “Language as a multimodal phenomenon: Implications for Language Learning, Processing and Evolution”, Phil. Trans. R. Soc., v. 369, issue 1651

• Levinson SC, Holler J. 2014 ”The Origin of human multi-modal communication”. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

Stimulated recall and Action Research

• Gass, S. M., & Mackey, A. (2000). Stimulated recall in second language research. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers (Mahwah, NJ).

• Stickler, U., & Hampel, R. (2015). From second language acquisition to second language use: Qualitative and mixed-methods approaches to research in CALL today. CALICO Journal, 32(2).

Visuals• Azoulay, A. (2008) The Civil Contract of Photography, New York, Zone books• Hill, D. (2013) “The Visual Elements in EFL Coursebooks” in Tomlinson, B. (ed.). Developing Materials for Language

Learning. London: Bloomsbury.• Rose, G. Visual Methodologies, 3rd Ed. (2012) SAGE Publications, London.• Rose, G. (2014) “On the Relationship between “Visual Research Methods” and Contemporary Visual Culture”, The

Sociological Review, Vol.62, 24-46• Rose, G. (1996) “Teaching visualised geographies: towards a methodology for the interpretation of visual materials”

Journal of Geography in Higher Education, Vol.20, n.3.

BibliographyIntercultural competence

• Byram, M. (1997). Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence, Multilingual Matters• Council Europe, CEFR, 2001 http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/linguistic/cadre1_en.asp• Clayton, J (2003) One classroom, Many worlds: Teaching and Learning in the Crosscultural classroom, Portsmouth,

NH: Heinemann.• Celce-Murcia, M. (2007) “Rethinking the Role of Communicative Competence in Language Teaching”, in E.Soler and

M. Safont Jorda (eds), Intercultural Langauge Use and Language Learning” (pp.7-22), Dordrecht: Springer• Mason, J. (2010) “The Effects of Different Types of Materials on the Intercultural Competence of Tunisian University

Students” in Tomlinson, B. and Masuhara, H. (2010). Research for Material Development in Language Learning. London, Bloomsbury

• Rico, C. (2010) “The Effects of Language Materials on the Development of Intercultural Competence” in Tomlinson, B. and Masuhara, H. Research for Material Development in Language Learning. London, Bloomsbury

• Spencer-Oatey, H. and Franklin, P. (2009). Intercultural Interaction. A Multidisciplinary Approach to Intercultural Communication. New York: Palgrave Macmillan