Steven P. Cole

A Classroom Investigation: Can Video Improve Intermediate-Level French Language Students' Ability to Learn about a Foreign Culture?

This study examines the effects of video on cultural knowledge at the intermediate level. Fifty-one intermediate-level French students viewed 8 videos. A pretest/posttest design assessed long-term gains in cultural knowledge and in the learning of cultural practices and cultural products from exposure to a curriculum with a video component. Eight postvideo tests measured the students’ ability to retain information and to make inferences. A questionnaire assessed perceptions of cultural learning. Results indicated a significant gain in cultural knowledge with posttest scores significantly higher than pretest scores. On the short-answer and free-recall portions of the 8 postvideo tests, the students’ ability to make inferences or retain information did not improve significantly in either an advance organizer (AO) or a non-AO condition. For free recall, scores were significantly higher for mentions of cultural practices than for products. The students believed that they learned more cultural practices than products. The results support using video to enhance cultural knowledge.