Statistical learning refers to the ability to detect regularities from sensory input, including speech. Statistical learning plays a key role in language acquisition, particularly for complex structures, such as nonadjacent dependencies, that are ubiquitous in natural language syntax. This study investigates nonadjacent dependency learning in…

This study examines the global expansion strategies that were initiated by the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), with a specific focus on the adaptations of "Sesame Street: in Japan and South Korea in the 1970s and 1980s. When CTW began its globalisation in the early 1970s, the international adaptation process of "Sesame Street"…

This study investigated second language (L2) comprehension across nine episodes of the same TV series and explored whether comprehension improves through regular classroom viewing. 121 intermediate and advanced EFL learners viewed the series under two conditions: captioned and uncaptioned. Significant differences in comprehension across episodes…

The use of movies in EFL classes has attracted the attention of researchers interested in this area. The use of sitcoms, as a type of audio-visual material, for language learning has been studied but not extensively. This study examined the effect of sitcoms on EFL learners' foreign language anxiety (FLA) and motivation for learning. A…

This paper investigates the effects of watching an entire season of a French series with the streaming service Netflix in an out-of-classroom context. University Dutch-speaking low- to high-intermediate learners of French were divided into two groups: a control group who only took the tests (N = 37) and a treatment group (N = 65). Learners in the…

This article discusses research into the role of audio-visual input for second language (L2) or foreign language learning. It also addresses questions related to the effectiveness of audio-visual input with different types of on-screen text such as subtitles (i.e., in learners' first language) and captions (i.e., subtitles in the same language as…

Research has shown that world language learners' listening comprehension skills develop at a slower pace than reading or speaking skills, possibly because a systematic approach to developing listening skills is often neglected in classroom contexts. To address this issue, the present study investigated whether listening skills can be improved…

The binge-watching phenomenon on college campuses in Taiwan inspired this study. The researcher often overhears her students chatting about which Mandarin TV series they have been binge-watching recently. Given this drama fever, which may provide an impetus for sustained reading of on-screen text, the researcher is concerned with English…

Information from television, the internet, and digital media surrounds us. Multimedia links us to other languages and cultures. Multimedia provides several benefits for foreign language learning. The goal of this research was to see how semi-contextualized television programs and subtitled TV shows help vocabulary retention during language…

This research was inspired by the phenomenon of binge-watching Korean television drama series (K-dramas) among Taiwanese university students. K-drama fever may provide an impetus for sustained English-subtitled K-dramas viewing, which may serve as an alternative to extensive reading of graded readers that English teachers often encourage their…

The article examines the influence of English movies, series and cartoons on students majoring in English at a university in Bangladesh. The objective of this study was to ascertain the potential impact of films, series, and cartoons on the acquisition of the English language and to determine the extent of their influence. This quantitative…

This review paper explores the role of individual differences in second language vocabulary learning, focusing on three key factors: out-of-class exposure (e.g., viewing TV, playing video games and listening to songs), strategic vocabulary learning, and motivation. Individual differences significantly impact vocabulary learning, making it crucial…

This study explores the literacy and social practices of a young Omani emergent bilingual child who is beginning to develop bilingualism and biliteracy in Arabic and English through social interactions. One case study of a four-year-old child and her family living temporarily for her father postgraduate studies in Canada is presented. Framed on…

The extent to which L2 television is viewed by foreign language learners will depend on the degree to which it is understood. The addition of captions has been shown to support comprehension (e.g., Birulés-Muntané & Soto-Faraco, 2016; Montero-Perez, Peters, & Desmet, 2014), especially when proficiency is low (e.g., Lavaur & Bairstow,…

The present study investigated the lexical demands of scripted and unscripted television programs. To that end, two corpora consisting of 286 episodes from 14 different programs, both scripted and unscripted, were analyzed. The results indicated that the 1,000 most frequent word families, plus proper nouns, marginal words, transparent compounds,…