Developing a Self-Discovery Learning Strategy Through Watching TV

Abstract

Scientific studies of human languages as a discipline has enjoyed a long history in the field of liberal arts. Though its subject topics are related with the human society and human behaviors, such direct applicability to daily life may become opaque even to linguistic majors, due to some abstract terminology and concepts or theories. In this project, we propose a non-traditional way to the teaching and learning of language-related topics and issues, i.e. to watch TV dramas to learn the scientific ways that human languages should be studied. Our students belong to the new generation of learners who are more drawn to visual stimuli and used to the instant access to and fast updating of information (Prensky 2010)1. The proposed approach is not only to accommodating to this current habit of learning, but also aims to eventually help restore a balance between that and the traditional learning mode, reading books, by cultivating a self-discovery learning strategy using multimedia stimuli.