English-Language Dramas and Soap Operas

¶ … English-language dramas and "soap operas" in Korean ESL classrooms

American and British soap operas have exploded in popularity in Korea in recent years, becoming nothing short of a social phenomenon. This is only one instance of the increasing pace of Westernization -- and specifically Americanism -- that has been taking place in South Korea for the latter half of the decade (Gabler 2003). The phenomenon is not purely social, however, but has also spilled over into the academic arena. Interest in English courses and materials that incorporate American and British films and television drama series, especially soap operas which are marked by extensive long-running plots and character development, has risen dramatically in the past decade, creating new opportunities to explore effective ESL strategies, specifically in the large and rapidly growing South Korean (Ryo 2009).

In the research study proposed here, questions concerning the efficacy of Korean ESL programs that utilize film and television series, particularly soap operas, will be addressed. More essential to the proposed study will be the identification and exploration of specific mechanisms by which ESL learning is facilitated in these programs, as well as the other learning -- cultural and otherwise -- that occurs during the students' experience in such courses. Understanding which, if any, specific linguistic operations and grammatical structures are most efficiently taught via the use of dramatic films and television series, as well as those that might be less efficiently communicated and more poorly understood, would be one of the central questions in the proposed research. The combination of these highly interrelated research questions will be used to develop hypotheses regarding more efficient instructional methods.

There is a fair amount of research concerning the spread of Western culture, much of it specifically focused on American culture. Feigenbaum (2003) examines the effects of digital media in spreading entertainment into areas previously insulated from the spread of American culture. By the turn of the millennia, many countries already had or began to institute culturally protectionist policies; in 2003 South Korea allowed only 20% of airtime to be devoted to foreign programming (Feignebaum 2003). The spread of digital media, which avoids such restriction via satellite and the Internet, has contributed to the rapid Americanization of South Korea by cheaply feeding the already-present craze for all things American, with consequences for the entire region (Kister 1993; Fairclough 2005). No research has yet made a significant attempt to establish a connection between this phenomenon and ESL instruction, however.

This is somewhat remarkable, as the use of television series -- and even soap operas specifically -- as effective tools for ESL instruction is very well documented (Cheng et al. 2004; Grant & Starks 2001). Studies have shown that students are more actively engaged in learning when it involves plot and characters with whom extended relationships are formed (Clovis 1997). Specific areas of language acquisition have been observed to be particularly affected by instruction via television, including word integration during text processing (Fender 2001). There is also a great deal of evidence that suggests phrase and clause grammar is grasped much more quickly through such instruction (Sjolie 2006). There has also been general commentary as to the broadening of perspective and learning styles that foreign television viewing provides as part of the learning experience, including specific examples of ICT utilization as an ESL aid in other South Asian cultures (Levine 1996; Melor 2007).

Another compelling area of previously conducted research concerns the specific advantages and opportunities afforded by using television and other forms of onscreen dramatic entertainment in the learning of a foreign language. The first and most obvious benefit of such instruction is the cultural exposure and understanding that is both useful in and of itself and that evidence shows is essential to effective learning of a foreign language, especially in college settings (Rowsell et al. 2007; Rubenstein 2006). The use of content-based instruction as an aid to both ESL learning and the absorption of other information has also been extensively studied; in elementary and college-level courses, learning both of the language and of the other subject being taught is made more efficient (Winter 2000; Kim 2008; Fildes 2008). The long-term effects of such learning suggest that language skills and vocabulary are also retained longer when learned in a context other than pure ESL instruction (Song 2006).

Both quantitative and qualitative data will be collected and analyzed as a part of this research study. Questionnaires with both closed and open response sections will be developed independently for students and ESL instructors, and administered electronically to those involved both in ESL courses that utilize television drama and soap operas as a method of instruction and those that do not. Quantitative data will be obtained both from reports of course performance and retention provided by learning institutions (after privacy issues have been met, of course), and through the use of a standardized test for English learning such as the TOEFL administered immediately and sometime after completion of a course, as a measure of both overall success in the program and retention of the learning accomplished in the course.