Effectiveness of captioned videos for incidental vocabulary learning and retention: the role of working memory

Abstract

Working memory (WM) may be an essential component of incidental vocabulary learning and retention from captioned videos. However, how WM affects young learners' incidental vocabulary learning under different types of captions remains unclear. The present study employs a between-subject research design. The main purpose is to examine how two types of WM-phonological short-term memory and complex WM-impact vocabulary learning outcomes incidentally learned and retained from three types of captioning: (1) glossed captions (GCs), (2) full captions (FCs), and (3) keyword captions (KCs). A total of 125 young learners (M age = 12.17, SD = 1.06) watched four videos and completed two vocabulary tests administered as pretest, posttest, and delayed tests. After treatment, participants completed two WM tasks: (1) an operation span test for measuring complex WM, and (2) a nonword repetition test for measuring phonological short-term memory. The findings reveal that (1) captioning types, particularly GCs, led to the best outcome in incidental vocabulary learning and retention, and (2) phonological WM provided a more predictive effect on incidental vocabulary learning and retention than complex WM. Phonological and complex WM may have different predictive effects on incidental vocabulary learning and retention under different types of captioning. Relevant implications were discussed based on these results.

Comparing incidental learning of single words and collocations from different captioning conditions: The role of vocabulary knowledge and working memory

“…Teng (2022) investigated the impact of WM on incidental single word learning of young learners with limited VK levels from captioned videos of different types, finding that individual differences in phonological WM, measured through a nonword repetition task, positively predicted the learning of new words by young L2 learners in various captioning conditions. Surprisingly, the contribution of complex WM, assessed by the O‐span task, to incidental single word learning was not found to be statistically significant (see simarlar results in Teng 2023a). However, different results were detected in Teng (2023b).…”

“…Additionally, phonological WM has been shown to be associated with the learning of new words by novice learners, particularly in contexts where learners deliberately attempt to commit new words to memory (e.g., Cheung, 1996;Speciale et al, 2004). However, there have been only a limited number of studies examining the role of WM in incidental vocabulary learning conditions (Montero Perez, 2020;Teng, 2023a). For instance, Montero Perez (2020) investigated the relationship between WM and incidental single word learning of higher-intermediate learners from audiovisual content without captions, finding that complex WM, measured through the O-span task, played a significant role in the learning of single words from such materials, while the impact of phonological WM, assessed by backward and forward digit span tasks, was not evident.…”

“…It is closely related to language processing and comprehension, as it facilitates the temporary storage and manipulation of linguistic information. By including WM as a control variable, we can account for individual differences in WM capacity, which can influence vocabulary learning outcomes from captioned viewing (Teng, 2023a). The choice of VK and WM represents important cognitive and linguistic factors that can impact vocabulary learning.…”

Vocabulary learning in a foreign language: multimedia input, sentence-writing task, and their combination

“…Alongside rapid technological advances, learners who are learning English as a foreign language (EFL) now have more choices in using multimedia, a mixture of different media, such as text, video, audio, graphics and data, for vocabulary learning (Teng 2021). Multimedia, including multimedia glossing (Rassaei 2017;Ramezanali and Faez 2019), digital online reading (Teng 2018), and captioned videos (Teng 2019;Teng 2023), can help learners acquire both receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge.…”

Multimedia Enhanced Vocabulary Learning: The Role of Input Condition and Learner-Related Factors

“…) (James & Galbraith, 1985) and the level of sensitivity to nonverbal cues within the multimodal input (Gardner, 1999) are believed to vary significantly between individuals. In the case of vocabulary learning, studies have found that both learners' pre-existing levels of vocabulary knowledge and complex working memory capacity (Montero-Perez, 2020) or phonological short-term memory capacity (Teng, 2023a) significantly correlated with learning gains from multimodal input. The evidence, however, has been mainly gathered in relation to incidental learning.…”