Integration of Content Instruction and Language Instruction in the Movie English Classroom: On the Basis of Embodiment, Image Schemas, and Metaphors

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to suggest a method to integrate both content instruction and language instruction when a teacher uses a movie in an EFL classroom. In order to do this, three concepts were used: embodiment, image schemas, and metaphors. The film Love, Rosie (Ditter, 2014) was chosen, with 4 scenes from the movie analyzed in terms of embodiment, image schemas, and metaphors. The results indicate that there are possibilities to integrate the two instructions harmoniously. First, each utterance consists of concrete concepts and abstract ones. In particular, abstract concepts are explained by way of concrete ones, which naturally allows learners to understand a movie script easily. Second, image schemas can be an appropriate tool to see through the degree of intensity of characters' emotional states. This phenomenon makes learners understand relationships among characters and consequently enjoy the whole movie story. Third, learners can have a special experience with language learning. Embodiment, image schemas, and metaphors allow learners to see the language based on meaning, leading to enjoyment. Fourth, analysis of utterances in this paper based on the three concepts show how the salience of language pieces can be enhanced. In conclusion, a teacher can realize how to deal with content and language in the Movie English classroom with this approach.