There are many ways to learn a foreign language. But when there is no money, no time for expensive teachers and courses in foreign schools, and the desire to learn is present, people look for other ways. One of these is learning English from video materials: movies, cartoons and TV shows. Does such a non-standard way of attention and time, in principle, deserve?
The theoretical aspect of learning English from films and cartoons
Theoretically speaking, a person, devoting his free time only to watching a movie in a foreign language, may well reach an average level of language proficiency. Of course, this kind of "study" does not mean a complete ignorance of such subjects as a notebook and a pen - there is always a need to write down unfamiliar words and expressions.
It is also worth noting that there are several stages of language learning based on video materials:
1) The easiest is the audio track in the native language, and the subtitles in English. During this period, the basic vocabulary begins to form, the basics of syntax are mastered.
2) Intermediate stage - English audio track and English subtitles. At this stage, not only vocabulary is consolidated, but also pronunciation.
3) Lack of subtitles in the English audio track. This stage can be called the final one. However, if a student cannot make out more than 15% of the text spoken in the video material, then he should think about whether he has moved to this stage early.
A distinctive feature of learning a language with the help of video can be called the fact that words are absorbed and memorized much faster than with simple rewriting from a dictionary - the graphic aspect helps to create an association that will pop up in the mind every time you need to remember a particular word or expression …
The practical aspect of learning English through watching movies and TV shows
If you think about whether you can actually learn English just by watching cartoons or movies, then many questions arise about the "quality" of such learning.
The first, and most basic, is the question of how the grammar of the target language should be assimilated. Of course, there are examples of people who were able to absorb the grammatical base of the language only while watching TV series, but these people are rare exceptions. And in most cases, such students had minimal knowledge of the structure of the language from school or the experience of learning another foreign language, so for them understanding the syntax and grammar was an easy matter.
The second important aspect is that learning a foreign language involves practice. A language is learned in order to speak it, and not just to read books and watch cartoons. Therefore, in the absence of practice, there can be no question of "proficiency" in the language.
The third aspect is related to the fact that the vocabulary present in modern cartoons and films does not even half meet the requirements of the vocabulary of a modern educated person: cartoons and films will not replace newspapers and classical literature.
Yes, a person can learn English from TV shows and films, but this language proficiency will be incomplete and very mediocre - good knowledge of slang and everyday vocabulary will be combined with ignorance of complex expressions, terms and language means that are used in literature and journalism, when trying to "speak without thinking, "a student who has studied English from TV shows and movies will be stumped.
Therefore, we can conclude that learning a foreign language from video will allow you to master only everyday vocabulary and, possibly, achieve excellent “everyday” English, but still watching TV series and videos in a foreign language should be made one of the elements of a complete language learning program.
