Innovation in Language Learning

This study explores the use of vlogging as a collaborative activity in teaching EFL at two Czech secondary schools and describes classroom interaction between students during the vlogging tasks. The use of vlogging (video blogging) and video-making as a collaborative production task in language teaching has been researched in the past [1], however, the data on its impact on classroom interaction is still scarce and there exists no data on its use in Czech schools. Herein I present the results of my PhD research project at Masaryk University in Brno. Three groups of secondary school students were given tasks to collaboratively record their own videos during their EFL lessons, and the data were collected through classroom observation of student interaction, student interviews and questionnaires and teacher interviews. The results indicate that vlogging activities may be beneficial to student classroom interaction, engagement and social learning, help diversify classroom activities, cause students to experience positive emotions and teach them skills that go beyond traditional language learning. Further research is necessary to explore the impact of vlogging activities integrated into language learning on a larger scale.