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The use of Media in teaching Greek as a first and as a second Language: (Master thesis)

Πατσάρας, Ιωάννης/ Patsaras, Ioannis

The objectives of this research are to record and investigate the views and attitudes of Primary School teachers on Media Literacy in primary school. In particular, the study aims at exploring the views of Primary School teachers regarding: (1) the media text types which they consider as eligible for a multilingual and multicultural public-school classroom, (2) the media literacy competencies which they consider most significant in the language-learning process, (3) the benefits and the value of integrating Media into the learning process, and (4) the correlation between media literacy and an intercultural approach towards of the language learning process. It is structured in two main parts, the theoretical and the empirical one. In the theoretical part, an attempt is being made to clarify significant terms related to the research topic, such as “media literacy”, “communicative approach”, “text type” and “intercultural education”. In the ensuing empirical part, the research tool, i.e. an online questionnaire survey, and the methodology followed is presented. The sample that participated in the research consists of 203 Primary School teachers of Thrace, Northern Greece, 153 of whom are female and 50 male. According to the research data, analyzed by use of descriptive and inferential statistics, Primary School teachers: (a) among the available media texts, prefer to use films, fairy tale/story videos and cartoons in the process of language teaching, (b) use media texts as a means of rendering their students socially active and critically thinking citizens, (c) use media texts to increase their students’ motivation in the language course, (d) consider media texts more effective for students whose native language (L1) is Greek, and (e) have a more positive attitude towards media literacy, as far as they have been trained on bilingualism and intercultural education issues. The results of the study show that the teachers of multilingual and multicultural Primary Schools appear reluctant to integrate texts from the entire media range and, more specifically, texts which require a more critical engagement. They also appear more reluctant to develop all the aspects of media literacy, namely access, analysis and evaluation, creation, concern and action. Therefore, as it becomes obvious from the participants’ answers, the teachers of multilingual and multicultural Primary Schools do not equally value all the stages/competencies required in the process of building the qualities of an “active citizen”, although they endorse the contribution of media texts to the development of an “active citizenship”. In addition, although media texts are authentic texts which can reinforce the “communicative” and “critical” aims of teaching for all students alike, the teachers of multilingual and multicultural Primary Schools tend to consider these texts more eligible for students whose native language is Greek. The above conclusions have led to the formulation of some teaching suggestions which take the importance of developing media literacy in multilingual and multicultural educational environments into account.