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about the medium. In studies in which students were aware of their purpose and felt positive about the medium
(Borras, I. 1994, Garza, T., 1991, Koskinen, P. & Newman, S., 1991) the presence of subtitles had a positive
effect.
It seems clear that the theory of learning underlying the use of media will have an effect as to whether the
characteristics of the media are effectively exploited. Early teaching methods which conceptualized learning as
behavior tended to view media as a means to deliver stimuli rather than to engage cognitive processes. The
failure of the Audiolingual approach is probably mainly due to the ways the media were used, the most
common of which were to present repetition drills for the purpose of rote memorization. Using media in this
fashion is not likely to contribute to the subsumptive processes referred to by Ausubel. Studies mentioned here
(Beagles-Roos, J. & Gat, I. 1983, Gibbons, J., Anderson, D., Smith, R., Field, D.,& Fischer, C. 1986, Pezdek,
K. & Hartman, E. 1983, Pezdek, K. & Stevens, E. 1984, Hayes, D., Kelly, S., & Mandel, M. 1986) also
suggest that the medium audiolingualism often employed, audio tape, was among the least salient in engaging
the cognitive processes involved in meaningful language learning.
Studies review here also tend to support Kozma's contention that the symbol systems which characterize media
can have an effect on learning. Although the studies were more concerned with the media than the method of
instruction, the results tend to suggest that media can play a role in the teaching of the various abilities which
compose communicative competence. In accordance with the principles underlying CLT media should be used
to enhance meaningfulness and communication which in turn facilitate the growth of language competencies.
One of the most useful qualities of media for second language learning seems to be their potential in
supporting the meaningfulness principle outlined above. The mode of presentation of certain media appear to
make the language more meaningful to the learner, thus supporting the learning process.
As technological advances in computing increasingly integrate the various symbol systems utilized in
communication, knowledge of the effects of the media which employ these symbol systems becomes more
important to educators. Networked environments will soon provide access to high quality recorded and live
digital video and text. These advances are blurring the lines between multimedia and telecommunications.
While studies which investigated the effects of audio, audiovisual and captioned audiovisual presentaions
support the idea that media can have differential effects on learning, researchers are only just beginning to
investigate the possible effects of combining networked computing environments and access to multi-modal
presentaions on learning. Some potential advantages to networked learning environments for language
learning are their access to authentic environments, capacity for engaging motivation, and support for
collaborative activities. Of these, access to authentic environments and the enhanced potential for interaction
they allow may prove most useful if we consider the principals which underly second language acquisition.
Note: This is a much edited version of a 30 page review. Interested parties may
recieve a copy of the full
paper by sending e-mail to the author at: PS7669@CNSVAX.ALBANY.EDU