German on Television in Houston: An Informal Report

Abstract

During the academic year 1954-55 one section each of the elementary French, Spanish and German courses at the University of Houston was taught via television as part of the effort of its Division of Foreign Languages to bring language instruction to a wider public in the metropolitan area. An outline of the content and structure of the German course has been presented in the A.A.T.G. pamphlet Outlines of Programs for the Teaching of German by Television (1955), but a few additional reflections on the German portion of the University's Language Hour may still be of interest to language teachers in general and to future TV teachers in particular. Three key questions arise again and again when discussing TV language courses: Should the be visible to the home audience? Can we teach conversation on TV? Do the students learn as much via TV as they would learn in the classroom ? I shall answer these questions in the light of the Houston situation. If a TV lesson is to be a demonstration, an entertaining show, then the presence of a group of students does not interfere between the teacher and his home audience. However, if the viewer is to be the student, if we want to bring a language class into his home, then the teacher must speak directly to the viewer. The camera becomes the student, and after very few lessons the reaction of studio personnel is a sufficient substitute for student reaction. The at home in front of his TV set then receives a private lesson, which would not be possible if other students were visible. Furthermore, the TV instructor is busy concentrating on his material, guiding his director, cameramen and stage-hands, and every additional person places an additional strain on him. To learn how to speak a language requires frequent repetition. It is therefore an illusion if we believe that we can teach much conversation on TV. We can impart common phrases, but not actual conversation. If we repeat too incessantly, as we might in a classroom drill session, the audience will quickly lose interest and