The use of immersive 360° videos for foreign language learning: a study on usage and efficacy among high-school students

ABSTRACT

The large-scale diffusion of tablets and smartphones in the last decades offered new opportunities to broaden educational strategies. In particular, the Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) emerged as a promising approach leveraging the widespread availability of portable devices. In this study we investigated the feasibility and efficacy of a self-administered MALL homework training based on immersive 360° videos, compared to a training based on not-immersive standard videos showing the same visual content and enriched by an auditory description of the environment. The knowledge of target words was assessed before and after the training. In addition, students’ attitudes toward the technology were assessed before the training. Results indicated that students with a more positive attitude toward technology watched the videos more than those with a less positive attitude. Furthermore, students who underwent the training with 360°videos learned more words than students belonging to the control group, even after controlling for the number of videos views.

KEYWORDS:

• Immersive 360° videos
• second language learning
• virtual reality
• embodied cognition
• mobile-assisted language learning
• acceptance

Acknowledgments

The Authors would like to thank Miss Marianna Guernieri for voicing the 360° videos.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The dataset of the experiment is available upon reasonable request addressed to Claudia Repetto ([email protected]).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Claudia Repetto

Claudia Repetto, PhD is Researcher in General Psychology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy. Her main research interests include the study of language and memory within an Embodied Cognition perspective. Furthermore, she is interested in investigating the role of new technologies in the study and empowerment of cognitive processes.

Anna Flavia Di Natale

Anna Flavia Di Natale is PhD student at the Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi di Milano- Bicocca, Italy. Her research mainly focuses on virtual reality and new technologies, with a particular interest in their use in education.

Daniela Villani

Daniela Villani, PhD is Associate Professor in General Psychology at the Faculty of Educational Science at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan. Her main research interests include the relationships between emotions and new technologies, the use of interactive simulations for the training of psychological skills, the analysis of the interaction with new technologies.

Stefano Triberti

Stefano Triberti, PhD is a post-doc researcher in Psychology. He works at Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology of the University of Milan, mainly on ergonomics/user experience of health technologies.

Serena Germagnoli

Serena Germagnoli is a psychologist and she collaborates with the Faculty of Psychology of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy. Her expertise concerns the evaluation and treatment of specific learning deficits.

Giuseppe Riva

Giuseppe Riva, PhD is Full Professor of General Psychology and Communication Psychology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy and Head Researcher of the Applied Technology for Neuro-Psychology Laboratory - ATN-P Lab., Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Verbania Italy. In the ATN-P Lab. He conducted several researches and published many papers about methods and assessment tools in psychology and about the use of Virtual Reality and Internet in medicine and in training.