Captioned Video For Listening Comprehension: A Meta-analysis

This study reports on a meta-analysis of 13 retrieved experimental studies focusing on the effectiveness of captioned video for listening comprehension in the context of second language acquisition(SLA) or foreign language(FL), which were published on some widely cited journals in CALL both domestic and overseas. Effect sizes were synthetically analyzed using random effect model. Furthermore, subgroup analyses were separately conducted to investigate the relationships between captioning effectiveness and 10 categorical variables as potential moderators. And also, the relationships between captioning effectiveness and 4 continuous variables were investigated by Meta-regression.Results of meta-analysis showed a large overall effect of captioned video on listening comprehension which demonstrates that captioned video facilitates listening comprehension significantly in the context of SLA/FL. Proficiency level and age of participants were found to moderate the effect sizes of listening comprehension by the analyses of the potential moderators. Need to mention that, for beginners, captioned video hinders listening comprehension instead of promoting listening comprehension. However, for intermediate level learners, captioned video facilitates listening comprehension significantly. As for certain range of age, when age grows, the effect will be enhanced.Based on the discussion and analyses of the results, this study provides some advices not only for future study, but also for the application of captioned video in SLA/FL listening instruction.