Moving online. Using Zoom and combined audiovisual translation tasks to teach foreign languages to children

This paper examines the reshaping of an audiovisual translation (AVT)-focused language course to make it suitable for children in an online context. Captioning and revoicing have shown to be powerful tools, given the potential of rich, contextualised audiovisual input to keep learners’ motivation high, promote well-being and facilitate foreign language acquisition. Nonetheless, the use of combined AVT modes has received scant attention, and the number of studies devoted to young people is very limited. Therefore, resources available are understandably lacking for teachers who continue to report difficulties in managing online contexts and designing effective learning experiences in the extended pandemic period. This is the first study appraising children’s perceptions of the use of both Zoom and AVT-based tasks in the learning of Italian online. It also proposes a theoretical framework and provides a practical example for moving an AVT-focused language course online. After two years from its initial blended implementation, the course entitled ‘Impariamo coi cartoni! Learning Italian by captioning and revoicing cartoons’ conducted as part of the Youth Academy programme at the University of Galway, Ireland, was rethought to be moved online. The 6-week course ran three times and involved 38 children, aged 9-12 years. Data have been collected from an end-module questionnaire, a final interview and in-class observations. Findings reveal the suitability of an AVT-focused language course online for children who show a positive attitude towards Zoom and both AVT modalities. They prefer revoicing as an online synchronous collaborative activity, which prevents isolation and fosters sociability. Captioning was perceived as the most difficult AVT task, although some had funexperimenting as remote independent learners. Results show that young people are able to use the Aegisub software autonomously but also need parental support at home. The benefits and challenges identified during the learning process were crucial for form ulating recommendations for teachers and call for further research on AVT in early educational contexts.