Sitcoms as a tool for cultural learning in the efl classroom

Píxel-BIT Revista de Medios y Educación - 2019 - nº 56 ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966 ________________ Con la llegada de la globalización y la consolidación definitiva del inglés como lengua internacional, el lugar de la cultura en el proceso de aprendizaje de esta lengua también ha cambiado. De este modo, focalizar la enseñanza en hechos culturales de países anglófonos resulta insuficiente en el mundo en el que vivimos, donde la amplia mayoría de las interacciones en inglés se producen entre hablantes no nativos. Desde un punto de vista culturalmente descentralizado (Holliday, 2009), el desarrollo de la competencia intercultural y la conciencia crítica deben constituir una parte esencial del aprendizaje de idiomas (Byram, 2014). Sin embargo, la mayoría de los libros de texto utilizados no promueven este aprendizaje (inter)cultural. En este trabajo, proponemos que la televisión sea un recurso pedagógico complementario para lograr este objetivo. Nos hemos centrado en “sitcoms” (comedias de situación) para elaborar una lista de episodios que pueden ser utilizados en el entorno de la Educación Superior para desarrollar esta competencia cultural. . With the emergence of globalization and English becoming a lingua franca for international communication, the place for culture in the language learning process has shifted as well. Thus, concentrating on cultural facts about English-speaking countries is insufficient for today’s world, where the vast majority of interactions happen among non-native speakers. From a culturally decentered standpoint (Holliday, 2009), intercultural competence and critical awareness constitute an essential part of language learning (Byram, 2014). However, most ELT textbooks do not promote complete (inter) cultural learning. In this article, we argue that TV can be an additional pedagogical tool to help achieve this goal. We focus on sitcoms compiling a list of episodes that can be used at tertiary level to develop cultural competence.. Aprendizaje cultural, competencia intercultural, cultura visible, cultura invisible, televisión Recibido: 22-01-2019 | Revisado: 13-05-2019 | Aceptado: 07-06-2019| Publicado: 1-09-2019 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12795/pixelbit.2019.i56.02 | Páginas: 33-50 Sitcoms as a tool for cultural learning in the efl classroom Los sitcoms como herramienta para el aprendizaje cultural en el aula de inglés RESUMEN ABSTRACT PALABRAS CLAVE Dra. Ángela Larrea-Espinar [email protected] Dr. Antonio Raigón-Rodríguez [email protected] Universidad de Córdoba. Facultad de Filosofía y Letras. Departamento de Filologías Inglesa y Alemana. Plaza Cardenal Salazar 3. 14071, Córdoba (España). KEYWORDS Cultural learning, Intercultural competence, Big ‘c’, small ‘c’, television __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 34 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ 1.- Introduction Our world has been reshaped by globalization and technological advances. Baker (2012) explains that in the context of English language teaching (ELT), English functions as an international language or lingua franca (Jenkins, 2007; Seidlhofer, 2005). The lingua franca idea shows a culturally decentered perspective of English “built from the observation of communication between ‘non-native speakers’ in international settings” (Holliday, 2009, 152). Therefore, the goal of ELT has evolved as well, changing from a linguistic focus in the 1960’s to a communicative one in the 1970’s to finally adopt a focus on intercultural communicative competence. This is the ability “to ensure a shared understanding by people of different social identities, and [the] ability to interact with people as complex human beings with multiple identities and their own individuality” (Byram, Gribkova, & Starkey, 2002, 10). To develop this ability, cultural learning should be approached in the classroom. As TV shows are cultural products, we will discuss the value of sitcoms as an additional pedagogical resource to achieve cultural learning. In the second part of the article, we will offer some examples of episodes that can be used to enhance cultural learning. Following our own cultural content checklist, we will also suggest some of the cultural topics that the episodes show. 2.- Cultural dimension in language teaching The concept of culture belongs to different fields of study and, as such, it is a very complex term to define. The most recurrent definition connects it to the idea of nationality, with the implicit danger of overgeneralization typically associated with national cultures (Holliday, 1999). However, with the advent of globalization we have seen how national categories are increasingly blurred. Since the main interest of this paper is a pedagogical approach to culture in EFL (English as a Foreign Language), we adhere to Lustig and Koester’s definition of culture: “a learned set of shared interpretations about beliefs, values and norms which affect the behaviors of a relatively large group of people” (1999, 30). Weninger and Kiss (2015, 50) clarify the relationship between language and culture: “What most scholars agree on is that language and culture cannot be separated from one another even if they disagree 35 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. on how to determine what culture needs to be studied […] or whether culture(s) can be monopolized or owned by any particular groups in a globalized world.” These authors also state that cultural perception in foreign language teaching has evolved, identifying three recognizable periods (Weninger & Kiss, 2013). From 1950 to 1990, culture was seen as an item to be studied; as such, it is presented as plain facts about national cultures. In the 1990s, the emergence of the communicative approach in language teaching was a turning point for the conception of culture. The notion of cultural awareness is developed. Culture is not just visible facts (Big ‘C’ culture) but also beliefs, values, attitudes and assumptions, that is, the internal culture (Hall, 1976) or culture with small ‘c’ (Tomalin & Stemplesky, 1993). Besides, the idea of teaching a target language culture is called into question since English is a global language (Prodromou, 1992). In relation to methodology, the advent of the intercultural approach (Byram, 1997) was a decisive milestone for ELT. The ultimate goal was to achieve intercultural competence, i.e., successful and effective communication with people from different cultures in different cultural settings. Thus, linguistic, sociolinguistic and discourse competence are not enough to promote intercultural communicative competence (ICC). ICC requires attitudes, knowledge, skills, learning to learn abilities and critical awareness. There have been further attempts at trying to conceptualize intercultural competence (for example, Chen, 2003; Gudykunst, 2004). As such, a definite model has not been put forward yet. However, most scholars agree that it should include three dimensions: affective, cognitive and behavioral (Chao, 2013). Finally, with the turn of the century, culture is viewed as an intricate and transnational concept. The focus should be put on learners becoming politically conscious citizens (Byram, 2011). This trend echoes the development of twenty-first-century skills that is being promoted in education (Trilling & Fadel, 2009). 3.- TV for language learning The development of ICT, Internet, and digital devices has had a profound impact in our society. In this context, TV has undergone considerable changes, gaining cultural and social relevance (GámizSánchez & Romero-López, 2012). Cascajosa-Virino (2016) explains that this has been the result of a combination of socioeconomic, technological and aesthetic causes. Then, the digitalization of TV and the advent of TV platforms have not only radically changed traditional TV broadcast but also brought __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 36 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ together a new kind of TV shows that are closer than ever to higher art forms (Muñoz-Fernández, 2016). According to Bednarek (2015, 432), TV shows are “popular cultural products”; they are consumed by large audiences that engage with their characters and stories (Gregori-Signes, 2017). As such, TV shows have attracted unparalleled attention, being the focus of ongoing academic research. Many of the studies adopt linguistic (Al-Surmi, 2012; Bednarek, 2015; Gregori-Signes, 2007; Quaglio, 2009), media (Schneeweis & Foss, 2017; Vázquez, 2016) or cultural perspectives (De Jongste, 2017; González-Alafita, Dávalos, & Gutiérrez, 2012). Even more, some works rely on a combination of disciplines: for example, Götz-Votteler and Krug (2011) adopt a linguistic and cultural standpoint. In the field of teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL), TV shows have been widely used with pedagogical aims as we will see below. 3.1. Sitcoms Situation comedies or sitcoms became a TV genre after an agitated transition from the radio (Marc, 2005) as the US networks wanted to use “popular comedic vaudeville names in regular formats and time slots” (Mills, 2004, 63). The success of I love Lucy (CBS, 1951-1957) was the starting point for the prevalence of sitcoms. Since the very beginning, the sitcom began to be standardized, and in the 1950s, the familiar conventions of this new cultural form were arranged. The traditional sitcom presents these features: Table 1. Sitcom features PRODUCTION 22’ running time; filmed in front of a live (or simulated) studio audience; single stage and several fixed sets; laugh track; multi-camera set up NARRATIVE STRUCTURE a main plot and up to three other sub-plots; episode structured in two parts with cliffhanger before the commercial break; episodic; single problem-resolution CONTENT traditional; everyday situations; stereotypical characters with conflicting personalities HUMOUR classic (misunderstandings, surprise, slapstick, parody, etc.); running gags; catchphrases; visual gags 37 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. Thus, their narrative structure, content and standard production remained unaltered until Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998). Seinfeld carves the path to a new way of telling stories “through its refusal to conform to episodic norms of closure, resolution, and distinct story lines” (Mittell, 2006, 34). Thus, the turn of the century brings a revision of the traditional sitcom. With the appearance of cable TV and the new “reality TV”, there has been a development. Thus, Mills (2004) coined the term “comedy verité” in reference to the new hybrid of sitcom and docu-soap like The Office (BBC, 2001-2003). The new sitcom breaks with many previous conventions (Bonaut-Iriarte & Grandío-Pérez, 2009): • Deviates from the traditional narrative form: longer episodes from 22’ to 30’; disappearance of the laughter track; more varied and progressive content; inclusion of other genres and forms). • Changes in the production: the single setting and multi-camera set up are abandoned; closer to documentary or cinema production. • Changes in the construction of humor: classic jokes and catchphrases are left behind; humor is more subjective; importance of irony and subtext. 3.2. Use of sitcoms in EFL: a pedagogic point of view Video or audiovisual material has been used in English Language Teaching (ELT) for more than 50 years. It brings real life closer and helps contextualize the learning process (Sherman, 2003). There are two main uses of video: instructional, especially created for teaching, and authentic video material, such as films or TV shows. This study focuses on the use of authentic material, i.e., material which is produced for and by native speakers without a primary educational aim (Abreus-González & Haro-Calero, 2019, 25). This type of material exposes learners to authentic dialogue and real-life interactions. In this way, TV shows present language “with much wider linguistic, paralinguistic and paragrammatic levels. […] The language is ungraded and un-simplified and is spoken at a normal pace and in typical accents” (Yang & Fleming, 2013, 299). As for the choice of sitcoms over other types of TV shows, they have been favoured in our proposal for its short-running time and the closed nature of episodes, which allows the teacher to work with single episodes without spending much time providing context to students. There is substantial research on the use of TV shows and sitcoms in ELT, although most studies are concerned mainly with the improvement of English proficiency. Thus, the use of TV shows is not only __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 38 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ associated with incidental vocabulary learning (Webb, 2010; D’Ydewalle & Van de Poel, 1999) but can also help with listening practice, the development of listening strategies, the improvement of fluency and the acquisition of pragmatic language among others (Al-Surmi, 2012; Flowerdew & Miller, 2005; Washburn, 2001). Bada and Okan (2000) explain that the motivation to learn increases with the use of television whereas Csizér and Dörnyei (2005) identify the motivational element in cultural products transmitted by the media. In addition, many studies look into the aid of subtitles or captioning when using TV as a pedagogical tool. Most of them seem to suggest that skills and linguistic competences are further boosted by the use of subtitles (Chiu, Hsieh, Lee, Chang, & Wang, 2012; D’Ydewalle & Van de Poel, 1999; Kuppens, 2010; Ghia, 2012; Vanderplank, 2010). Nevertheless, we should not forget that culture is essential to language learning: “Culture in language learning is not an expendable fifth skill, tacked on, so to speak, to the teaching of speaking, listening, reading and writing” (Kramsch, 1993, 1). Then, “EFL learners […] should be guided to develop cultural and linguistic awareness” (Chao, 2013, 248). In addition, TV series display the cultural values of a society (González-Alafita, Dávalos, & Gutiérrez, 2012). As such, TV shows and sitcoms are a window to cultural information and offer a natural context so that students are exposed to various cultures; with the instructor’s guidance, they become “valuable exercises in interpreting cultural features and developing intercultural awareness” (Chao, 2013, 250). Therefore, from the pedagogical viewpoint, studies are also beginning to address the use of TV shows and sitcoms in relation to cultural learning. Yang and Fleming (2013) affirm that an interculturally competent speaker “is also competent at interpreting foreign cultural products (e.g., films and TV series), taking into account their cultural context” (297). Sitcoms “can be an effective platform for the language learners to be immersed in the culture or way of life of the target community” (Chang, 2015, 26). In that sense, Lee (2016) studied culture in The Big Bang Theory (CBS, 2007-), González-Alafita, Dávalos and Gutiérrez (2012) analyzed cultural messages in Modern Family (ABC, 2009-) in relation to Mexican values, Rucynski (2011) examined The Simpsons (Fox, 1989-) from a sociocultural teaching perspective; also, Larrea-Espinar and Raigón-Rodríguez (2012) discussed the American values portrayed in Friends (NBC, 1994-2004). Although sitcoms are a window to other cultures, mere exposure does not mean automatic learning. As such, the role of the teacher as advisor and educator is essential (Lee, 2017). The second part of this paper focuses on material selection, which is key to effective cultural learning. 39 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 4.- Suggested sitcom episodes for cultural learning The second part of this paper gathers a list of sitcom episodes that can be used in the EFL classroom to provide students with specific opportunities for cultural learning. To that aim, we have used a content checklist to identify cultural categories and themes in sitcoms (Lee, 2009; Larrea-Espinar, 2015). In that way, we have been able to determine and classify the type of cultural content and the topics in the sample episodes presented in Table 2. As we have previously mentioned, the closed nature of individual episodes makes sitcoms ideal for classroom projects. This list we have compiled does not intend to be exhaustive in nature, only a selection based on several criteria explained below. Firstly, although any sitcom will provide students with an opportunity for language competence development, audience-based selection is key to enhance effectiveness. Thus, we have in mind an audience of young-adults (high school or university students mostly), both in formal and informal settings. Secondly, when introducing a sitcom episode in the classroom for cultural learning, we have to ponder several constrictions such as interest, stereotype awareness, duration, topic or language complexity and specialization level. Thus, some sitcoms have been excluded from the selection because: • Even acknowledging the fictional nature of the product, some sitcoms show interactions that do not portrait realistic interactions, thus not providing a window to reality and not being effective from a cultural viewpoint. Some examples of these are The Office (UK and US), 30 Rock, Community, Scrubs, Flight of the Conchords and some animated series such as The Simpsons, Futurama or Family Guy. • Episodes presenting continuous coarse language might not be appropriate. We do not intent to censor material for university students but shows such as Fleabag and Insecure might exemplify sitcoms whose profanity surpasses actual interactions. For this purpose, network television series (those which are broadcasted “over the air”) pose a lesser problem than OTT (“over the top”) or cable shows, which contain a greater amount of swearing and sexual-related contents. Similarly, Silicon Valley has been omitted both for this and for its highly specific vocabulary, which general students might find overwhelming. __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 40 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ • Individual episodes must provide opportunities for cultural understanding of small ‘c’ categories. Cultural behaviors and products are easier to perceive and more accessible without a previous selection, but it is the understanding of the beliefs and worldviews shared by a particular group what will allow students to develop interpreting and discovering skills. Following this last criterion, we must emphasize that using sitcoms in the classroom gives us the advantage of focusing not only on culture-specific aspects (‘Big C’ and ‘small c’), but also, on culture-general features contributing to the actual development of knowledge, strategies and attitudes, as supported by Paige, Jorstad, Paulson, Klein and Colby (1999). Hence, we would be working on developing competences rather than only focusing on specific “cultures”. Table 2. Sitcom episodes selection NAME EPISODE CULTURAL TOPICS DISTRIBUTION AND NETWORKS RELEASE YEAR 1. Modern Family S01E05 “Coal digger” Big “C”: Ethnic groups, family, social customs, leisure/sports, food and nonverbal communication. Small “c”: Communication styles, nurture, confrontation, materialism and male-oriented values. Network (ABC) 20192. Master of None S02E03 “Religion” Big “C”: Ethnic groups, music, food, ceremonies, social customs and family. Small “c”: Individualism vs. Collectivism, confrontation and rules-regulation oriented OTT (Netflix) 20153. Friends S01E03 “The one with the thumb” Big “C”: Urban life, food and social customs. Small “c”: Communication styles, individualism, materialism and competition. Network (NBC) 1994-2004 41 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. NAME EPISODE CULTURAL TOPICS DISTRIBUTION AND NETWORKS RELEASE YEAR 4. Black-ish S02E16 “Hope” Big “C”: Ethnic groups, politics, music, mass media and family. Small “c”: Equality, fairness and nurture. Network (ABC) 20145. Seinfeld S09E15 “The Wizard” Big “C”: Ethnic groups, politics, currency/shopping, social customs and films. Small “c”: Competition, materialism and result-oriented. Network (NBC) 1989-1998 6. The Big Bang Theory S01E02 “The Big Bran Hypothesis” Big “C”: Customs, food, non-verbal communication, regional variations and housing. Small “c”: Up-bringing and maleoriented values. Network (CBS) 20077. That 70’s Show S01E05 “Eric’s Burger Job” Big “C”: History, music, education, dress-style and social customs. Small “c”: Materialism, self-improvement and communication styles. Network (FOX) 1998-2006 8. Episodes S01E01 Big “C”: Regional variations, mass media, ceremonies and non-verbal communication. Small “c”: Materialism, confrontation, communication styles and resultoriented. Network (BBC 2) Cable (Showtime) 2011- __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 48 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ la.28.1.07lar Larrea-Espinar, A. & Raigón-Rodríguez, A. (2012). Los medios de comunicación y la enseñanza de valores interculturales: Una aproximación didáctica a los valores reflejados en los sitcoms. Revista de Lenguas para Fines Específicos, 18, 135-156. Lee, Y. J. (2016). Is it necessary to categorize culture in an L2 learning context? With reference to the American TV sitcom ‘The big bang theory’. STEM Journal, 17(4), 59-76. https://doi.org/10.16875/ stem.2016.17.4.59 Lee, A. R. (2017). Cross-cultural competence: Examining EFL students’ views of U.S. holiday culture through film. STEM Journal, 18(3), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.16875/stem.2017.18.3.1 Lee, K. Y. (2009). Treating culture: What 11 high school EFL conversation textbooks in South Korea do. English Teaching: Practice and Critique, 8, 76-96. Lustig, M. W., Koester, J. (1999): Intercultural competence. Menlo Park, CA: Longman. Marc, D. (2005). Origins of the genre: In search of the radio sitcom. In M. M. Dalton & L. R. Linder (Eds.), The Sitcom Reader (pp. 15–24). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. Matielo, R., Oliveira, R. P. de, & Baretta, L. (2018). Subtitling, Working Memory, and L2 Learning: A Correlational Study. Revista Brasileira de Linguística Aplicada, 18(3), 665–696. https://doi. org/10.1590/1984-6398201812773 Mills, B. (2004). Comedy Vérité: Contemporary Sitcom Form. Screen, 45(2), 63-78. https://doi. org/10.1093/screen/45.1.63 Mittell, J. (2006). Narrative complexity in contemporary American television. The Velvet Light Trap, 58, 29-40. https://doi.org/10.1353/vlt.2006.0032 Muñoz Fernández, H. (2016). ¿Son arte las series de televisión? Index.comunicación: Revista científica en el ámbito de la Comunicación Aplicada, 6(2), 69-82. Paige, R., Jorstad, J., Paulson, L., Klein, F. & Colby, J. (1999). Culture learning in language education: A review of the literature. In R. Paige, D. Lange, & Y. Yershova (Eds.), Culture as the core: Integrating culture into the language curriculum (pp. 47-114). Minneapolis: The Center for Ad-vanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota. Peters, E., & Webb, S. (2018). Incidental vocabulary acquisition through viewing L2 television and factors that affect learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 551-577. https://doi. 49 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. org/10.1017/S0272263117000407 Prodromou, L. (1992). What culture? Whose culture? Cross-cultural factors in language learning. ELT Journal, 46(1), 39-50. Quaglio, P. (2009). Television Dialogue: the sitcom ‘Friends’ vs. natural conversation. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Rucynski, J. (2011). Using “The Simpsons” in EFL Classes. English Teaching Forum, 49(1), 8-17. Schneeweis, A. & Foss, K. A. (2017). Gypsies, tramps & thieves: Examining representations of Roma culture in 70 years of American television. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 94(4), 1146– 1171. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077699016682723 Seidlhofer, B. (2005). English as a lingua franca. ELT Journal, 59(4), 339–341. https://doi.org/10.1093/ elt/cci064 Sherman, J. (2003). Using Authentic Video in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Trilling, B. & Fadel, C. (2009). 21st century skills: Learning for life in our times. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons. Tomalin, B. & Stemplesky, S. (1993). Cultural Awareness: Resource Books for Teachers. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Vanderplank, R. (2010). Déjà vu? A decade of research on language laboratories, television and vid-eo in language learning. Language Teaching, 43(1), 1–37. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0261444809990267 Vanderplank, R. (2016). ‘Effects of’ and ‘effects with’ captions: How exactly does watching a TV programme with same-language subtitles make a difference to language learners? Language Teaching, 49(2), 235–250. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444813000207 Vázquez, I. (2016). The Pursuit of Excellence: Nerds and Geeks in Aaron Sorkin’s Works. Index.comunicación: Revista científica en el ámbito de la Comunicación Aplicada, 6(2), 41-51. Waedaoh, A., & Sinwongsuwat, K. (2018). Enhancing English Language Learners’ Conversation Abilities via CA-informed Sitcom Lessons. English Language Teaching, 11(12), 121-130. https://doi. org/10.5539/elt.v11n12p121 Washburn, G.N. (2001). Using situation comedies for pragmatic language teaching and learning. TESOL Journal, 10(4), 21-26. __________________ Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación. 2019 - ISSN: 1133-8482. e-ISSN: 2171-7966. 50 Píxel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación - Páginas: 33-50 _________________________________________________ Webb, S. (2010). A corpus driven study of the potential for vocabulary learning through watching movies. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics, 15, 497–519. https://doi.org/10.1075/ijcl.15.4.03web Weninger C. & Kiss, T. (2015). Analyzing culture in foreign/second language textbooks: methodological and conceptual issues. In X.L. Curdt-Christiansen & C. Weninger (Eds.), Language, Ideology and Education: The Politics of Textbooks in Language Education (pp. 50-66). London: Routledge. https:// doi.org/10.4324/9781315814223 Weninger, C. & Kiss, T. (2013). Culture in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks: a semi-otic approach. TESOL Quarterly, 47(4), 694-716. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.87 Yang, L. H. & Fleming, M. (2013). How Chinese college students make sense of foreign films and TV series: implications for the development of intercultural communicative competence in ELT. The Language Learning Journal, 41(3), 297-310. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2013.836347 Cómo citar este artículo: Larrea-Espinar, A. & Raigón-Rodríguez, A. (2019). Sitcoms as a tool for cultural learning in the EFL classroom. Pixel-Bit. Revista de Medios y Educación, 56, 33-50. https://doi.org/10.12795/pixelbit.2019.i56.02