From Noticing to Reuse: Tracing Vocabulary Learning Trajectories in English-Subtitled EFL Classrooms

Abstract

The use of videos with English subtitles has become increasingly common in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. Previous studies have demonstrated that subtitles can support vocabulary learning by making lexical forms more perceptually available. However, most research has examined subtitle effects primarily through post-test outcomes rather than through the classroom processes by which learners encounter, interpret, and later reuse vocabulary during instruction. Consequently, less is known about how vocabulary engagement unfolds over time within subtitle-supported classroom instruction. This qualitative classroom-based study investigates vocabulary learning trajectories during English-subtitled video lessons in three Vietnamese upper-secondary EFL classrooms. Drawing on qualitative data from six classroom observations, learner interviews (n = 9), a teacher interview, and learner reflection forms (n = 60), the study traces how learners’ engagement with vocabulary developed across different stages of the lesson. Using thematic analysis, the study identifies recurring patterns in how learners noticed lexical items in subtitles, interpreted their meanings through classroom interaction, and later reused them in post-viewing activities. The findings reveal that vocabulary learning in subtitled video lessons unfolded through a trajectory consisting of three interconnected stages: noticing, interpretive engagement, and reuse. Subtitles increased the visibility of lexical forms, but noticing alone rarely led to sustained engagement. Instead, classroom dialogue and teacher prompts supported meaning construction, while post-viewing tasks created opportunities for learners to retrieve and apply vocabulary in communicative contexts. The study argues that vocabulary development in subtitle-supported classrooms emerges through a temporally distributed learning trajectory rather than through exposure alone. By tracing how vocabulary moves from initial noticing to later reuse, the study contributes to research on multimodal input and classroom-based vocabulary learning. It also highlights the importance of instructional sequencing in turning subtitle exposure into usable lexical knowledge.