Are subtitles a useful tool or a crutch?

[Lanchong]

If your reading ability (say, CEFR C1 level) is greater than your listening ability (CEFR B1), is it better to:

1) Read the subtitles and listen together, with the subtitles teaching you to comprehend what you're hearing

2) Cover up the subtitles and just listen as well as one can, even if there are gaps in comprehension. Subtitles will only make you listen lazily.

Or do a bit of both? What have people found works?

[renzhe]

You are talking about Chinese subtitles which closely follow what is being said, right?

Definitely a most useful tool for improving listening comprehension. Use them for material which is slightly beyond your listening level, but also combine this with pure listening of materials that are easier.

[Guest realmayo]

A Chinese friend told me she was so used to reading Chinese subtitles on TV she struggles sometimes when they're not there. Wonder if that can be common? Proper putonghua speaker, but mother language some non-putonghua Chinese. 

[renzhe]

An interesting question.

I don't think that it's the rule, in any case. My GF regularly watches movies while cooking, and I know many others who do the same.

[Guest realmayo]

If I remember right it was watching a news report that the issue came up. Might make a difference, with that kind of language. But, I've only heard this from one person and never asked anyone else.

[Silent]

 

is it better to:.......

Depends of course on your goals. If you want to improve listening ability, are willing to make it a real exercise (as opposed to entertainment with an educational edge) and have a reading ability well over your listening skills I propose:

Listen without the subtitles.

Loop every fragment till you understand everything and write down what you hear.

Compare what you wrote down with the subtitles.

 

You might ease the exercise by writing pinyin instead of  characters, that way it's more pure listening.

[Baron]

Subtitles are pretty useful for improving listening if you just scan them quickly rather than read them because the can help you tie a word you think you don't recognised to a written word you know well.

 

When there's a program you can understand enough to follow well just listening, I recommend you try without subtitles first, then with if possible to avoid being overly dependent on reading.

 

In any case it's probably useful to vary it to cover all bases.

[imron]

Are subtitles a useful tool or a crutch?

Yes.

[Baron]

Watch out Lanchong, you've incurred the distain of an admin    ^^

[imron]

Not disdain.  I was just pointing out that subtitles are both a useful tool and a crutch.  It's also important to be able to realise when they are being one or the other in your studies.  In other words option 3, do a bit of both.  Go without the subtitles when you want to practice listening, and go with the subtitles when you need them to help you understand material a bit beyond your level.

[Baron]

You could have said 'both'

[Guest realmayo]

Yes not sure "yes" makes sense to an x or y question unless the x and the y are perceived to be of no important difference, e.g. 'shall be get something to drink, some tea or coffee or something'; but here Imron is saying that there is an important difference between when something is being a useful tool and when it's being a crutch...

 

Now aside from the fact that crutches are useful tools ....

... I never bother cover up subtitles: for lots of material, I need them. I'd get far less out of certain TV series if there were no subtitles. But I share the concern of the OP. Therefore I make sure to include radio or listening comprehension exercises or other non-subtitled listening as well.

 

Also worth pointing out that you can improve your reading too! Sounds obvious but I think it's important. If you ever have to take an exam with a listening component, and you're frantically reading the multiple choice answers just as the audio for that question is starting, some of your speed will be thanks to reading subtitles when the characters on screen are talking at speed.

[imron]

Yes not sure "yes" makes sense to an x or y question unless the x and the y are perceived to be of no important difference

Or when the person answering is attempting humour.  Judging by the upvotes at least one person has a similar sense of humour to me

[Baron]

That makes it ok then. Cheap laughs > helpful responses.

[Nathan Mao]

Do I go for cheap laughs or helpful responses?

Yes.

[JustinJJ]

I wouldn't beat yourself up too much about glancing at the subtitles. I saw a movie in English last night that had subtitles (I live in a very Chinesey part of Sydney so movies in the cinema have subtitles) and I found myself gravitating to the subtitles just because they were there. 

[roddy]

It's definitely worth trying to watch something without the subtitles now and then - it can be surprising how much you use them without realising it, but also how much more you can understand after a period of just tuning in to the voices without the constant distraction. 

 

Sometimes when I was watching on computer I'd place another window (a Notepad window resized to the correct shape or something) over the subtitles. Then it was a very quick ALT+TAB to see them for a quick check, but I didn't have the constant distraction of automatically glancing down.

 

Only did that with actual 'listening practice' time though. Bit hard to stand vigilant on the ALT+TAB keys when you're just trying to relax.