Bridging the Gap: Integrating Short-Form Video Content (TikTok/Instagram) into the Uzbek EFL Speaking Classroom

Abstract

Traditional English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms in Uzbekistan frequently struggle with the challenge of transitioning students from passive grammar comprehension to active, fluent oral production. Meanwhile, outside the classroom, Uzbek youth are deeply immersed in consuming and creating short-form video content on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram Reels. Rather than treating these digital spaces as mere distractions, this article proposes a pedagogical framework for intentionally integrating short-form video content into the Uzbek higher education EFL speaking curriculum. Grounded in Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis and Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory, this paper outlines how the structural and psychological properties of micro-video creation can be harnessed to increase student motivation, decrease foreign language speaking anxiety, and cultivate culturally contextualized, fluent oral communication among Uzbek learners.