cap that! is a national awareness campaign encouraging teachers to simply turn on captions in the classroom for learning and literacy for all students. Captions have proven literacy benefits for all students, particularly those who are Deaf or hearing impaired, English as an Additional Language/Dialect (EAL/D) students, struggling readers and children with learning disabilities.

They are available on many DVDs, online videos and programs used in schools – it’s just a matter of setting them to ON.

We promote the use of captions throughout the school year but have our main promotional week during National Literacy and Numeracy Week, when we ask teachers to use captions and see the difference they can make for all kids.

cap that! is an initiative of Media Access Australia and is proudly supported by its Patron, NSW Senator the Hon Ursula Stephens and our endorser organisations.

Our 2011 campaign featured a major competition which saw Australian educators, particularly our eight major prize winning entries, contribute inspiring and innovative ideas around using captions for all students.

Why cap that!?

By simply turning the captions on, teachers can boost literacy and learning for all students.

Over 10,000 children with a significant hearing loss attend mainstream schools. Captions are essential for Deaf and hearing impaired students, though our research shows that hearing impaired students will not ask for captions for fear of embarrassment. 

There are over 600,000 students from non-English speaking backgrounds in Australian schools. Captions can improve EAL/D students' listening and reading comprehension, vocabulary acquisition and word recognition. 

Captions help children to read by linking written words to sounds and images, which is particularly beneficial to struggling readers and students with learning disabilities.