Using Facebook in EFL Writing Class: Its Effectiveness from Students’ Perspective
Abstract
Social media has now much been integrated as a learning platform in various educational settings, including those in Language Teaching and Learning (LTL). Increasing number of studies has also reported the effectiveness of social media to support LTL activities. This present study aimed to investigate whether Facebook, as the most popular social media in Indonesia, would be an effective learning tool for EFL university students taking advanced writing class. This study employed a case study qualitative approach. The data were collected through questionnaire, interview, and observation of students’ discussion on Facebook and then analyzed using frequency count and thematic content analysis. The findings reveal that most students find the use of Facebook in writing class effective in boosting their confidence in using English as communicative means, encouraging their participation in class discussion, and improving their English language proficiency, particularly the writing skill. This study suggests that Facebook can be used as a supplementary learning tool in higher education classrooms as it brings positive effect not only on students’ learning habits but also competence.
Keywords: CALL, digital immigrant, digital native, Facebook, MALL, social media, SNS, TILL
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