The prime objective of this research was to
investigate whether Facebook helped undergraduate students of Universiti Sains
Islam Malaysia (USIM) improve their English language proficiency, critical
thinking, comprehension skills, and motivation. A triangulation method
(quantitative, qualitative, and descriptive) was employed in the investigation.
A total of 900 undergraduate students participated. The 900 participants were
first year students from USIM. The instruments used in this research were
questionnaires, interviews, and observations. Results from a pre-test and a
post-test showed that students who used Facebook i.e. the control group outperformed (88.8% passed) the students who
were not exposed to Facebook (60% passed) in all the three categories. The
findings indicated that Facebook indeed helped students to improve their English
proficiency, besides learning new words and terminologies. This research offers
guidelines to future researchers on the methodology of learning English
language and helps them design an effective interactive multimedia learning
environment in their classroom. The findings of this research would also contribute
to the expansion of the paradigm of Constructivism. The findings of this
empirical research could be prototyped for learning other languages in the
classroom.
Cite this paper
Faryadi, Q. (2017). Effectiveness of Facebook in English Language Learning: A Case Study. Open Access Library Journal, 4, e4017. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1104017.
McGlonn-Nilson, K. (2005) Looking Outward: Exploring the Intersections of Sociocultural Theory and Gifted Education. The Journal of Secondary Gifted Education, 17, 48-55. https://doi.org/10.4219/jsge-2005-391
Faryadi, Q. and Zainab, H. (2008) Determining a Theoretical and an Empirical Based Interactive Multimedia Arabic Language Courseware to Teach Arabic as a Foreign Language. Proceedings of Knowledge Management International Conference, Langkawi, Malaysia.
Bishop, C.F., Caston, M.I. and King, C.A. (2014) Learner-Centered Environments: Creating Effective Strategies Based on Student Attitudes and Faculty Reflection. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 14, 46-63. https://doi.org/10.14434/josotl.v14i3.5065
Chuang, I. (2004) Comparative Assessment of Constructivist and Traditionalist Approaches to Establishing Mathematical Connections in Learning Multiplication. Education, 125, 271.
Qais, F., Zainab, A. and Hamidah, M. (2007) Welcome Constructivism, Bye, Bye Every Ism! The 2nd International Conference on Science and Mathematics Education (CosMEd), Penang.
Long, H.Y. (2017) Validity in Mixed Methods Research in Education: The Application of Habermas’ Critical Theory. International Journal of Research & Method in Education, 40, 201-213. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743727X.2015.1088518
Sharp, J.L., Mobley, C., Hammond, C., Withington, C., Drew, S., Stringfield, S. and Stipanovic, N. (2012) A Mixed Methods Sampling Methodology for a Multisite Case Study. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 6, 34-54. https://doi.org/10.1177/1558689811417133
Yeung, P.-S., Ho, C.S., Chan, D.W., Chung, K.K. and Wong, Y. (2013) A Model of Reading Comprehension in Chinese Elementary School Children, Learning and Individual Differences, 25, 55-66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2013.03.004
Ebrahim, A. (2012) The Effect of Cooperative Learning Strategies on Elementary Students’ Science Achievement and Social Skills in Kuwait. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 10, 293-314. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-011-9293-0
Chen, H. and Chen, J. (2016) Exploring Reading Comprehension Skill Relationships through the G-DINA Model. Educational Psychology, 36, 1049-1064. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2015.1076764
Chue, K.L. and Nie, Y. (2016) International Students’ Motivation and Learning Approach: A Comparison with Local Students. Journal of International Students, 6, 678-699.
Vibulphol, J. (2016) Students’ Motivation and Learning and Teachers’ Motivational Strategies in English Classrooms in Thailand. English Language Teaching, 9, 64-75. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v9n4p64
Chapman, D. and Wang, S. (2015) Multimedia Instructional Tools’ Impact on Student Motivation and Learning Strategies in Computer Applications Courses. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 26, 129-145.
Nenthien, S. and Loima, J. (2016) Teachers’ Motivating Methods to Support Thai Ninth Grade Students’ Levels of Motivation and Learning in Mathematics Classrooms. Journal of Education and Learning, 5, 250-257. https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v5n2p250
Cavus, N. and Ibrahim, D. (2017) Learning English Using Children’s Stories in Mobile Devices. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48, 625-641. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12427
Kabeel, A.R. and Mosa Eisa, S. Abd El-M. (2016) The Correlation of Critical Thinking Disposition and Approaches to Learning among Baccalaureate Nursing Students. Journal of Education and Practice, 7, 91-103.
Dolean, D.D. (2015) How Early Can We Efficiently Start Teaching a Foreign Language? European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 23, 706-719. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2015.1104047
Poon, A.Y.K. and Lau, C.M.Y. (2016) Fine-Tuning Medium-of-Instruction Policy in Hong Kong: Acquisition of Language and Content-Based Subject Knowledge. Journal of Pan-Pacific Association of Applied Linguistics, 20, 135-155.