Saudi Learner Perceptions and Attitudes towards the Use of Blogs in Teaching English Writing Course for EFL Majors at Qassim University

Blog is one of the recent innovations that help students in finding opportunities to practice English writing outside the classroom. More educators have applied this easy-to-use technology to classroom instruction and language learning (Campbell, 2003; Johnson, 2004). The objectives of the study are (1) to investigate students’ attitudes toward the use of blog in learning writing, and (2) to demonstrate the advantages and disadvantages of using blog in language learning. A total of 35 Saudi students majoring in English participated in this study. Data are collected from learners through questionnaires conducted at the end of the writing course (ENG143) during spring semester 2009. Responses indicate that students have a favorable perception towards weblog use in their writing classroom. Findings suggest that learner-perceived benefits of using blogs included increased interest and motivation to use English because of interaction with, and feedback from classmates and teachers.