Utilizing Social Media Platforms in Teaching and Learning English Language Perceptions of PTSB Students

Abstract

This paper aims to demonstrate students' perception about the use of social media in learning English. With the vast spread of various social media, it is utilized by educators and content creators to teach and share English lessons. The teachers able to maximize it’s usage in education approaches. To narrow down, this study identifies Politeknik Tuanku Sultanah Bahiyah (PTSB) students' perceptions on the usage of social media applications in English teaching involving a total of 100 Diploma students who are taking DUE50032 Communicative English 3  course. They are required to engage in social media-based activities conducted on the course's e-learning site for 10 weeks. Throughout the 10 weeks, they were instructed to complete several assignments, quizzes and tasks to be assessed. At the end of the 10th week, a questionnaire was given to the students to identify their perception of the activities that had been carried out. The findings of the study show that students think Wiki has helped them in improving their writing, while YouTube videos are widely used to improve speaking skills. Additionally, Facebook discussion groups are considered useful for learning grammar and vocabulary. Twitter is only used to receive information about the definition of words. A discussion on the strengths and weaknesses of social media in learning English language learning and suggestions for increasing the potential of such applications are also included. Educators are advised while endeavouring to promote knowledge sharing in terms of collaborative learning through social media, simultaneously, to raise students’ awareness of academic integrity and also provide proper training.