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Integrating Social Networking Tools into ESL Writing Classroom: Strengths…
Integrating Social Networking Tools into ESL Writing Classroom:
Strengths and Weaknesses
Introduction :star:
A social networking service
(SNS)
online platform or medium used to establish social networks or social
relations among individuals who share interests and activities
(Wikipedia, 2010)
.
Facebook
and
Twitter
are widely used
worldwide
Orkut
is the most famous one.
MySpace
and
LinkedIn
being the most widely used in
North America
Friendster, RenRen
and
CY
are well known in
Asia
, and in
India
According to
Boyd and Ellison (2007),
SNSs
are web-based services that allow individuals to construct a public
or semi-public profile within a bounded system
Boyd and Ellison (2007) claimed that social networking sites not only allow individuals to meet strangers, but
also enable users to articulate and make visible their social networks.
Literature Review :star:
Integrating SNSs into
ESL Writing Classroom
:check:
According to
Taranto, Dalbon, and Gaetano
(2011), as the world becomes more and more connected through
advances in information and communication technologies
Constructing Virtual Classroom through
Facebook
:check:
Yang
(2008) stated that as students’ online diary, blog can be used to teach writing
Facebook
owns an application called Note which actually functions as a simpler Blog.
Yang
(2008) applauds Blog as a free publish place, teachers have the responsibility to offer students chances to publish their works and share with others.
According to
Russell
et al., (2003), teachers engaged with a technological tool are more likely to employ that
technological medium in their teaching and curricular planning
Munoz and Towner
(2009) mentioned that the teachers can ask the
students to create their own Facebook account and become friends with at least another member of the class.
Wikipedia as a Discussion Forum :check:
According to
Grandzol and Grandzol
(2010), in an advanced English class, Wikipedia can be utilized as a forum
to discuss different ideas and thoughts about books the students have read independently.
Advantages of Integrating SNSs into ESL Writing Classroom :check:
Most students now are digital natives, so SNSs engage them by presenting material in a way that is familiar
and comfortable for them.
Students can get enough input from SNSs so they will develop students’ writing skills. In SNSs like Blogs
and Facebook, teacher’s notes can be viewed with chronological order.
Students will have a larger audience when they use social networking. Working online fosters a sense of
global interaction.
Social networking services allow for multimedia interaction which brings together pictures, videos, links
and so on.
Methodology :star:
Research Design :check:
The design of this study is qualitative in nature. By using an online discussion board, a discussion was held
among the participants
The participants were fifteen third-year TESL students (e males and 12 females) in a state university in Malaysia who were randomly selected to discuss willingly about the research questions.
The TESL students were chosen
because they had a better understanding or experience of the SNSs.
Data Collection Procedure :check:
The researchers uploaded three open-ended questions on the online discussion board, and the participants were requested to answer the questions and interact with each other during the discussion period.
The data were coded, categorized and interpreted.
The comments were analyzed and reported by using
quotes from the participants’ opinions.
Results and Discussion :star:
Fifteen TESL students were involved in the online discussion. Three students were male and twelve were female.
Most of them have been studying English more than ten years. :check:
1.Students with lower language skills could interact with the other students with less stress.
2.Using
social networking services such as Facebook to teach ESL writing could trigger students’ creative thinking skills.
3.Most of the participants like using Facebook to create a virtual classroom to
cultivate students’ brainstorming ability as well as thinking skills.
Planning Activities to Integrate SNSs into ESL Writing :check:
There are plenty of activities that can be planned through social networking services but group brainstorming
seems to be the most efficient one.
One of the male participants referred to Facebook groups as a means that can be
integrated into teaching activities.
He stated that:
“Facebook groups” function has the element of interactivity. … [teachers] can use Facebook groups to brainstorm for ideas. They can just give their initial response, their first reaction to the topic that is to be discussed. They can share photos for visual stimulus and activating schemata.