Download (8Mb)
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of PhD at the University of Warwick Permanent WRAP URL: http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/85919 Copyright and reuse: This thesis is made available online and is protected by original copyright. Please scroll down to view the document itself. Please refer to the repository record for this item for information to help you to cite it. Our policy information is available from the repository home page. For more information, please contact the WRAP Team at: [email protected] warwick.ac.uk/lib-publications An informal Facebook group for English language interaction: A study of Malaysian university students’ perceptions, experiences and behaviours by Shaidatul Akma Adi Kasuma A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Arts Education CENTRE FOR EDUCATION STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK SEPTEMBER 2016 To my wonderful family The best thing to hold onto in life is each other Contents Abstract xii Acknowledgement xiv Chapter 1: Introduction 2 1.0 Introduction 2 1.1 Background of study: Social networking sites (SNSs) and English language learning (ELL) 2 1.2 A general gap in the literature: ELL in Malaysia 6 1.3 A brief explanation of English language development in Malaysia 9 1.4 The advent of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) in Malaysia 11 1.5 The challenges of ELL among Malaysian students 13 1.5.1 Socio-economic factor .................................................................................................. 13 1.5.2 Pronunciation and language variety......................................................................... 14 1.5.3 The influence of previous ELL experience and sociocultural issues ...................... 15 1.5.4 The lack of ICT skills and language proficiency ..................................................... 17 1.5.5 The need to situate ELL within specific sociocultural values .................................. 18 1.6 Research aims and research questions 19 1.7 Thesis structure overview 20 Chapter 2: Literature Review 23 2.0 Introduction 23 2.1 Social Networking Sites (SNSs) 23 2.1.1 Definition of SNSs ......................................................................................................... 26 2.1.2 Features of SNSs ........................................................................................................... 27 2.2 Social Networking Sites (SNSs) and pedagogy 29 2.3 How have SNSs been used in academic settings 30 2.3.1 Social purposes and practical academic activities ................................................ 30 2.3.2 Formal, non-formal, and informal learning ............................................................. 32 a. Informal learning in an online environment .......................................................... 35 b. Informal learning and social interactions in online environment: Previous studies ............................................................................................................. 36 c. Why unstructured forums are unlikely to generate sustained discussions: A discussion based on previous studies ............................................... 40 d. Formal and informal learning: Some issues that may arise .............................. 44 2.3.3 Students and teachers’ perceptions of social media and SNSs in academic settings ............................................................................................................................ 45 2.4 Defining collaborative learning (CL) 47 2.4.1 Collaborative Learning (CL) and Social Learning Theories .................................. 49 ii a) Connectivism Theory ................................................................................................. 50 2.4.2 SNS and collaborative learning: Benefits and weaknesses ................................. 51 2.5 Interactions afforded by Facebook in academic settings 55 2.5.1 Students-students’ interactions on Facebook ........................................................... 57 2.5.2 Students-teachers’ interactions on Facebook ........................................................... 58 2.6 Identity formation and a sense of community 61 2.7 Students’ motivation in academic learning on SNSs 64 2.7.1 Self-esteem, the need to belong, and entertainment ............................................ 65 2.7.2 Students’ personalities and how they affect the use of SNSs .............................. 67 2.8 Relationship between SNSs use and academic achievement 68 2.8.1 SNSs and negative-positive academic achievement ............................................. 69 a) SNSs and impaired academic performance ....................................................... 69 b) SNSs and positive academic achievement ........................................................... 70 2.8.2 Using SNSs to promote critical literacy and language skills ................................ 72 2.9 SNSs and second language learning 74 2.9.1 Evaluating ESL students’ participation on SNSs ...................................................... 76 2.9.2 SNSs and communicative competence ...................................................................... 77 Summary 78 2.10 The big idea: Language learning in a socially-mediated environment 78 2.10.1 The relationship between SNSs and second language learning: A critical evaluation of its effectiveness ................................................................... 80 2.11 Why was Facebook chosen as the platform? 86 2.11.1 Other social media that have been used for ELL ................................................... 90 2.12 Research Gaps 92 2.12.1 Research gap 1: The design of pedagogical activities on Facebook for interaction activity ........................................................................................................ 92 2.12.2 Research gap 2: Methods of data collection (and sampling technique) ........... 94 2.12.3 Research gap 3: Lack of studies on Facebook and English language learning (ELL) in Malaysian context ........................................... 97 2.13 My research 98 2.14 Research Questions 101 Chapter 3: Research Methodology 103 3.0 Introduction to Methodology 103 3.1 Definition of terms 104 3.2 Ontological and epistemological assumptions: The Constructivist-Interpretivist paradigm 105 3.3 Mixed Method Approach 107 3.3.1 Mixed method approach used in the study ........................................................... 111 iii 3.4 Methods of data collection 114 3.4.1 Questionnaire: Quantitative or Qualitative ........................................................... 115 3.5 First stage: Questionnaire 116 3.6 Second stage: Facebook group interaction activity 117 3.6.1 How was the thread structured? .............................................................................. 118 3.7 Interview 120 3.7.1 Semi-structured interview .......................................................................................... 121 3.7.2 The interview guide for the semi-structured protocol .......................................... 122 3.8 Contextual setting 124 3.8.1 The university ............................................................................................................... 124 3.8.2 Participants of the study ............................................................................................ 125 3.9 The researcher’s roles 127 a) The issue of positionality ...................................................................................... 127 b) My role in the study .............................................................................................. 128 c) What else could I have done or would like to do in the future in respect to guiding or triggering participation ......................................................................... 130 d) Future design: Considering the voice of a moderator .................................... 133 3.10 Sampling 136 3.10.1 Sampling: The selection of the LMT100 students as participants..................... 137 3.10.2 Sampling technique: How were the participants recruited? ............................... 138 3.11 Pilot study 140 3.11.1 Pilot study: Questionnaire ......................................................................................... 141 3.11.2 Pilot study: Facebook interaction activity .............................................................. 142 3.11.3 Pilot study: Semi-structured interview ..................................................................... 143 3.12 Data collection procedure 143 3.12.1 First Stage: Questionnaire ......................................................................................... 144 3.12.2 Second Stage: Facebook Interaction Activity ........................................................ 145 3.12.3 Third Stage: Semi-structured Interview ................................................................... 146 3.13 Data analysis 147 3.13.1 Quantitative analysis: Questionnaire ...................................................................... 148 3.13.2 Qualitative analysis: LMT100 group interaction and interview transcripts .... 148 3.14 Ethical Considerations 151 Chapter 4: Findings 154 4.0 Introduction to findings 154 4.1 Stage One: Questionnaire 154 4.2 Demographic information 154 4.3 The statistics of participants’ Facebook account 157 iv 4.4 English language competency 159 4.5 Activities on Facebook 160 4.5.1 Languages used on Facebook .................................................................................. 162 4.6 Students’ perceptions