ERIC Number: EJ1148278
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1916-4742
EISSN: N/A
A Study on the Rationale of Social Media Use by the Students of King Khalid University
Ahmed, Sayed Salahuddin; Hassan, Abdulkhaleq Q. A.
English Language Teaching, v10 n8 p43-50 2017
Is not it deplorable that in a country that tops in the entire world in using several social media sites does not utilize the same media in acquiring knowledge and skills? In Saudi Arabia, undergraduate students spend a significant amount of time on social media every day, but they are reluctant (or not motivated enough) to use the same media for educational purposes. This study was carried out on the undergraduate English majors of King Khalid University in Muhayil Asir in Saudi Arabia. In the English department, every student carries at least one smart phone with Internet connection, and they are found occupied with their phones on the campus, sometimes even in classrooms, but they are weak both in subject knowledge and skills of English language. The teachers-cum-researchers were baffled with students' competence because regular users of Internet and social media are supposed to be updated with the subject knowledge as well as confident in using English language. The researchers designed an empirical study to explore students' rationale of using the social media and their language preference. The study concludes with gloomy findings that students use the media mainly for entertainment and ineffective communication in English language. The worst fact is: they are not motivated enough to use the social media for educational purposes.
Descriptors: Social Media, College Students, Technology Uses in Education, Relevance (Education), Undergraduate Students, English (Second Language), Majors (Students), Preferences, Student Motivation, Student Attitudes, Mass Media Use, Language Skills, Mass Media Role, Questionnaires, Media Literacy, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Saudi Arabia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A