The use of social media platforms in the EFL classroom as motivational and digital tools: a survey-based study

Abstract

[eng] This paper sought to gauge the implementation of social media platforms as educational tools in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom. Technological resources both outside and inside the classroom have been progressively integrated, complementing and replacing traditional methods. Specifically, active learning methodologies have proved to be beneficial for students. In contrast to rote learning—i.e. memorising—when students become active participants in the process of acquisition of knowledge and language, it is easier to achieve meaningful learning situations. Therefore, social media platforms connect students’ daily life to a world of unlimited information to communicate. In order to determine the attitudes towards the use of social media in the EFL classroom, this study addressed three groups of participants: university students, secondary education teachers, and a group of secondary education students who later took part in the implementation of a designed social-media-based didactic proposal.As a result, the findings indicate that a great part of the participants perceived the use of these tools as interactive resources that contribute to fostering students’ motivation and participation in class. Nevertheless, the study also proves that thereis a lack of willingness to implement social media platforms in Spain’s educational system. Finally, based on the data emerging from the study, a didactic proposal was designed. This proposal is a project consisting of four tasks divided into seven sessions in which students have to become TikTok or Instagram influencers of an English-speaking country through cooperative and collaborative learning. For the purpose of this study, it was implemented with a group of 3rdof ESO students in a secondary education school in Palma (Mallorca). To conclude, the results prove that this kind of project enhances students’ motivation.