The Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in English Language Teaching: The Case of South Korea
Abstract
:1. Introduction
- Are there differences in students’ perceived level of satisfaction in online EFL instruction, assessment, use of language, level of interaction between the students that used MIM during instruction and those who did not?
- For what purposes are MIM applications used in EFL classrooms?
2. Mobile Instant Messaging (MIM) in English Language Teaching
2.1. Recent Advances in MIM
2.2. MIM in English Language Classrooms
3. Method
3.1. Context and Participants
3.2. Data Collection
3.3. Data Analysis
4. Findings and Discussion
4.1. Use of MIM in Online EFL Instruction
4.2. Differences in Students’ Levels of Satisfaction Regarding Online EFL Instruction
4.3. The Use of MIM
4.4. Delivering Important Class Announcements
“My professor always posted important class announcements and shared class-related materials on a KaKaoTalk group chat room. I liked it a lot because it was so convenient and easy.”
“It is often hard to fully understand class announcements due to my limited English proficiency. MIM provided me a wonderful space to freely ask clarifying questions regarding important class announcements and assignments.”
4.5. Enhancing Student–Teacher Communication
“I really liked the use of MIM because I could get immediate feedback. Throughout the semester, my professor always gave thorough feedback to all the questions and comments using MIM.”
“My professor always assured students that it is totally okay to send him KakaoTalk messages anytime because he usually works till late. And I almost always got immediate responses from him. Great learning experience and very motivating”
4.6. Increasing Collaborative Language Learning
“Compared to the in-person group work, I much prefer to have a group work using KakaoTalk- less stressful, less anxious and more engaging.”
“I enjoyed having a group discussion with others using KakaoTalk. We had a very lively discussion using various emojis to support each other and avoid awkward silence.”
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Variable | N (%) or M (SD) | |
---|---|---|
Gender | Male | 415 (42%) |
Female | 564 (58%) | |
Age | 20.2 (1.9) | |
Prior online EFL instruction experience | Yes | 136 (14%) |
No | 843 (86%) |
Section | Item | Type |
---|---|---|
Online EFL learning experience | I was satisfied with the online EFL learning experience in 2020. | 5-point Likert scale |
I was satisfied with the overall use of language during online EFL instruction in 2020. | ||
I was satisfied with the online EFL assessment method that was used during online EFL instruction in 2020. | ||
What was the most frequently used method of communication during online EFL instruction in 2020? | Multiple-choice | |
Use of MIM in online EFL instruction | Was MIM used during online EFL instruction in 2020? | Yes/No |
Why was MIM used during online EFL instruction in 2020? (only for students in the MIM group) | Check all that apply | |
Communication during online EFL instruction | I was satisfied with the communication with my instructor during online EFL instruction in 2020. | 5-point Likert scale |
I was satisfied with the communication with other students during online EFL instruction in 2020. |
Use of MIM 1 | N | % |
---|---|---|
Class announcements | 449 | 84.7 |
Feedback from instructor | 167 | 31.5 |
Q&A during class | 68 | 12.8 |
Q&A before and after class | 296 | 55.8 |
Small group work (e.g., discussions, peer feedback, etc.) | 92 | 17.4 |
MIM Group | Non-MIM Group | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
M | SD | M | SD | t | |
Overall satisfaction with online ESL instruction | 4.02 | 0.90 | 3.97 | 0.90 | 0.80 |
Satisfaction with online ESL assessment | 3.78 | 1.01 | 3.78 | 0.99 | −0.10 |
Use of language | 4.03 | 0.93 | 3.92 | 0.97 | 1.74 |
Communication with instructor | 4.43 | 0.76 | 4.02 | 0.92 | 7.50 ** |
Communication with peers | 4.11 | 0.98 | 3.95 | 0.94 | 2.58 * |
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Chung, S.-J.; Choi, L.J. The Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in English Language Teaching: The Case of South Korea. Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 110. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020110
Chung S-J, Choi LJ. The Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in English Language Teaching: The Case of South Korea. Education Sciences. 2023; 13(2):110. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020110
Chicago/Turabian StyleChung, Sun-Joo, and Lee Jin Choi. 2023. "The Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in English Language Teaching: The Case of South Korea" Education Sciences 13, no. 2: 110. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020110
APA StyleChung, S. -J., & Choi, L. J. (2023). The Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in English Language Teaching: The Case of South Korea. Education Sciences, 13(2), 110. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020110