Social media's untapped potential in English language teaching and learning at a Vietnamese university

Lan Thi Thu Nguyen
FPT University, Vietnam

This study investigates the use of social media in English language teaching and learning in a Vietnamese university and the perceptions and attitudes of teachers and students towards its educational potential in this context. A mixed-methods design was employed, involving surveys administered to 16 teachers and 315 students, as well as qualitative data collected through interviews with five teachers and ten students. Results show that social media is used by both teachers and students, albeit mainly for non-study purposes. Facebook and Google Docs were the most popular platforms used for teaching and learning English, particularly for input skills such as vocabulary, grammar and reading. However, speaking and listening skills were less commonly taught using social media. Both teachers and students agreed that social media offers significant opportunities as an effective learning platform. To support the use of social media in language teaching and learning, the study recommends improving access to reliable technological resources, providing pedagogical training to teachers, and reflecting these reforms in university and departmental policies, funding and leadership.
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Author: Dr Lan Thi Thu Nguyen is an English language lecturer at FPT University, Hoa Lac High Tech Park, Hanoi, Vietnam. She obtained her PhD in education from Edith Cowan University, Australia. Her academic interests are second language acquisition, language teaching methodology, and information and communications technology (ICT) integration in English language teaching and learning. Email: lanntt2@fe.edu.vn Please cite as: Nguyen, L. T. T. (2023). Social media's untapped potential in English language teaching and learning at a Vietnamese university. Issues in Educational Research, 33(3), 1084-1105. http://www.iier.org.au/iier33/nguyen-l.pdf