The Influence of Social Media Networking Platforms on Promoting EFL Learners’ Lexical Competence Repertoire: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Language learning is significantly influenced by social media. The growth of social media has become an international phenomenon. People now spend the majority of their time on online services like social networking. These social media platforms give students access to effective learning tools including automated learning and visualisation techniques. Using social media to learn English is engaging and inspiring. This study focuses on how social media enables people to automatically or unintentionally learn English fluently. All second-year students at the AL-Maymona secondary schools for boys in Missan, Iraq, for the academic year 2017–2018 make up the population of this study. There are two courses at the college: A and B, each having 51 and 52 pupils, respectively. The experimental group, Class A, was selected at random. Facebook was the social media platform used to teach students at the EG. With regard to the CG, students were instructed utilising the methods suggested by the required textbook, English Grammar in Use. The researcher taught both the EG and the CG. The study results include that the EG has more achievement and better performance in English vocabulary than those who took the traditional method. It can be concluded that using social media platforms serves the educational and instructional settings for both teacher and learners. Those social media support and increase the performance of the study sample based on the current procedures. The researcher recommends using and adopting social media networking platforms in educational environments because they support and enhance the teaching and learning results and they are fruitful as teaching strategies in the educational process.

1. Introduction

For the most majority of people, it is fairly typical that the revolutionary advancements in technology, and the Internet in particular, make it feasible and easier to receive things in a better method than it was previously. Technology is crucial for first language teaching and learning, and it is used in all educational situations to help facilities and governments accomplish their key objectives. Social media opened the door to discovering efficient and successful strategies for improving student learning. Students have unrestricted control over and settings for their learning environments because to social media, for example Facebook and Twitter supply learners with many sources in writing or learning to communicate well. Social media Facebook creates a platform through which teacher and students can form pages, as it will be discussed in details later. EFL students can benefit from the rich information such websites provide for their customers or students. Besides, they provide authentic and reliable manners of learning a language vocabulary. Many applications of learning vocabulary have been proven to be very effective and influential.

It is now widely acknowledged that using technology makes teaching and learning easier in linguistics classes. According to Nur and Syarifuddin [1], the instructor should when selecting any resource take into account certain factors to enhance the learning experience. The learning content should be able to effectively and intellectually engage the students to attain communication goals and expertise in language experience. Using the Social media has also developed with the advancement of technology. Social media has been very popular, popular among users of all ages, but especially young people, ever since their creation. Additionally, they are designed to be inspiring and demonstrate to students the real-world use of the target language.

Using social media fantastic qualities that English teachers and students may find to be very helpful would make the process of teaching and learning English easier, more colourful, endlessly fascinating. Social media usage and its advantages could be helpful. They should remain energetic, competent, effective, and prolific so that teaching English would be never monotonous.

2. The statement of the problem

Students’ language skills are severely hindered by their inadequate vocabulary learning capacity. Therefore, a lot of work needs to go into discovering novel and efficient methods through which students can acquire knowledge and express themselves with ease. The researcher examines the effects of Facebook on students’ vocabulary growth generally in terms of social media (because there are many applications in social media, the focus remains on Facebook).

3. The aim of the study

The purpose of this research is to determine if and how social media influences the vocabulary acquisition and retention of English language majors in their second year of college.

4. Hypothesis of the study

The null hypothesis proposed here is that there is no statistically significant difference between the mean score of students using the traditional teaching of vocabulary and that of the teaching adopted by the researcher or using social media Facebook.

5. The question of the study

The following question has been adopted in this study:

“Does social media have any significant on Iraqi EFL learners’ vocabulary repertoire?”

6. Definitions of social media

Due to the rapid development and growth of social media, it is impossible to provide an accurate definition of the term. The application of social media in real-world settings alters how individuals think and act due to its significance and control over a significant amount of our everyday routine difficulties.

Social media is defined as “online media enabling users to interact with one another online through various web applications allowing users to create, distribute, share and manipulate a variety of contents including texts, pictures, video, songs, etc. to other net-users, and these contents can be accessible publicly. Social media investigated in this study include blogs, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram etc.” ([2], p. 1).

Social media can provide students with several chances and activities that enable them to establish peer- or group-work activities through which vocabulary can be acquired naturally. Today, the world has shrunk to the size of a village, and students are able to communicate their ideas and opinions with their peers and friends without expending as much work or time as in the past. The platforms and services provided by social media make students more motivated and enthusiastic about acquiring vocabulary.

7. Literature review

7.1 Definitions of vocabulary

Vocabulary occupies a strong permanent position in language learning. There is no language without acquiring enough vocabulary, since any languages consist of words. Siriwan ([3], p. 19) suggests that “Vocabulary learning is referred to as learning a collection or the total stock of words in a language that are used in particular contexts.” Additionally, vocabulary can be defined as “a set of lexemes, including single words, compound words and idioms” ([4], p. 629). Vocabulary knowledge is very essential for students to acquire because it enable them to interact naturally; hence, Nation ([5], p. 22) states that “vocabulary knowledge implies knowing a word in the spoken form of the word and the spoken form can be recognized and understood it in and out of context rather than guessed.”

7.2 The position of vocabulary in language learning

The social media can provide students with several chances and activities that enable them to build peer- or group-work activities through which language can be learned naturally. Today, the globe has shrunk to the size of a village, and kids are able to communicate their ideas and opinions with their peers and friends in a short amount of time and with minimal effort. Social media platforms and the services they provide engage and excite students in their pursuit of language vocabulary acquisition.

It is quite difficult to communicate with our group without a wide vocabulary. People can express their interests, wants, and thoughts freely and autonomously through words. They can talk and write, comprehend the spoken language, and discriminate between the meanings of different sorts of writings. There are two principal types of language acquisition: direct and indirect or incidental. Chacon et al. [6] contend that incidental vocabulary learning is necessary for language development; however, this does not imply that deliberate instruction of vocabulary plays no function.

When speaking on the importance of vocabulary, Adrian and Mirabela ([7], p. 123) comment that “Vocabulary, the core of any language, is probably the most challenging and time consuming part of learning a foreign language. It takes time and flows like a continuous process, once you have settled the fundamentals of a language (pronunciation, orthography and basic grammar). Throughout this process, learners become familiarized with the words they come across.”

7.3 Social media forms

As social media is well known, there are numerous social media websites or formats. This study will focus on Facebook because it is widely used, accessible, and user-friendly for students. Facebook’s platforms provide students with several options and possibilities for language study and improvement. According to Dewing ([8], p. 5), “social media websites like YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook” have grown increasingly popular among Internet users who seek to share their ideas, films, and other online activities. Social media encompasses numerous digital tools, including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and MySpace. Email and SMS are also social media tools. This current technology employs a variety of efficient tools and solutions that help students to learn in depth in a variety of ways. Figure 1 depicts the present application as assumed by Solis in 2012 [9].

Figure 1.

“Introducing the Conversation Prism,” Adapted from Solis ([9], p. 24).

7.4 Facebook networking site

Facebook is a big online programme that is regarded as one of the most renowned sites on the worldwide web, which was founded in 2004 by “Mark Zuckerberg”. Rosen ([10], p. 17) explains that the name Facebook suggests from “the small photo albums that colleges once gave to incoming freshmen and faculty to help them cope with meeting so many new people.” Facebook enables the students that registered to make profiles, upload photos and videos, send texts, or share ideas with groups, international groups or school group that should be scheduled by their teacher. Awl [11] states that “in a paper Facebook, you see photos and biographies of your classmates. On Facebook, you see your friend’s latest photos and videos with, at times, an extensive biography.” Hence, Facebook has become one of the most successful social media sites because of its feature platforms that set itself apart from other social media and that made the word “social media” become well known. This application provides an appropriate instructional environment through which students can learn English vocabulary naturally through chatting, sharing information with others, and creating Facebook pages, furthermore through skimming and scanning for the pages and posts available on Facebook; therefore, this application can develop and improve students’ vocabulary knowledge. Adriana and Mirabelle ([7], p. 128) demonstrate that incorporating Facebook into classroom activities improves students’ performance and vocabulary confidence.

7.5 Learners and social media platforms

Students can now use social media with relative ease and accessibility. Students should be equipped with computers, smart phones, or tablets for enhanced classroom learning because these technical gadgets give the best learning platforms necessary for their studies and enable access to social media websites. Despite what many claim, presenting social media in the classroom is not a simple undertaking.

However, Jones and Shao ([12], p. 87) find that “students positively respond to the incorporation of new technologies into the teaching and learning process provided that the technology usage is well-conceived, purposeful, and properly integrated into the learning process. Students spend as much (or more) time online in an informal learning environment--interacting with peers and receiving feedback--than they do with their teachers in the traditional classroom.”

7.6 The performance of social media in EFL classrooms

Technologically speaking, current social media have superseded our previous way of thinking, since technology has become an integral part of our daily lives. In the previous year, people became accustomed to reading magazines and newspapers, but today, the majority of them are compelled to read the newest news via social media because it is a demand of modern life, technology being an integral component. The official demand for mandating the use of social media in educational EFL settings has developed significantly in recent years due to its utility and accessibility. According to Chen and Bryer ([13], p. 89), “social media have rapidly expanded for academic use and permeated the education sector.”

Consequently, when technology is utilised efficiently in the classroom, the real world can be viewed and no limitations can be imposed on the teacher and pupils, such as distance, time, or problems. Accordingly, numerous researchers have adopted social media and class in their studies, such as the study presented by Gumport and Chun, whose findings indicate that through the use of social media applications in the classroom, a strong relationship develops between the teacher and his students, and secondly, quality instruction emerges, which leads to effective outcomes ([14], p. 64).

Lewis and Candito ([15], p. 16) assert that “students use three top- used social media tools: Facebook, Wikipedia and YouTube, for social engagement, direct communication, speed of feedback, and relationship building.” Aikten ([16], p. 93) argues that using social media improves teaching and makes communication among students better. Consequently, the students will learn vocabulary in an unplanned manner or indirectly by the use of these applications to communicate fluently with their peers.

7.7 Social media and vocabulary promotion

As previously noted, social media provides registered students and users with educational platforms that offer a variety of options and possibilities. When a student profile is shared with a number of Facebook pages, he or she is able to communicate with overseas students informally and benefit from their experiences and information. Formal teaching and learning are established and administered by the teacher, who also provides his students with broad instructions. Teachers provide students with usernames and passwords. They can see their grade on a Facebook page made by the teacher, as well as any additional drills or exercises they must do in addition to their assigned duties. In addition, further programmes and explanations are presented on the students’ formal page.

As previously indicated, the researcher chooses Facebook due to its popularity, utility, and accessibility. It fills the kids with motivation and self-assurance, and they may freely express their thoughts. Such sharing is impractical and time consuming to implement in the classroom. From the following websites or connections, students can share or learn vocabulary:

• Learn AND Teach English Vocabulary and Grammar

• Learn English vocabulary and grammar

• Learn English Vocabulary

• Learn English Vocabulary through pictures

• Learn English Vocabulary Now

• Vocabulary – Learn New Words

• English Vocabulary/Learn English Online

• How to Learn Vocabulary and never forget it

• Learning Living Room Vocabulary/Talking Flashcards

• School Subjects Vocabulary in English – Learn with Games

• Movie Vocabulary

• Free English Vocabulary Tutorial

• YouTube is yet another essential social media platform. It is a massive resource that provides a vast quantity of vocabulary-learning movies. These movies are really beneficial and vital for pupils to learn. Teachers should advise their pupils about the value of YouTube and how it impacts their academic achievement. The effective links and websites YouTube contains are as follows:

• How to learn and use 1000 English vocabulary words

• How to learn 100 English words a day

• Learning English vocabulary with pictures

• Learn English Vocabulary

• 150 House Vocabulary Words: Expand your English vocabulary

• How to increase your vocabulary

• Improve Vocabulary and Listening Skills

• Kids vocabulary

• Test your English vocabulary

• Learning English vocabulary

• How to learn English vocabulary and remember it

• Improve English vocabulary

• Instagram is another social networking website. When a student logs in to the Instagram platform, he or she can gain access to a huge number of vocabulary items using the following open-access applications:

• English Vocabulary

• Learn Vocabulary

• Eng. Vocabulary

• English vocabulary Learning

• Vocabulary Master

• Vocab-rainbow

7.8 Benefits of social media platforms in EFL classes

Despite a few downsides, the vast majority of education specialists, practitioners, and theorists concur that current social media networks can have enormously positive effects on the performance and growth of language learners when they are exploited and used correctly. Students can collaborate with classmates or peers on projects. They can also collaborate with other foreign groups and exchange ideas. Numerous and diverse links and websites have been developed and utilised by enrolled students in order to expand their vocabularies, as demonstrated above when students utilise the YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook platforms and pages.

These links and websites are essential and countless. Since global networking is free access, students should be incentivised to utilise, implement, and teach with new technologies. Students will also get knowledge of cultural diversity, other social traditions, and customs. This will aid in better comprehending the external world.

8. Data collection and procedures

8.1 Design of the Study

The study research design was then customised utilising a pre-test–post-test experiment and group framework to determine the impact of the Facebook educational programme on students’ vocabulary achievements. The exam is made up of multiple-choice questions. Before the study began, the students’ prior knowledge was tested via a pre-test given to both groups (control and experimental). The pre-test was designed to examine the pupils’ prior knowledge of terms. The same pre-test was utilised as a post-test at the end of the study to assess the students’ achievement on the issue, namely the acquisition of new vocabulary items. The post-test was designed to measure the impact of both instructional approaches (Facebook and traditional) on learners’ achievement.

8.2 Sampling of the study

The population of this study consists of all second-year students at AL-Maymona secondary schools for boys in Missan, Iraq, during the 2021–2022 academic year. The college offers two courses, A and B, with 61 and 62 students in A and B, respectively. Class A was selected at random to serve as the experimental group (henceforth EG) and class B served as the control group (henceforth CG). All random decisions were determined by drawing lots. One student in Section A and two students in Section B were removed from the experiment because they were repeating the grade. During the duration of the trial, the repeaters were kept in their classes, but their performance on the post-tests was disregarded. Thus, the final number of sample subjects was 120 students, with 60 students in each group.

The experiment began on December 16, 2017 and concluded on March 15, 2018. The experiment lasted approximately 10 weeks. In this study, pupils had comparable educational possibilities. In other words, the two sets of students had identical conditions with the exception of the use of social media on EG. The researcher instructed both study groups.

Facebook, a social networking programme, was used to instruct EG students. Regarding the CG, students were instructed using the methods specified in the required textbook, English Grammar in Use. The researcher instructed the EG as well as the CG. A portion of the presentation focused on the applications of social media, in which students participated. In each lecture, one or more social media, such as Facebook, YouTube, and e-mail, were highlighted.

8.3 Ethics of the study

The study includes all of its data and information that are related to the research own properties. No violation can be seen through this investigative study.

8.4 The instructional design

This study employs an online project design methodology. The researcher develops a Facebook application that facilitates student-to-student and student-to-teacher communication at home. A twelve-week programme was designed with two primary foci: vocabulary and grammar. Each week, a variety of teaching methods, including discussions, exams, further exercises, and information searching/sharing, were utilised to educate students about a self-governing topic. For the EG, Facebook was chosen due to its accessibility and usefulness to the students, because it provides the students with a vocabulary-learning platform for chatting, debating, working together, and cooperating to complete home projects, as well as involving each member’s personal experience. The CG employs conventional practise, debates, and group projects as a mode of instruction. In the CG’s head, there is no internet connection; this is the primary distinction between the treatments. Table 1, adapted from Wang and Chen ([17], p. 137), illustrates the researcher’s various methods.

Activity	EG	CG
Communication	Teacher-student dialogue	Teacher’s lecture
	Student–student dialogue	Students ask questions
Collaboration	Teacher runs discussion topics	Teacher runs discussion topics
	Student online debates	Students discussions in groups
Sharing Resource	Student uploading projects	Teacher hand out remediation
	Teacher/student feedback	Material

Table 1.

Vocabulary learning activities through Facebook.

8.5 Validity and reliability of the instrument

Face validity of the test has been assured by presenting the instrument to a jury of members who have lots of experiences in the field of teaching English language. For reliability of the test, it is estimated as having more than 90%; henceforth, the rest is reliable and yields the same results after some trials by the students.

8.6 Results

After delivering the post-test for achievement, the collected data were evaluated to see whether there are statistically significant differences between the mean scores of EG and CG on the first and second post-tests. Consequently, the study’s objectives to validate the hypotheses indicated in the current investigation will be met. This study also includes a discussion of the outcomes and implications drawn from the study’s findings. A series of recommendations and proposals for pedagogical purposes and potential future research expansions are provided.

8.6.1 Comparison between the vocabulary performance of EG and CG on the achievement of post-test

The t-test formula for two independent samples is used to compare the mean achievement post-test scores of the EG and CG. The average EG score is 54.36, whereas the average CG score is 42.24. The estimated t-value is 4618, but the tabulated value is 1987 at a significance level of 0.05 and 98 degrees of freedom. This suggests that there is a statistically significant difference between the two groups; specifically, the EG is superior to the CG in terms of vocabulary achievement. This, in turn, indicates that the researcher’s Facebook-based vocabulary education method is more effective and fruitful than traditional methods (see Table 2).

Group	No.	M	SD	DF	t-value		Level of significance
					Calculated	Tabulated
EG	60	54.36	13.83	98	4.618	1.987	0.05
CG	60	42.24	12.37

Table 2.

Comparison between the vocabulary performance of EG and CG on the achievement of post-test.

8.6.2 Comparison of the pre-test and the achievement of post-test of the EG performance

The typical pre-test score for the EG is 38.55, whereas the post-test score for achievement is 49.73. The paired sample t-test method is used to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between the mean scores. The estimated t-value is −13.674, whereas the tabulated value is 2.012 at a significance level of 0.05 and 49 degrees of freedom. This shows that there is a statistically significant difference between the two groups, with the EG performing better than the CG. Therefore, the originally given null hypothesis is rejected (see Table 3).

Types of test	No.	M	SD	DF	t-value		Level of significance
					Calculated	Tabulated
Pre-test	60	38.55	14.59	49	−13.674	2.012	0.05
Post-test	60	49.73	13.82

Table 3.

Comparison of the pre-test and the achievement of post-test performance of the EG.

8.7 Interpretation of the results

The results indicate that the adopted application, i.e. Facebook, is an excellent method for teaching and acquiring vocabulary, which may be attributable to the following:

Returning to Tables 2 and 3, it is evident that the performance of the EG via Facebook is superior to that of the CG. Due to the efficiency of the implemented programme, this is a natural conclusion. Facebook has proven to be incredibly useful for language learners at various stages. Studies examining the use of this application indicate a large increase in pupils’ vocabulary.

Students’ vocabulary improves more on Facebook than on the accomplishment pre-test, indicating that their language repertoire, which enables them to communicate effectively and organically, will be larger. If students are taught language using social media, they will recall it well. Teacher feedback and assessment are required while teaching vocabulary because social media play a significant role in the development of students’ vocabularies, which in turn enables students to speak and communicate successfully due to their word repertoire. Such chosen applications make pupils more self-assured, independent, and motivated, which reflects their improved academic performance.

8.8 Educational recommendations

Based on the findings and conclusions of this study, the researcher suggests the following:

1. Since English vocabulary is a challenge for college students in Iraq, greater emphasis should be placed on the teaching of vocabulary, as it is just as vital as other language components.

2. When it comes to vocabulary knowledge, extensive practise is necessary. The greater the frequency with which kids are exposed to these words, the higher their proficiency with them.

3. Teachers and authors of textbooks should recognise the significance of vocabulary knowledge as an effective method for teaching and learning natural English.

4. Teachers should be familiar with certain useful and fruitful applications for teaching and learning vocabulary, given that social media websites facilitate vocabulary management.

5. The presentation of vocabulary should be reinforced by engaging and authentic materials that allow students to create the FL mostly out of curiosity and motivation.

6. The criterion for picking vocabulary should be given great consideration when teaching vocabulary.

7. EFL teachers should be abreast of current events, methodologies, and tactics for teaching EFL in order to enhance vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension in the most effective, motivated, and engaging manner.

8. Teachers of English as a second language should focus more on the production aspect of acquiring vocabulary than the recognition aspect by offering social media, activities, and meaningful events.

9. Social media apps should be considered by curriculum designers since they create an engaging and stimulating learning atmosphere.

9. Conclusions

Based on the obtained results, the following conclusions can be drawn:

As seen by their performance on the pre-test, the vocabulary knowledge of college students in Iraq can be characterised as rather weak. The teaching and learning of vocabulary through social media, using Facebook as an example, is more effective than the traditional methods specified by the textbook.

The traditional strategies used to teach vocabulary in Iraqi college classrooms are effective, as demonstrated by the pre- and post-test results of the CG (the achievement of post-tests). However, the researcher’s applications have been shown to be more fruitful and effective in promoting the pupils’ vocabulary.

The accepted application provides pupils with more options than the textbook for storing and readily remembering what they have been taught or learnt. When taught to vocabulary approaches such as the Facebook learning strategy, the EG appeared to be more engaged because such techniques increased their autonomy. Students that are motivated perform better in vocabulary. Therefore, teachers must pay close and precise attention to motivation. Vocabulary forgetting can be reduced to a minimum by focusing on social media services that improve vocabulary retention.

It has been found that using social media platforms in the field of teaching and learning foreign language will serve the educational and instructional process largely based on the current findings of this study. Besides, the researcher recommends adopting such social media applications in the educational settings after getting agreements from the policy and government of the state, since these social media are available to high extent by almost all people and all students.