Undergraduates' Attitudes toward the Use of Facebook in Fundamental English Course

Abstract

Abstract-English instructors in tertiary level in Thailand usually encounter with large classes with mixed-ability students in their classroom. Time constraints in the classroom also limit the activities to provide an opportunity for students to practice their lessons. Therefore, this paper attempts to investigate the use of Facebook as a learning tool outside the classroom for English classes. The subjects were 158 undergraduate students studying Foundation English I which is a compulsory general course for undergraduates at Kasetsart University Si Racha Campus in Chon Buri province, Thailand. The subjects were divided into two groups: 78 students majoring in engineering were in Group 1 and 80 students majoring in economics were in Group 2. The experiment started after formative test and it lasted seven weeks. Teachers posted questions twice a week and students allowed two weeks to do exercises. At the end of the courses, close-ended and open-ended questionnaires were distributed to students. The results showed that Facebook may be used as a learning tool outside English classroom. It could help promote motivation and attitudes to learn English as well as it can encourage the interaction between teachers and students. I. INTRODUCTIONLanguage teachers, especially at university level, have encountered large classes with mixed-ability students and classroom management in Thailand. These difficulties influence both language learning and teaching [1]. To cope with these problems, the teachers sometimes introduce out-of-class activities or e-learning exercises to provide opportunities for students to practice English skills.In addition, the use of social network spreads widely among the university students currently. Social networking engages people in social interaction and communication [2]. In fact, social networking technology is not only used for personal contact, but it can also be used for business and education purposes [3]. According to National Statistics Office in 2013 [4], the use of computer, Internet, and mobile phone of Thai residents continuously increases every year. In addition, the group of teenagers and young adults whose ages were between 19-24 years was the highest group to use the Internet in Thailand. 58.6 percent of the whole population explored Social Network (Facebook, Twitter, Hi5, GooglePlus) and 46.7 of all Thai residents used the Internet at Moreover, of all the social networking applications, Facebook was the most popular in Thailand or 28 million users in 2014 whereas the second rank was Twitter with 4.5 million users and the third rank was Instagram with the users of 1.7 million users [5]. Nevertheless, the purposes to use Facebook of the undergraduates in Thailand were for relaxation from loneliness, being socialized in groups, playing games, exposing oneself, curiosity about other's life, and being in trend [6]. Facebook allows users to create their own groups to share information, discuss on the particular topics, hence, it can be used as an online classroom [7]. There are the sug...

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