Mobile-Assisted Language Learning and Its Effects on Learners’ Speaking Development

Abstract

This comparative study was to determine the impact of mobile learning classes on English Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ speaking skill development and their motivation to participate in class discussions. The level of students’ satisfaction with this approach was also investigated. 60 students from Kish institute in Ilam, Iran, were assigned through purposive sampling to comparable groups. One group participated in face-to-face classes, and the other took part in mobile learning classes through WhatsApp. Parallel forms of a test were conducted as pretest and post-test for both groups to examine the impact of mobile learning, and a researcher-made questionnaire was distributed through WhatsApp. The obtained data of both groups were analyzed through SPSS 20. The findings revealed that the majority of students were satisfied with mobile learning classes, students in mobile learning classes outperformed the students in face-to-face classes, and that mobile learning classes had a significant role in increasing students’ motivation to participate in class discussions.