Teaching-Related Use of Social Media Among Saudi EFL Teachers: Revisiting the Innovative Technology

Abstract

The spread of social media such as Facebook, Thaser, and YouTube has demonstrated the need to incorporate them into the educational setting to cope with the abrupt changes in the tech-savvy new generation's interactions with the network. Hence the current study purports to explore the social media tools utilized by Saudi EFL teachers. This study used a random sampling technique, about 88 participants were selected randomly from all schools in the Asir region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia .A descriptive study approach was applied by employing an online survey consisting of 15 items followed by an open-ended questionnaire. The collected data were analysed by using the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) to obtain corresponding results. The results showed that Saudi EFL teachers used Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube extensively and had a positive response toward their use for teaching purposes. These results confirm the importance of being concerned with the roles of Saudi EFL teachers and students to reap great benefits from these networks as it helps in extending their learning and teaching opportunities, encourage communication with each other by providing material and moral incentives, and develop skills to use these networks in the best way. The study has concluded that using social media could play a vital role in creating an interactive teaching environment. In light of the findings of the study, it is recommended that Saudi EFL teachers should plan learning classes that use social media such as Facebook, Thaser, and YouTube as learning platforms.