UTILIZATION OF WHATSAPP APPLICATION AS DISCUSSION MEDIA IN BLENDED LEARNING

Abstract

Educational challenge now is to meet the demands of information technology on the culture of the younger generation. Students as young people always carry a smartphone as a means of communication and information anywhere. They are so accustomed to the convenience of online environments, especially social media applications. It is also a challenge for educators to be able to make these habits in order to be a good habit. Educators are challenged to change the online habit so it can be used in learning. It is certainly related to the need of students to use social media applications to learn. Learning that can bridge the online social media applications with offline learning was Blended Learning. This study sought to integrate learning technologies so as to improve the quality of student learning. Social media Applications that are widely used and can be integrated in learning is the messenger application. Messenger application is used to communicate synchronously, so it can be positioned as a discussion media One of these application was Whatsapp messenger applications, which can send text, pictures and even sound. Whatsapp capabilities can be utilized to conduct in online learning of Blended Learning.