Students' Perceptions of the use of a YouTube channel specifically designed for an Academic Speaking Skills Course

Year 2017, , 235 - 251, 25.09.2017

Seher Balbay , Selcan Kilis

https://doi.org/10.32601/ejal.461003

Cited By: 11

Abstract

Advancements in information and communication technology have revolutionized the notion of teaching
and learning in terms of strategies, context, and methods. One of the most remarkable tools used in
teaching and learning in the 21st century is YouTube, especially in language education. The literature
demonstrates the need for elaboration of the use of YouTube in university level language skills education
settings. In the 2016-2017 academic year a YouTube channel with a variety of supplementary material
videos, was used in the Academic Speaking Course offered to all departments at Middle East Technical
University, Ankara, Turkey. The channel has course-related content input, sample presentations and
tasks displaying the expectations of the course, in addition to conversation opening content. This study
aims to investigate students’ experiences and perceptions towards the use of this YouTube channel. The
study was conducted on 70 students taking the compulsory Academic Speaking Skills course offered to
students from varying disciplines in Middle East Technical University. Students were asked to fill out a
Google Sheets survey at the end of the course on their perceptions on the benefits and drawbacks of the
aforementioned YouTube channel. The data was analyzed based on both descriptive statistics and
deductive content analysis. The results indicated that the majority of the students benefited to a large
extent from the videos on the playlists of this specifically-designed supplementary material YouTube
channel. The findings can contribute to further guiding university language instructors by suggesting the
abundance of alternative ways to benefit from YouTube and similar online video source platforms. 

Keywords

YouTube, tailor-made playlists, online videos, academic presentations, language education

References

• Alwehaibi, H. O. (2015). The impact of using Youtube in EFL classroom on enhancing EFL students' content learning. Journal of College Teaching & Learning (Online), 12(2), 121.
• Chun, D. M., & Plass, J. L. (1996). Effects of Multimedia Annotations on Vocabulary Acquisition. The Modern Language Journal, 80(2), 183-198. Retrieved October 09, 2017, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/328635
• Comi, S. L., Argentin, G., Gui, M., Origo, F., & Pagani, L. (2017). Is it the way they use it? Teachers, ICT and student achievement. Economics of Education Review, 56, 24-39.
• Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research. Pearson Education, Inc.
• Duffy, P. (2008). Engaging the YouTube Google-eyed generation: Strategies for using Web 2.0 in teaching and learning. Electronic Journal of E-learning, 6(2), 119-130.
• Fraenkel, J. R., Wallen, N. E., & Hyun, H. H. (2012). How to design and evaluate research in education (Vol. 7). New York: McGraw-Hill.
• Ghasemi, B., Hashemi, M., & Bardine, S. H. (2011). UTube and language learning. Procedia- Social and Behavioral Sciences, 28, 63-67.
• Hovland, C. I., & Lumsdaine, A. A. (2017). Experiments on mass communication. Princeton University Press.
• Hwang, J. L. (2010). University EFL Students’ Learning Strategies On Multimedia YouTube. In EdMedia: World Conference on Educational Media and Technology (pp. 3611-3620). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).
• Jenkins, J. J., & Dillon, P. J. (2013). Learning through YouTube. In Ferris, S.P. & Wilder, H.A. (eds) The plugged-in professor: Tips and techniques for teaching with social media. Oxford, UK: Chandos Publishing.
• Kelsen, B. (2009). Teaching EFL to the iGeneration: A survey of using YouTube as supplementary material with college EFL students in Taiwan. Call-EJ Online, 10(2), 10-2.
• Lee, Y. J. J., & Liang, J. C. (2012). Using video technology to diagnose EFL students’ cognitive learning difficulties in public speaking. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 64, 671- 680.
• Ma, Q. (2017). A multi-case study of university students’ language-learning experience mediated by mobile technologies: a socio-cultural perspective. Computer Assisted Language Learning. DOI: 10.1080/09588221.2017.1301957
• Medaukali, F. (2015). Developing EFL Learners’ Listening Comprehension through YouTube Videos: A Case Study of Second Year Students at Mohamed Kheider University of Biskra. (Unpublished Master Thesis) Mohamed Kheider University, Biskra
• Mohsen, M. A. (2016). The Use of Computer-Based Simulation to Aid Comprehension and Incidental Vocabulary Learning. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 54(6), 863- 884. DOI: 10.1177/0735633116639954
• Perez, M. M., Peters, E., & Desmet, P. (2017). Vocabulary learning through viewing video: the effect of two enhancement techniques. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 1-26. DOI: 10.1080/09588221.2017.1375960
• Styati, E. W. (2016). Effect of YouTube Videos and Pictures on EFL Students' Writing Performance. Dinamika Ilmu, 16(2), 307-317.
• Yagci, T. (2014). Mobile Social Media Challenges Digital Natives in EFL Learning. Journal of Educational & Instructional Studies in the World, 4(4).
• Yang, K. (2012). Participatory video and reflexivity. The experiences of eight adult learners. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, McGill University, Montreal.