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

Yıl 2017, Cilt: 3 Sayı: 2, 235 - 251, 25.09.2017

Seher Balbay , Selcan Kilis

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

Cited By: 11

Öz

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. 

Anahtar Kelimeler

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

Kaynakça

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