I help, therefore, I learn: service learning on Web 2.0 in an EFL speaking class

Abstract

The present study integrates service learning into English as a Foreign Language (EFL) speaking class using Web 2.0 tools -YouTube and Facebook -as platforms. Fourteen undergraduate students participated in the study. The purpose of the servicelearning project was to link service learning with oral communication training in an EFL speaking class by having each student create two YouTube videos in which they made informative presentations about the university (e.g., transportation system) and the city (e.g., sightseeing spots) in English to international students on campus. A Facebook community was established as a forum for students to share their videos with the international students and peers. The results suggest that the project enhanced EFL students' public speaking-related skills (e.g., idea and content development, and pronunciation), built their confidence in speaking English, and allowed them to develop their own learning process and strategies. Moreover, Web 2.0 tools endow service learning with new possibilities of reaching a greater number of the target audience and provide the members of the community with alternative means of communication.

Facebook as a learning environment for language teaching and learning: A critical analysis of the literature from 2010 to 2017

“…Among all areas of language pedagogy, the impact of Facebook on production skills received the greatest attention. Of the 16 studies in this category, 15 dealt with writing (i.e., Amicucci, ; Aydin, ; Barrot, ; Dizon, ; Karimuddin & Haryanto, ; Kitchakarn, ; Nordmark, ; Razak, Saeed, & Ahmad, ; Reid, ; Shepherd, ; Shih, ; Sipacio, ; Suthiwartnarueput & Wasanasomsithi, ; Tananuraksakul, ; Wichadee, ) and 1 on speaking (i.e., Sun & Yang, ).…”

“…However, Barrot () clarified that such an anxiety may be more of enabling than debilitating because it pushed students to produce a quality written output. Worthy of mentioning is Sun and Yang's () case study on using Facebook as a publication venue for speaking performances. They noted that publishing students' performance on Facebook built their confidence in speaking English, facilitated the development of their own learning strategies and processes, and enhanced their other public speaking‐related skills, such as idea and content development and pronunciation.…”

Is Facebook still a suitable technology‐enhanced learning environment? An updated critical review of the literature from 2012 to 2015

“…One of the most frequent was the possibility of providing subject matter content in an informal way (Basitere & Ivala, ; Birkeland, Danbolt Drange, & Tønnessen, ; Daher, ; da Silva de Vargas et al, ; Gray & Howard, ; Ho, ; Jaffar, ; Krom, ; Lantz‐Andersson, Vigmo, & Bowen, ; Magogwe, Ntereke, & Phetlhe, ; Pektas & Gürel, ; Razak, Saeed, & Ahmad, ; Reinhardt & Ryu, ; Tsovaltzi et al, ; Tsovaltzi et al, ; Yuksel, ). Another one was to enhance transversal skills (Asterhan & Hever, ; Sun & Yang, ).…”

Service-Learning and Project TALIS. Pedagogy and Teaching Destined to Mutual Understanding

“…Since, many teachers who, after having heard about these tools, have used them in their classes, have joined our project and have contributed to it with their feedback, new tools and a lot of fascinating experiences. But there is more: this project has also generated a net of students, illustrators, proof readers and translators from many countries such as Poland, Vietnam, Colombia, Portugal, Finland and Island working with a same target: a circle of Service-Learning linked with oral communication training in an EFL speaking class (Sun & Yang, 2013). Most of the material created within the project is free downloadable, but some others, like the collection Tales around the World (Alcantud-Diaz, 2014a, 2014b are being sold to raise funds aimed at some international cooperation projects related to education in order to fight against children poverty.…”