Digital literacy and digital content supports learning: The impact of blogs on teaching English as a foreign language

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the impact of blogs on teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) to primary students. The study also explores educators’ perceptions of social media tools and digital literacy in school environments.

Design/methodology/approach

A three-step approach was used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. First, the blogs of 23 fifth-grade students in an EFL class in Kuwait was analysed for one semester along with student perceptions and teacher observations. Second, a survey was distributed to the students at the end of the semester, and finally, four focus groups were conducted regarding educators’ perceptions on the use of social media, their skills and needs and problems encountered.

Findings

The findings showed that by the end of the semester, students were writing lengthy sentences, had fewer spelling and grammatical mistakes, were more motivated and independent and displayed a more positive attitude towards learning EFL. In addition, educators are enthusiastic about using Web technologies in their teaching practices but have several concerns such as digital literacy competencies, technology-use behaviour and lack of accessibility to digital content.

Research limitations/implications

The number of questions on the student survey could be reduced. Also, it would be preferable in future studies to require all students to blog at least twice a week which could provide a broader representation of their writing abilities.

Originality/value

Little research has been reported in the literature on the use of blogs in teaching EFL to primary school students. Most literature focuses on teaching EFL to university students. By using a mixed-methodology approach, this study also highlights the needs of educators and students in technology learning environments and makes a good contribution towards offering pragmatic solutions.

Citation

Al-Qallaf, C.L. and Al-Mutairi, A.S.R. (2016), "Digital literacy and digital content supports learning: The impact of blogs on teaching English as a foreign language", The Electronic Library, Vol. 34 No. 3, pp. 522-547. https://doi.org/10.1108/EL-05-2015-0076