The impact of Omani EFL students' WhatsApp use on their communicative writing.
مؤلف
Al-Dughaishi, Haitham Mohsin Said.
الملخص الإنجليزي
Rapid technological expansion has led to an ever evolving need to adapt and integrate new technology to English language pedagogy. Educators and students currently use an assortment of cellular phone applications to facilitate learning. One of the most popular and ubiquitous messaging applications is WhatsApp Messenger (WhatsApp). This study investigated whether or not WhatsApp had a significant impact on the writing skills of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at the college foundation level. A single group pre-test post-test design was used to collect writing samples from Omani EFL students at a private college. All writing samples were based on students' responses from a specific set of writing questions. Each pre-test and post-test writing sample was scored using a writing rubric. Additionally, a paired sample t-test was used to identify the significant differences and compare the means of the pre-test and post-test. The findings revealed that WhatsApp had a positive impact on students' writing skills. The results, implications for instructional practice, and recommendations for future research are discussed in the final chapter.
