Turkish EFL Learner Perceptions of Using a Social Network Environment for Collaborative Writing

Abstract

In this article we report on a study investigating the perceptions from Turkish High School English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students of using the social media platform Facebook group to undertake a collaborative writing task. Opportunities for these students to advance their writing skills are often limited in classrooms because of curriculum restrictions. This study explored how students in two small groups of three might use their smartphones to collaboratively write a short story outside of the classroom over several weeks. The researchers gathered data from group interviews and online written researcher-participant chats. With minimal support, the students organised themselves enthusiastically for the FB task. Their perceptions of the task were positive, the students feeling comfortable with the FB medium and with each other. Student agency was pivotal in creating an informal social affinity and smart learning space, suggestive of extended writing affordances in other contexts.