Social Media as Informal Digital Learning of English: Students Perception

Abstract

This research discusses the use of social media in digital learning to help make it easier for students to learn and improve their English skills. As time goes by, the use of social media among the younger generation is growing rapidly. Social media is becoming increasingly popular among young people. Students use it for learning, practicing skills, and getting information and entertainment. Many platforms can help students improve their English. This research uses a qualitative approach with the form of qualitative descriptive research. The focus of the research is students' perceptions on social media as an informal digital learning medium

for English. Two English Language Education students participated in this research. As pre- service teachers, they actively use social media to improve their English. This research data

was collected using semi-structured interviews. This includes two parts: a) demographic information, such as age, gender, and education level, and b) preferences for using ICT (preferred devices) and barriers to using ICT. Data collected for this research will be analyzed using thematic analysis. Based on theoretical contraction, research is divided into four parts, namely experience, type of activity, frequency and impact. The results of the research conducted showed that the two participants discussed more experiences when using social media. The experiences they share are based on their personal needs as students which explains how they use social media in their daily lives. The impact they get from using social media to develop their English skills can be seen from the development of their way of speaking, listening, reading, writing and the ability to acquire new vocabulary.