Exploring the Factors that Promote L2 Learner Participation and Interaction on WhatsApp

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CALICO 2016 – East Lansing, Michigan – May 13, 2016

Fabrizio FornaraFlorida State University

Exploring the Factors that Promote L2 Learner Participation and Interaction on WhatsApp

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• According to the sociocultural theory of L2 acquisition, social interaction is the matrix in which acquisition takes place, a primary source of learning (Ellis, 2005).

• Ellis (1999) suggests that interaction is beneficial to acquisition when students have control of the discourse topic.  

• “To foster interpersonal interactions […] CMC partners may be left with adequate access and time to develop” (Walther, 1996).

Interpersonal Interactions

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WhatsApp is a cross-platform instant messaging application for smartphones. It enables users to send and receive location information, images, video, audio and text messages in real-time to individuals and groups of friends at no cost. […] The nature and intent of WhatsApp messages tend to be social, informal and conversational in nature (Church & de Oliveira, 2013).

WhatsApp has more than 1 billion users worldwide (Forbes, February 2016).

WhatsApp

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“Text messaging […] [is] the most widely-used basic feature or app […] [and] the feature that is used most frequently” (Smith, 2015)

Text Messaging

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WhatsApp has been used in secondary and higher education to:• Communicate with students;• Foster a positive social atmosphere and cultivate a

sense of belonging and community;• Enable students to share information and work as a

team;• Improve student access to learning materials (Bouhnik

& Deshen, 2014) WhatsApp promotes social interaction and knowledge construction through spontaneous discussions and enables students to assume control and ownership of the learning (Rambe & Bere, 2013).

WhatsApp for Education

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Rationale for the Activity

• Engage students in social interactions that model the interactions that they carry out daily on their mobile phones.

• Having a real audience, students may be encouraged to use the target language for authentic communications rather than only for practice (Chapelle, 1998).

7Fornara (2015, November). Factors Influencing Second Language Student Production on Twitter. AECT 2015

Previous Studies

8Fornara (2016, January). Promoting L2 Interpersonal Written Communication Using WhatsApp. MLA 2016

Previous Studies (cont.)

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RationaleThis study is based on two other studies:• Lee, J., & Bonk, C. J. (2016). Social network

analysis of peer relationships and online interactions in a blended class using blogs. The Internet and Higher Education, 28, 35-44.

• Stockwell, G. (2013). Tracking learner usage of mobile phones for language learning outside of the classroom. CALICO Journal, 30, 118-136.

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Characteristics of MALL• Spontaneous access: What is the stimulus to

post a message / interact? • Temporal flexibility: When students are posting /

interacting?• Spatial flexibility: Where students are posting /

interacting?Speed of typing: How much time do students spend typing? Are they faster while interacting synchronically than while posting at a later time?

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Purpose of the Study

This study aims to track information about learner relationships and identify patterns of student mobile use to shed light onto student behavior when completing a semi-structured activity on a mobile instant messaging application.

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Implications for Instructional Design

Design activities that encourage students to practice the target language in a mobile instant messaging environment outside the classroom.

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Research Questions

1. Is there a relationship between peer relationships and online interactions?

2. Which are the student usage patterns of mobile phones for completing the activity on WhatsApp?

3. Which is the prevalent interactional time frame?

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Methods• Relational study (RQ1):

Perceived closeness: Social network analysis (SNA)

Online interactions: Content analysis + SNA

• Descriptive study (RQs 2 and 3): Mobile phone usage: Paper surveys, chat

log with time stamps, daily recall survey, screen recording

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Sample: • Third level Italian language students: N = 33• 4 groups: • N = 7 (Summer 2015, 19 days)• N = 11 (Fall 2015, 15 days)• N = 6 (Fall 2015, 15 days)• N = 10 (Spring 2016, 16 days)

Spring 2016:• Messages: N = 305• Students: N = 201• Instructor: N = 104

The Activity

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Research Questions – RQ1

1. Is there a relationship between peer relationships and online interactions?

2. Which are the student usage patterns of mobile phones for completing the activity on WhatsApp?

3. Which is the prevalent interactional time frame?

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Data Collection – RQ1

“An instructor is as much a part of classroom dynamic as the students”

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Data Analysis – RQ1

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Data Analysis – RQ1 (cont.)

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Data Analysis – RQ1 (cont.)

N = 9+1

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Results – RQ1

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Results – RQ1 (cont.)

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Research Questions – RQ2

1. Is there a relationship between peer relationships and online interactions?

2. Which are the student usage patterns of mobile phones for completing the activity on WhatsApp?

3. Which is the prevalent interactional time frame?

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How often do you have your mobile phone with you?

Almost alwaysAlways

Is there any specific time that you do not carry your mobile phone?

Late afternoonNight I always have my phone

Results – RQ2

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How often do you send texts?

Frequently All the time

Do you message in chat groups?

Occasionally Frequently All the time

Which application with MIM features do you

use? iMessage 100%Snapchat 70%GroupMe 30%WhatsApp 30%Messenger 10%

Results – RQ2 (cont.)

27N = 171

Results – RQ2 (cont.)

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Results – RQ2 (cont.)

N = 167

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Did you receive notifications on your phone when other people posted on WhatsApp?

• Yes: 8 Only sound: 0 Only vibration: 3 Only light: 2 A combination of sound and vibration: 2 A combination of sound, vibration, and light: 1

• No: 1 N = 9

Results – RQ2 (cont.)

Results – RQ2 (cont.)

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Research Questions – RQ3

1. Is there a relationship between peer relationships and online interactions?

2. Which are the student usage patterns of mobile phones for completing the activity on WhatsApp?

3. Which is the prevalent interactional time frame?

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Results – RQ3

N = 153

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34N = 33

Student Reaction

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What did you like most about the activity? Being able to actually apply what we’ve learned to real life. Using Italian in a conversational setting. / Talking with classmates. Seeing Italian used in everyday context.

N = 33

Student Reaction – Advantages

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What did you like least about the activity? My classmates posted a lot, to the point it was annoying. Sometimes it was hard to find a way to insert myself in the conversation. It was one big conversation so side conversations between a few people blew up my

phone.N = 33

Student Reaction – Challenges

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• It was essentially doing small Italian activities throughout the day, which really helped retain and extract knowledge.

• Great way to build relationships, practice the language, and earn credit.

• Using WhatsApp helped me learn vocabulary that I regularly use in English in an Italian context.

• Best language learning activity I've participated in. Gets the class involved throughout the day.

• Maybe different groups based on likes and dislikes. • It was an interesting activity, though I felt a little excluded

at times.

Student Comments

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• Interactions are distributed across the network, they are not concentrated around influential actors – not even the instructor. However, the more a student participates, the closer other students feel about her.

• Learners tend to complete the activity in stable learning environments (i.e., home and university) at a range of times (Stockwell, 2013).

• Learners tend to react to a previous message in the first five minutes that the message is posted (40% of messages). Their speed of typing does not depend on the type of interaction in which they engage – synchronous, quasi-synchronous, or asynchronous.

Conclusions

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ff11@my.fsu.edu @ffornara

CALICO 2016 – East Lansing, Michigan – May 13, 2016

Fabrizio FornaraFlorida State University

Questions?