The Impact of Using Edmodo on Saudi University EFL Students' Motivation and Teacher-Student Communication

Abstract

Edmodo is a free educational networking site that provides a secure online learning platform
for both teachers and students. The current research explored the impact that Edmodo has on
students' engagement in EFL learning as well as their motivation towards learning that
language. The research was conducted on 255 female students at Princess Nourah bint
Abdulrahman University, Saudi Arabia. The participants were involved in daily interactions
with their peers as well as their teachers via Edmodo features and applications, e.g. posing
questions, submitting assignments, discussions, and teachers' feedback. The present paper
posed two research questions: 1. What is the impact of the educational networking site
Edmodo on students' motivation? 2. What is the impact of the educational networking site
Edmodo on teacher-student's communication? In order to explore the possible answers, a
40-item questionnaire was administered to the participants. The first 21 items were
designated to explore students' motivation for learning EFL through Edmodo, while the
remaining items explored students' beliefs about the impact that Edmodo has on their
communication with their teachers. All items were answered using a 4-point Likert
scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The results indicated statistically
significant motivation towards language learning due to the use of Edmodo. It also showed
that the teacher-student's interaction is highly significant via Edmodo. Furthermore, students
mainly preferred quizzes and assignments on Edmodo when they are designed effectively. The
results of this study may encourage teachers to integrate educational networks to create effective online learning classes for their students.