MOBILE TECHNOLOGIES IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE IN HIGHER EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY OF USING MOBILE APPLICATION INSTAGRAM

With the increasing popularity of mobile technology teachers and educators cannot help preventing mobile devices from classrooms. Latest literature reviews indicate the growing interest in mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) where researchers emphasize the need of integrating mobile technology in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) especially in the system of higher education (see, for example, L. Naismith et al., 2004, M. K. Kabilan, N. Ahmad & M. J. Z. Abidin, 2010, M. O. M. El-Hussein & J. C. Cronje, 2010, R. Godwin-Jones, 2011, E. F. Simon & C. P. Fell, 2012). This research presents a case study of using a mobile application Instagram in Teaching EFL with advanced level students (N=13) in Kazan Federal University, Russia. The researchers chose a mobile application Instagram as a study platform for teaching EFL for a number of reasons. Firstly, Instagram is currently considered among the most popular online social networking among the youth aged 18-25. So, we believe that using some popular technologies and environment in the classroom increases students’ interest and, consequently, the effectiveness of education. Secondly, this app allows users to upload 20-second length videos without function “pause” that we found very beneficial for the learners’ comprehension skills. The instructors uploaded 3 videos per week including some tasks and exercises in order to check the listening comprehension.

The study investigates the effectiveness of a mobile app Instagram as an educational environment for learning EFL. The data comes from the quantitative (open response questionnaire) and qualitative (face-to-face interviews) research methodology. The research also includes the results of pre- and post-tests involving listening skills of the university students.