USING WHATSAPP AS A TOOL OF LEARNING: A SYSTEMIC LITERATURE REVIEW OF PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the significance of educational technologies in teaching and learning. The global pandemic led to the closure of educational institutions worldwide, prompting the widespread implementation of online learning as a substitute method for delivering curricula. The communication platform is known as WhatsApp has gained widespread adoption and extensive utilisation within the realm of education. The primary aims of this literature review are to examine the utilisation patterns and obstacles linked to the implementation of WhatsApp in the realm of education, assess the advantages and possibilities that students and facilitators can derive from utilising this platform for educational purposes, and comprehend the hindrances and restrictions that arise when employing WhatsApp in an academic environment. The literature was acquired through the utilisation of keywords that are linked to both WhatsApp and education from diverse databases. Having a thorough comprehension of current trends, potential advantages, obstacles, and gains linked to the use of WhatsApp is imperative for lecturers and administrators. Scholarly investigations have revealed a noticeable trend of lecturers and students increasingly utilising WhatsApp as a means of communication and collaboration. The objective of this literature review is to make a noteworthy contribution to the domain of education and technology through an investigation of the potential of WhatsApp as a learning tool. Additionally, this review seeks to offer valuable insights on how to effectively incorporate WhatsApp into pedagogical practices. The article underscores the significance of taking into account privacy and security concerns while utilising WhatsApp for educational objectives and puts forth recommendations for additional investigation.
References
Aizenkot, D., & Kashy-Rosenbaum, G. (2021). Cyberbullying Victimization in WhatsApp Classmate Groups among Israeli Elementary, Middle, and High School Students. Journal of Violence, 36(15–16) NP8498–NP8519. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519842860.
Ajani O.A. (2021). Teachers’ Use of WhatsApp Platforms as Online Communities of Practice for Professional Development, Journal of African Films & Diaspora Studies (JAFDIS), 4(1), 103-129. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31920/2516-2713/2021/4n1a6.
Ajani, O. (2022). Decolonising Teacher Education in Pursuit of Multilingual Teaching and Learning in South African Higher Education. In E. Charamba (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Teaching in Multicultural and Multilingual Contexts (pp. 122-142). IGI Global. https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/decolonising-teacher-education-in-pursuit-of-multilingual-teaching-and-learning-in-south-african-higher- education/310733.
Ajani, O.A. (2022a). Students’ Perceptions of Online Learning during COVID-19 Lockdown: the realities of Social Justice for Rural University Students, in a book titled “Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic’s Distance Learning on Students and Teachers in Schools and in Higher Education – International Perspectives” (A book chapter with the University College of Teacher Education, Styria, Austria). Pp. 126-144. https://www.leykamverlag.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/PHSt-StBR_Bd15_Kern_web_2022-08-08.pdf.
Akyıldız, S. T., & Çelik, V. (2021). Using WhatsApp to Support EFL Reading Comprehension Skills with Turkish Early Secondary Learners. The Language Learning Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2020.1865433.
Alubthane, F., & Alyoussef, I. (2021). Pre-Service Teachers’ Views about Effective Use of the WhatsApp Application in Online Classrooms. TOJET: The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 20(1), 44–52. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1290794.
Ambali, A. R. (2009). Digital Divide and Its Implication on Malaysian E-Government: Policy Initiatives. In A. R. Ambali (Ed.), Social and Political Implications of Data Mining: Knowledge Management in E-Government (pp. 267-287). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60566-230-5.ch016.
Amin, F. M., & Sundari, H. (2021). EFL Students' Preferences on Digital Platforms during Emergency Remote Teaching: Video Conference, LMS, or Messenger Application? Journal of Research on Language Education, 2, 44-52. Asmara, R. (2020). Teaching English in a Virtual Classroom Using WhatsApp during COVID-19 Pandemic. Language and Education Journal, 5, 16-27. https://doi.org/10.52237/lej.v5i1.152.
Anderson, K. E. (2016). Getting acquainted with social networks and apps: WhatsApp-ening with mobile instant messaging? Library Hi Tech News, 33(6), 11–15. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-07-2016-0032.
Andujar, A., & Franco Rodriguez, J. M. (2019). WhatsApp and Jitsi to Foster Student Engagement in an American-Spanish Telecollaboration Exchange. In Recent Tools for Computer-and Mobile-Assisted Foreign Language Learning (pp. 60–78). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-1097-1.ch003.
Annamalai, N. (2019). Using WhatsApp to extend learning in a blended classroom environment. Teaching English with Technology, 19(1), 3–20. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1204549.
Arifani, Y. (2019). The application of small WhatsApp groups and the individual flipped instruction model to boost EFL learners’ mastery of collocation. Call-Ej, 20(1), 52– 73.
Azizur Rahman, S., Al Marzouqi, A., Variyath, S., Rahman, S., Rabbani, M., & Iqbal Ahamed, S. (2020). Effects of Social Media Use on Health and Academic Performance among Students at the University of Sharjah. Proceedings - 2020 IEEE 44th Annual Computers, Software, and Applications Conference, COMPSAC 2020, 711–716. https://doi.org/10.1109/COMPSAC48688.2020.0-176.
Bajpai, R., Sharma, R. K., & Vashisht, R. (2022). Identification of peak hour and active members on WhatsApp group using Python. 2022 Fifth International Conference on Computational Intelligence and Communication Technologies (CCICT), 174–177. https://doi.org/10.1109/ccict56684.2022.00042.
Bishai, M. F. (2022). Innovation in a Time of Making Do: COVID-19 and the Digital Divide through the Lens of a Mobile Phone Mathematics Program in South Africa. Belonging in Changing Educational Spaces (pp. 256–275). Routledge.
Bouhnik, D., & Deshen, M. (2014). WhatsApp Goes to School: Mobile Instant Messaging between Teachers and Students. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 13, 217–231. https://doi.org/10.28945/2051.
Broadbent, J., & Lodge, J. (2021). Use of live chat in higher education to support self-regulated help-seeking behaviours: a comparison of online and blended learner perspectives. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 18(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-021-00253-2.
Cansoy, R. (2017). Teachers’ Professional Development: The Case of WhatsApp. Journal of Education and Learning (Vol. 6, Issue 4, p. 285). https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v6n4p285.
Cetinkaya, L. (2017). The impact of WhatsApp use on success in the education process. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 18(7), 59–74. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v18i7.3279.
Darkwa, B. F., & Antwi, S. (2021). From Classroom to Online: Comparing the Effectiveness and Student Academic Performance of Classroom Learning and Online Learning. Open Access Library Journal, 8, 1-22. https://doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1107597.
Díaz-Ramírez, J. (2020). Gamification in engineering education – An empirical assessment on learning and game performance. Heliyon, 6(9), e04972. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04972.
Fujiono, F., Hidayati, N., & Natchiar, F. (2021). Impact of Distance Learning through Zoom Application and WhatsApp Group on Students' Attitude and English Aptitude: A Case Study on Students of ICT due to COVID-19 Outbreak. Kontribusia (Research Dissemination for Community Development), 4, 455-458. https://doi.org/10.30587/kontribusia.v4i2.2744.
Gachago, D., Strydom, S., Hanekom, P., Simons, S., & Walters, S. (2015). Crossing Boundaries: Lecturers’ Perspectives on the Use of WhatsApp To Support Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. Progressio: South African Journal for Open and Distance Learning Practice, 37(1), 172–187. https://doi.org/10.25159/0256-8853/579.
Gamede, B.T.; Ajani, O.A. & Afolabi, O.S. (2022). Exploring The Adoption and Usage of Learning Management System As Alternative For Curriculum Delivery In South African Higher Education Institutions During Covid-19 Lockdown, International Journal of Higher Education, 11 (1), 71-84. https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v11n1p71.
Garritty, C., Gartlehner, G., Nussbaumer-Streit, B., King, V. J., Hamel, C., Kamel, C., Affengruber, L., & Stevens, A. (2021). Cochrane Rapid Reviews Methods Group offers evidence-informed guidance to conduct rapid reviews. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 130, 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2020.10.007.
Gon, S., & Rawekar, A. (2017). Effectivity of E-Learning through WhatsApp as a Teaching Learning Tool. Journal of Medical Sciences (MVP), 4, 19-25. https://doi.org/10.18311/mvpjms/0/v0/i0/8454.
Gupta, R., Chauhan, L., & Varshney, A. (2021). Impact of E-Schooling on Digital Eye Strain in Coronavirus Disease Era: A Survey of 654 Students. Journal of Current Ophthalmology, 33, 158. https://doi.org/10.4103/joco.joco_89_20.
Itasanmi, S.A., Oni, M.T., Ekpenyong, V.O., Ajani, O.A. & Omorinkoba, O.G. (2022). Academic Staff’s Motivation for Online Teaching in Nigerian Universities: Empirical Evidence from the University of Ibadan. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21 (7), 345-365. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.21.7.18.
Jabbar, J., Malik, S. I., AlFarsi, G., & Tawafak, R. M. (2021). The Impact of WhatsApp on Employees in Higher Education. In Studies in Systems, Decision, and Control (Vol. 295). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47411-9_34.
Jailobaev, T., Jailobaeva, K., Baialieva, M., Baialieva, G., & Asilbekova, G. (2021). WhatsApp Groups in Social Research: New Opportunities for Fieldwork Communication and Management. BMS Bulletin of Sociological Methodology/ Bulletin de Methodologie Sociologique, 149(1), 60–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0759106320978337.
Madge, C., Breines, M. R., Dalu, M. T. B., Gunter, A., Mittelmeier, J., Prinsloo, P., & Raghuram, P. (2019). WhatsApp use among African international distance education (IDE) students: transferring, translating, and transforming educational experiences. Learning, Media, and Technology, 44(3), 267–282. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2019.1628048.
Maslan, M., & Mohd Nor, M. Y. (2020). Kebolehlaksanaan Pentaksiran Bilik Darjah (PBD) Secara Atas Talian Sepanjang Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan (PKP) di Daerah Sentul, Kuala Lumpur. (Webinar) Seminar Nasional Pendidikan, 1, 213-218.
Md Yunus, M., Ang, W. S., & Hashim, H. (2021). Factors Affecting Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) Postgraduate Students’ Behavioural Intention for Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Sustainability, 13, 3524. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13063524.
Morsidi, S., Samah, N. A., Rahman, K. A. A., Ashari, Z. M., Jumaat, N. F., & Abdullah, A.H. (2021). WhatsApp and Its Potential to Develop Communication Skills among University Students. International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 15(23), 57–71. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v15i23.27243.
Motaung, L. B., & Dube, B. (2020). WhatsApp Messenger as a Mediating Tool in Times of COVID-19 for Enhancing Student Engagement in e-Tutorials at a Rural South African University. Journal of Educational and Social Research, 10(6), 214–224. https://doi.org/10.36941/jesr-2020-0121.
Mulyono, H., Suryoputro, G., & Jamil, S. R. (2021). The application of WhatsApp to support online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia. Heliyon, 7(8), e07853. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07853.
Mwakapina, J. W., Mhandeni, A. S., & Nyinondi, O. S. (2016). WhatsApp Mobile Tool in Second Language Learning: Opportunities, Potentials, and Challenges in Higher Education Settings in Tanzania. International Journal of English Language Education, 4, 70-90. https://doi.org/10.5296/ijele.v4i2.9711.
Naghdipour, B., & Manca, S. (2022). Teaching presence in students’ WhatsApp groups: Affordances for language learning. E-Learning and Digital Media. https://doi.org/10.1177/20427530221107968.
Niah, S. (2021). Students' Voices Towards Online Debate through WhatsApp as Alternative Media to Enhance Critical Thinking Skills during COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 15, 205-221. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v15i05.18759.
Nyasulu, C., & Dominic Chawinga, W. (2019). Using the decomposed theory of planned behaviour to understand university students’ adoption of WhatsApp in learning. E-Learning and Digital Media, 16(5), 413–429. https://doi.org/10.1177/2042753019835906.
Oyewole, B. K., Animasahun, V. J., & Chapman, H. J. (2020). A survey on the effectiveness of WhatsApp for teaching doctors preparing for a licensing exam. PLoS ONE, 15(4). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0231148.
Pimmer, C., Brühlmann, F., Odetola, T. D., Oluwasola, D. O., Dipeolu, O., & Ajuwon, A. J. (2019). Facilitating professional mobile learning communities with instant messaging. Computers and Education, 128, 102–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.09.005.
Rahmadi, F. (2020). WhatsApp Group for Teaching and Learning in Indonesian Higher Education: What’s Up? International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 14, 150-160. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v14i13.14121.
Reis, J. C. S., Melo, P., Garimella, K., & Benevenuto, F. (2020). Can WhatsApp benefit from debunked fact-checked stories to reduce misinformation? Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review. https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-035.
Soria, S., Gutiérrez-Colón, M., & Frumuselu, A. D. (2020). Feedback and mobile instant messaging: Using WhatsApp as a feedback tool in EFL. International Journal of Instruction, 13(1), 797–812. https://doi.org/10.29333/iji.2020.13151a.
Stevani, L., & Putro, N. H. P. S. (2020). Teaching English through social media to promote students' 21st-century skills. In Teacher Education and Professional Development in Industry 4.0 (pp. 409–414). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003035978-63.
Subramaniam, S. R., & Muniandy, B. (2019). The Effect of Flipped Classroom on Students’ Engagement. Technology, Knowledge, and Learning, 24(3), 355–372. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-017-9343-y.
Susanti, S. (2020). The Use of WhatsApp in Reading Lesson at STMIK Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Mimbar Pendidikan, 5, 57-74. https://doi.org/10.17509/mimbardik.v5i1.24151.
Ubaedillah, & Pratiwi, D. I. (2021). Utilization of Information Technology during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Student’s Perceptions on Online Lectures. Edukatif: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, 3, 447-455. https://doi.org/10.31004/edukatif.v3i2.320.
Udem, O. K., Aghoghovwia, D. U., & Baro, E. E. (2020). WhatsApp groups: channel for sharing information among LIS professionals in Nigeria. Electronic Library, 38(4), 805–820. https://doi.org/10.1108/EL-12-2019-0289.
Ujakpa, M. M., Heukelman, D., Lazarus, V. K., Neiss, P., & Rukanda, G. D. (2018). Using WhatsApp to support communication in teaching and learning. In 2018 IST-Africa Week Conference, IST-Africa 2018. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8417294.
Urien, B., Erro-Garcés, A., & Osca, A. (2019). WhatsApp usefulness as a communication tool in an educational context. Education and Information Technologies, 24(4), 2585– 2602. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-019-09876-5.
Verheijen, A. J. P., & Spooren, W. P. M. S. (2021). The Impact of WhatsApp on Dutch Youths’ School Writing and Spelling. Journal of Writing Research, 13, 155-191. https://doi.org/10.17239/jowr-2021.13.01.05.
Wahyuni, N., Nurpahmi, S., & Awaliah, I. M. (2020, October). The Students' Perception Toward Using WhatsApp in Learning Reading. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on English Language Education (ICONELE) 2020 (pp. 310-323). Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Alauddin.
Warschauer, M., & Matuchniak, T. (2010). Chapter 6: New Technology and digital worlds: Analyzing Evidence of equity in access, use, and outcomes. Review of Research in Education, 34(1), 179–225. https://doi.org/10.3102/0091732X09349791.
Wut, T. M. & Xu, J. (2021). Person-to-person interactions in online classroom settings under the impact of COVID-19: a social presence theory perspective. Asia Pacific Education Review, 22(3), 371–383. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-021-09673-1.
Young, H., & Jerome, L. (2020). Student voice in higher education: Opening the loop. British Educational Research Journal, 46(3), 688–705. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3603.
Yulianawati, I., Anggrarini, N., & Bahari, A. N. (2021). Exploring Undergraduate Students’ Online Interaction in Academic Reading Classroom via WhatsApp Application. Jadila: Journal of Development and Innovation in Language and Literature Education, 2, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.52690/jadila.v2i1.163.
Views:
1029
Downloads:
1243
Copyright (c) 2023 Oluwatoyin Ayodele Ajani, Nthabiseng B. Khoalenyane
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All articles are published in open-access and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). Hence, authors retain copyright to the content of the articles.
CC BY 4.0 License allows content to be copied, adapted, displayed, distributed, re-published or otherwise re-used for any purpose including for adaptation and commercial use provided the content is attributed.
