EFL Students’ Perceptions towards Blogging in EFL Writing Courses: A Turkish University Context
The aim of the study was to reveal student perceptions regarding the integration of blogs into writing courses. Of the 25 students that were present at the courses, 9 were interviewed one-on-one before and after the implementation of blogging. The first set of interviews provided insight into the students’ perceptions about blogs and how blogs could benefit their learning process. The second set of interviews, on the other hand, shed light on the participants’ beliefs and feelings about blogs after their 6-week blogging experience. The analyses of the first set of interviews revealed that almost all of the participants were new to blogging, particularly for educational purposes. However, they were convinced that blogging could improve their proficiency in English from various aspects. The second set of interviews, on the other hand, confirmed the participants’ beliefs regarding the potential benefits of blogging. They expressed that blogs helped them keep calm when writing in the target language by providing a real audience without the pressure of having teachers and friends around. Their comments pointed to an increase in their social relationships in their face-to-face courses, as well. In addition, all of the participants reported positive feelings about their blogging experience. These results of the study indicate that writing courses can be turned into an enjoyable experience with the help of blogging. Keywords: blogging, web 2.0 tools, ELT, technology in ELT, L2 writing