A Study of Taiwanese Vocational School Students' Communication Modes, Interaction Features and Culture Understanding on a Social Network

• Main Authors: Hsin-Chia Chen, 陳信嘉
• Other Authors: Shen Tien-Cheng
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 105
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/36259478961326214199

碩士 === 南台科技大學 === 應用英語系 === 101 === In the global village of the 21st Century, social networks have become a major forum for teenagers’ social communication. If we can let teenagers use social networks to engage in cross-cultural exchange with youth in other countries, it may help them to cultivate a worldwide perspective on their lives, and learn about the cultures of different countries. Space2Cre8 is a controlled educational social network. Participants have to use English to communicate, and teenagers members include students from the United States (New York, Oakland), the United Kingdom (London), Norway, India, South Africa, Australia and Taiwan. The Taiwanese participants are 72 senior high school students. This research project set out to understand how these Taiwanese senior high school students would use social media in English to interact with participants in other parts of the world. In particular, the study sought to explore their modes of communication and interaction while using the network, and evaluate the cultural learning that took place as a result of their participation. The study also investigated the challenges of integrating an on-line social network into language and culture classes. The research employed mainly qualitative methods, and data includes student-created photo stories and videos posted on the social network, recordings of classroom activities, and the researcher’s diary. This paper shows that students use a variety of modes of communication on the network, and that their language is primarily positive and colloquial. In addition, they felt they were able to attain enhanced cultural understanding as a result of their participation in the network. It is concluded that social networks can be a valuable resource for teaching and learning. If teachers can design effective lessons that stimulate students’ willingness to participate, educational social networks may become an important feature of future language and cultural learning programs.