ESL PRACTITIONER JOURNAL 2018, Issue 6

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

stage (Stage V) compares the programme with other similar programmes financially to
determine which one has more effective expenditure by identifying the potential benefits
before implementing the programme (Provus, 1969, 1971; Singh, 2013; Yavorsky, 1984).
In a nutshell, Stage I is the programme standard while Stages II, III, and IV are the
programme performance.

The process of comparison in all stages in DEM is represented in Figure 1 below:

FIGURE 1. Theoretical framework in DEM (Provus, 1969)

Based on Figure 1, DEM can be perceived as an ongoing cycle (Kpolovie & Obilor, 2014).
As depicted in Figure 1, S stands for Standard, P is Performance, C stands for Compare,
D is for Discrepancy information, and A is Alteration in either the programme standard
or performance (Kpolovie & Obilor, 2014; Provus, 1969). The numbers (1-5) represent
the stages of evaluation (Stages I – IV). Programme performance (P) will be compared
to the programme standard (S). If the comparison shows incongruency, it indicates that
discrepancy (D) exists. After obtaining discrepancy information, there are four possible
decisions that can be made by the programme managers (Provus, 1969). The first
possibility is when there is no discrepancy information, the programme can proceed to
the next stage. However, if there is any discrepancy identified, the programme manager
has three options: i) to recycle that particular stage after altering (A) the programme
standards or performance radically or naturally; ii) to recycle to Stage I; or iii) to terminate
the programme as the last resort (Kpolovie & Obilor, 2014; Provus, 1969). Any discrepancy
that has been identified has to be informed to relevant parties for review or corrective
action (Singh, 2013).

To further explain about the framework, a distant teacher education programme 99
by Sampong (2009) is used as a case example. For Stage I, the researcher derived
the programme design based on interviews, document analysis as well as curriculum
evaluation by experts. It was decided that it was a viable programme (Sampong, 2009).
Here, since there was no discrepancy identified, the programme could proceed to
Stage II. This depicts the first possible decision made by the faculty (or programme
managers) when discrepancy does not exist. In Stage II, the researcher identified one
major issue pertaining the frequency and effectiveness of classroom supervision. Based

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

on the programme standard, the supervisors were expected to visit students to observe
their teaching biweekly and write a report on it. However, the programme performance
indicated that supervisions were not conducted effectively. This was because some
student teachers were stationed in remote and inaccessible rural areas. Hence supervisors
had difficulty in terms of logistics as they were unable to perform their supervisory duties
satisfactorily (Sampong, 2009). In this case, when the performance is compared to the
standard, an incongruence occurs that indicates a discrepancy. To resolve this, the
faculty had three options to rectify this discrepancy. The faculty decided that vehicles be
provided at study centres to enhance the mobility of the supervisors (Sampong, 2009).
By making this decision, the faculty decided to recycle that particular stage (Stage II) by
modifying the programme performance which was to provide vehicles for the supervisors
to conduct observations. However, the faculty could have decided differently for this
discrepancy. If the faculty suggested that the observation was to be conducted monthly
to lessen the logistical problem, then this indicated that the faculty decided to recycle
to Stage I. This is done by changing the programme design which is to change the
frequency of observations from biweekly to monthly. Another scenario that could happen
is when the faculty decides that the allocation for the implementation of the programme
is insufficient. Hence the faculty terminates the programme they lack allocation.

Proposed Conceptual Framework
For the purpose of this research, only the first four stages of the framework will
be incorporated, as the focus of this research is to compare the standard and the
performance of SSP itself and not to compare it with other programmes. Furthermore,
Stage V is an optional stage in the framework as there is a need to compare with a similar
programme that has the same output (Provus, 1969; Singh, 2013; Yavorsky, 1984). The
proposed conceptual framework concentrates on identifying programme standards and
performance, and comparing them to identify the discrepancy information. Suggested
alterations will be given based on the identified discrepancies to ensure that the
performance is the same as the standard set for the programme. Thus, this conceptual
framework would be an appropriate framework to conduct programme evaluation on
SSP. The proposed conceptual framework for each stage to evaluate SSP is as shown in
Figure 2:

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FIGURE 2. Proposed conceptual framework for each stage to evaluate SSP

The first stage of evaluation in DEM is the programme design. The objective of SSP is “[e]
nabling teachers to apply a data-driven approach in designing context- and needs-based
interventions to foster student improvement.” (Quah, Kaur, & James Dass, 2017). This
objective is further defined in detail on how SSP enables teachers to:

• use various types of data to support effective pedagogical problem-solving
• analyse student performance data to identify gaps in students’ knowledge and skills
• interpret data to develop and implement interventions which address the gaps.
(Quah et al., 2017)

Stage I will focus on the SSP module, participants, trainers, interventions, and reports.
These components will be the programme standards of SSP.

In Stage II where the information on programme installation is obtained, three sub- 101
components in SSP will be evaluated. The suggested sub-components will be the
course content and the course materials under the module component, and participants
prerequisite requirements under the participants component.

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

In Stage III where the process of turning input to output occurs, sub-components that will
be suggested consist of training strategies and facilitation for the trainers component,
as well as intervention plans followed by school support visits under the intervention
component.

The final stage (Stage IV) will be conducted to determine whether SSP has achieved
its objective. The suggested sub-components in the reports component are the school
support visit reports from trainers, and reflective reports from the participants.

All the sub-components in Stages II, III and IV will be compared to the sub-components
in Stage I to establish any discrepancy information. Based on the gathered discrepancy
information, possible alterations will be suggested.

METHODOLOGY

For the purpose of this study, the suggested research design applied is the convergent
parallel mixed methods design (Creswell, 2012). This research design is known as the
concurrent triangulation approach (Creswell, 2009). This research design is fitting for
this study as both quantitative and qualitative data will be simultaneously collected,
merged and compared to further understand the research problem (Creswell, 2012).
The comparison of both quantitative and qualitative will “… determine if there is
convergence, differences, or some combination.” (Creswell, 2009). With this comparison,
discrepancies in SSP can be identified as well.

The proposed sample for this study is 155 out of 250 participants (Krejcie & Morgan,
1970). Stratified sampling will be the sampling technique used in this study where
participants will be divided according to their training venues that are based on five
zones in Malaysia. These five zones are northern, eastern, central and southern, Sabah
and Labuan, and Sarawak zones.

For data collection, questionnaires, interview protocol, and document analysis will
be used. The data for Stages II, III and IV will be compared to data from Stage I. For
Stage I, interviews and document analysis will be conducted to obtain information
on the programme design and installation. The programme manager of SSP will be
interviewed to gain more understanding and information on the programme as to
identify the programme standards set. Some of the programme standards are in the
forms of proposal papers and reports, and as such document analysis will be conducted
as well. To attain information on programme installation in Stage II, questionnaires will
102 be distributed to participants where descriptive statistics will be tabulated in frequency
counts on the course content and materials. Besides that, the SSP report will be able to
provide data on the selection of participants based on the set pre-requisite requirements.
For Stage III, questionnaires, observation and document analysis will be conducted. The

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questionnaires administered will be able to provide information based on frequency
count on the training strategies and facilitation. Document analysis will be conducted by
evaluating how participants use the data-driven approach in designing their intervention
plan. By using the observation checklist and notes, more information on what really
happens will be collected through school support visits. To obtain information on the
programme product in Stage IV, document analysis will be done by organising the data
from the school support visits reports and the participants’ reflective reports into major
themes.

CONCLUSION
The SSP needs to be evaluated to ensure that the operational aspects of the programme
are aligned to the programme standards. The use of the DEM is appropriate as it
emphasises on comparing what really happens with what should be. Therefore, the DEM
is proposed as an evaluation framework for this study.

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REFERENCES

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Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods
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Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational Research: Planning, Conducting and Evaluating
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English Language Teaching Centre. (2016). Kertas Cadangan Pelaksanaan Program
Peningkatan Kemahiran Bahasa Inggeris di Sekolah (PPKBIS) bagi Tahun 2016-2020.

Fox, R. D. (2011). Revisiting “ Discrepancy Analysis in Continuing Medical Education :
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Gwynne-Atwater, A. (2011). An Evaluation of a Special Education Preschool Program
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Hasreena A.R., & Ahmad, J. (2015a). A Conceptual Framework For Evaluating Professional
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Hasreena A.R., & Ahmad, J. (2016a). Evaluating the Standard and Performance of Online
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Klein, T. (2012). The 1998 Curriculum Guidelines and Regulatory Criteria for family nurse
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prescribers today? Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, 24(5),
297–302.

Kpolovie, P. J., & Obilor, I. E. (2014). Utilitarian evaluation of the National Open University
of Nigeria. Merit Research Journals, 2(3), 28–53.

Krejcie, R. V, & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining Sample Size for Research Activities.
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Marrs, L. W., & Helge, D. I. (1978). The Role of Needs Assessment in Program Planning
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Quah, Y. J., Kaur, J., & James Dass, L. (2017). School Support Plan Workshop Handbook
(2nd Ed.). Bandar Enstek: English Language Teaching Centre.

Sampong, K. A. (2009). An Evaluative Study of a Distance Teacher Education Program

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Singh, M. (2013). Training Evaluation : Various Approaches and Applications. IUP Journal
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Steinmetz, A. (1976). The Discrepancy Evaluation Model. I. Basic Tenets of the Model.
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(2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
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of Virginia.
Hasreena Abdul Rahman
Lecturer, English Language Teaching Centre
[email protected]

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8

THE USE OF
INSTAGRAM IN
ENCOURAGING FREE
WRITING AMONG
SECONDARY SCHOOL
STUDENTS

TAVAMANI THIAGARAJAN 107
NOOR DIANA BINTI SUHAIMI

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

ABSTRACT

Despite wide exposure to the digital media written in English, the standard of English
Language among Malaysian students is still on the decline especially in writing skills. The
Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 aims to maximise the use of ICT in realizing the
Government’s aspiration of better prepare Malaysia’s children for the needs of the 21st
century. Instagram is a social photography app that could facilitate the teaching and
learning of writing. This study attempts to propose the use of Instagram in encouraging
free writing among secondary school students as well as to explore their perceptions
towards the use of Instagram in free writing. This case study involved thirty Form 2
students from one secondary school in Jeli, Kelantan. Data collection involved were
document analysis, focus group interviews and observation. The data were then analysed
using data transcription and content analysis. The results of this study provide insights to
the educators on the integration of digital media in teaching writing in schools.

Keywords: education, free writing, Instagram, mobile-assisted language learning
(MALL), online authentic material

INTRODUCTION

English is taught as a second language (ESL) in all Malaysian primary and secondary
schools and the mastery of English is essential for pupils to gain access to information and
knowledge written in English, (Siti & Melor, 2014). In the Form 2 Curriculum Standard of
Secondary Schools, one of the content standards for writing is to communicate intelligibly
through print and digital media and familiar topics. The use of digital media reflects the
emphasis on the implementation of ICT in the teaching and learning as laid out in one of
the shifts in the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 which is Shift 7: Leverage ICT
to scale up quality learning across Malaysia. In this proposed study, the digital media
chosen is Instagram, a social photography app which will be used as the technological
tool to encourage free writing among secondary school students as Golonka et.al (2014)
cited in Xodabande (2017) stated that technological innovations if used properly, can
enhance learners’ interest and motivation, facilitate students’ access to target language
input as well as provide them with more interaction opportunities and feedback.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Writing has often been viewed as one of the most difficult and complex skills to master,
108 even if it is done in one’s mother tongue (Falciola et al. 2014 cited in Chiew & Nurhidayah

2016). Saadiyah and Kaladevi (2009) argued that the standard of English among Malaysian
students is on the decline despite learning English for several years and they are still weak
in English, especially in their writing skills. This is because writing in the second language

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(L2) is a difficult skill to acquire as it involves more than just putting correct grammatical
forms together and L2 writers have less language knowledge and confidence that often
lead them to struggle with the L2 writing skills in general, (Nooreiny et al. 2011). In the
context of integrating Instagram as a technological tool in teaching writing, studies by
Kelly (2015), Ayuni et al. (2017) and Al-Ali (2014) involving adult learners yielded positive
results as they concluded that Instagram was able to develop learners’ vocabulary and
grammatical accuracy, facilitate active learning and learners perceived the comments
received via Instagram as constructive feedback.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

This proposed study intends to suggest Instagram as an intervention to encourage free
writing among secondary school students. The researchers aim to tackle the writing
problems focusing on content, organization and vocabulary. Data will be gathered
qualitatively to answer the following research questions;

• Does Instagram affect the content, organization and vocabulary of students’ free
writing?

• What are the students’ perception towards the use of Instagram in free writing?

LITERATURE REVIEW

Constructivist Learning Theory
The underlying theory of this proposed study draws on the constructivist theory of
learning. According to Eggen and Kauchak (2010), constructivist theory of learning
suggests that learners create their own knowledge rather than receiving that knowledge
as transmitted to them by some other sources. This theory is divided into two primary
perspectives;

• Cognitive constructivism
• Social constructivism

Cognitive constructivism focuses on individual and internal constructions of knowledge. 109
Piaget (1977) cited in Amineh and Asl (2015) asserts that learning does not occur
passively, rather it occurs by active construction of meaning which happens when the
individual interacts with the environment and test and modify existing schemas. For social
constructivism, it suggests that learners first construct knowledge in a social context and
then individually internalize it and its focus is on facilitating students’ constructions of
knowledge using social interaction, (Eggen & Kauchak 2010).

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Writing
Salikin and Tahir (2017) defined writing as a skill to create or reproduce the spoken
messages into written language and involves an active process to organize, formulate
and develop ideas on the paper. Jacob et al. as cited in Salikin and Tahir (2017) pointed
out five components in writing; content, organization, vocabulary, language use and
mechanics. In this proposed study, only three components of writing will be looked
into which are content, organization, vocabulary. Jacob referred content to the unity
and logical relationship of the sentences in one’s writing while organizations involves
coherency, order of importance and spatial pattern. For vocabulary, Nesamalar et al.
(2005) categorized vocabulary into content words and function words and these words
are considered as one of the requirements of good writing as word plays a dual role; to
communicate and to evoke the reader to understand and feel. In this proposed study,
the focus is free writing which Nordquist (2017) defined as a form of writing without any
limit of time and with no emphasis on grammar, punctuation, spelling, or even logical
progression as its purpose is on process rather than product. Thus, in this proposed
study, three components of writing will be looked into which are content, organization,
and vocabulary in the students’ free writing through the intervention of Instagram.

Instagram
Zappavigna (2016) described Instagram as a social photography ‘app’ designed to
run on a smartphone through which the social media user can make visual and textual
meanings, and the ambient viewer can interact with those meanings. Erkan (2015) added
that Instagram provides the opportunity for users to apply different manipulation tools
and filters on their pictures or videos and add captions using # symbol to describe their
postings. Hu et al. (2014) also elaborated that the latest innovation made by Instagram
is the launch of Instagram Stories or InstaStory, a feature that lets users add photos or
videos to a 24-hour temporary story, with subsequent updates adding virtual stickers and
augmented reality objects.

In this proposed study, the intervention using Instagram in encouraging free writing is
MALL, an acronym for mobile-assisted language learning which Valarmathi (2011) defined
as MALL> This refers to an approach to language learning that is assisted or enhanced
through the use of a handheld mobile device. Valarmathi further explains that MALL can
support the retention and utilization of newly-acquired language skills of the learners.
This is supported by Kwon and Eun (2010) as cited in Harwati et al. (2017) that mobile
phone is a good media for vocabulary drills and English communication thus, mobile
technology can act as an efficient mediator for enhancing English language learning as
well as supporting students’ target needs. In addition, this proposed study also perceived
Instagram as an online authentic material for language learning. Zyvik and Polio (2017)
110 defined authentic material as material that contains real language which is delivered by
a real speaker or writer for a real audience to pass on a real message instead of to be
used only as a tool for language learning. Kelly et al. (2002) argued that the main goal of
language learners learning a language is to be able to converse with the real speakers of

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that language, either locally or abroad and this goal can only be achieved with authentic
materials as they could bridge the gap between classroom and the real world. This is
supported by Berardo (2006) that authentic materials are highly motivating, can provide
a sense of achievement when understood and will encourage further reading. Therefore,
in this proposed study, Instagram is used as MALL and an online authentic material in
encouraging free writing among secondary school students as it is accessible online via
smartphones and can provide richer inputs for the real language used in the real world
rather than the textbooks or other materials that are created for the language learners.

Past studies
Kelly (2015) explored the use of Instagram in developing the descriptive writing proficiency
of five non-native English adult learners’ and discovered their attitudes towards Instagram
as an interactional learning tool in an informal setting. Employing an action research
design, the findings concluded that Instagram was able to develop learners’ vocabulary
control and grammatical accuracy and learners also exhibited positive attitudes as their
motivation increased through the corrective feedback received via Instagram. Similarly,
Ayuni et al. (2017) investigated on 101 university students’ perceptions and attitudes
towards the use of Instagram through descriptive English writing activity on Instagram.
The findings concluded that the students perceived Instagram positively as Instagram
encouraged their expressions of thoughts and feelings in words, based on pictures and
short videos. They were also being extra cautious with spellings, sentence structures, and
vocabulary to aviod hurting other people’s feelings, and bordering on sensitive issues. In
addition, an action research by Al-Ali (2014) integrated Instagram as a production tool to
teach writing to 20 tertiary students. The result showed that Instagram facilitated active
learning as students were responsible for generating their own ideas for their writing
tasks and for taking pictures that expressed their ideas clearly thus, helped create a more
personalized learning experience for them.

METHODOLOGY

The current study employed a qualitative research approach. This was due to the
researcher’s interests and curiosity in understanding the meaning people constructed,
that is, how people made sense of their world and the experiences they had in the world,
(Merriam 2009). Hancock et al. (2007) supported this statement by describing qualitative
research as a field which attempts to broaden and/or deepen one’s understanding of how
things came to be the way they are in our social world, explore how people experience
something, or what their views are or a new area where issues are not yet understood or
properly identified.

111
By doing a qualitative research, it allows the researchers to use a variety of tools that can
help them to carry out their research such as the employment of observations, interviews

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and personal experiences among others. For this reason, qualitative inquiry was chosen
rather than a quantitative. The rationale for using a qualitative approach as in this
study is also because the researcher’s objectives are to discover how Instagram affects
the content, organization and vocabulary of students’ free writing and to explore the
experience and perceptions of participants of free writing through the use of Instagram

Research Design
For this study, the researcher implemented a case study approach as the main research
design. This is because the purpose of the study is to investigate the effects on the usage
of Instagram in teaching narrative writing to Form 2 secondary school pupils in their
natural setting which focuses on the process of teaching and learning, the participants’
perceptions as well as the mobile applications employed by the participants. This reflects
the definition of a case study by Thomas (2016 pg. 110) as the case of the subject of the
inquiry that illuminates and explicates some analytical themes.

This study was also in line with Babbie’s (2004) point of view concerning a case study
approach. According to Babbie, a case study is an in-depth examination of a single instance
of some social phenomenon thus, case study can be the most appropriate approach that
can be applied to this study as the researcher’s objective is to get an in-depth view of
the activity and the process of teaching free writing through the use of Instagram of
multiple individuals in their natural setting. This study also concerned on maximizing the
understanding of the case being studied. Therefore, in order get the qualitative data in
this study and for the purpose of triangulation, the researcher employed three techniques
in collecting data; document analysis,semi-structured interview and observation. The
main data collection tool for this research was document analysis which was analyzing the
interview transcripts and the notes taken during the observation.  In order to triangulate
and support the document analysis, two other data collection techniques were utilized
which were semi-structured interviews and observation.

Observation
Thomas (2016) divided observation into two; structured and unstructured. For this
study, the observation was unstructured which was undertaken when the researchers
immersed themselves in the social situation, usually as some kind of participant, in order
to understand what was going on there. In this study, the teaching of free writing using
Instagram was not solely conducted in virtual environment, as there were also times that
the researcher was in presence physically with the participants. During these times, the
teaching utilized Instagram but the focus of the researcher was to observe the facial
expressions, reactions and participation of the participants. Through this observation, the
researcher was able to capture any behaviour or other gestural cues during the students’
112 participation in the activity which indirectly informed the students’ perceptions of using
Instagram in the lesson that could not be recorded by the digital audio recorder during
the interview session.

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The observation was also recorded as field notes. This is because recording observation
is regarded as the greatest advantage in e qualitative field research. (Babbie (2004).
Babbie also suggested that it is vital for the researcher to make full and accurate notes of
what goes on and the notes should include both the researcher’s empirical observations
as well as the researcher’s interpretations of them.

 
Focus Group Interview
The second technique in data collection was a semi-structured interview with a focus
group. Thomas (2016) stated that the semi-structured interview is the most commonly
used kind of interview arrangement in a small-scale social research because in a semi-
structured interview, the researcher will provide the structure with a list of issues, rather
than specific questions to be covered and the researcher has the freedom to follow up
points as necessary.

In this study, the interview was carried with a focus group and two sessions of interviews
were conducted. Each interview was participated by 5 students and the same semi-
structured questions were asked to them. Their responses were recorded with a digital
audio recorder. A small number of participants were chosen in this study because
asKrueger & Casey (2015) state, smaller groups are easier to recruit, and host and the
participants find the interview session more comfortable. The interview was conducted
twice in order to gain understanding of students’ experience in depth. This is supported by
Krueger & Casey who says that in depth sights are usually accomplished in a small group.
There were two main aims of conducting the interview. First, the researcher was able to
do an in-depth exploration on the perceptions of the participants on using Instagram in
learning free writing. The researcher was also able to seek on the participants’ opinions,
thoughts as well as their feelings regarding their own process of learning free writing
using Instagram.

       
Data Analysis
Since qualitative data analysis does not provide any fixed formula for the researcher,
much of the process of analyzing the data depends on the investigator’s way of thinking
about the data, along with consideration of alternative interpretations and presentation
of evidence (Yin 2003). Hence, for this study, the researcher decided that the process of
data analysis involved two main phases;

• Data transcription
• Content analysis

For data transcription, the interview with each respondent was recorded during the 113
interview session and then transcribed in verbatim. Thorsten, Thorsten and Schmieder
(2015) defined transcription as the transfer of an audio or video recording into written
form and Halcomb and Davidson (2006) stated that a verbatim record of the interview is

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clearly beneficial in facilitating data analysis by bringing researchers closer to their data.
For data analysis, the data collected from interview and observation were analyzed using
content analysis according to appropriate categories. The common themes and issues
were identified from the interview transcripts and then grouped together in order to ease
the process of data analysis.

Setting
The research setting refers to the place where the data was collected. In this study, the
data was collected at one secondary school located in Jeli, Kelantan

Participant
To carry out this study, purposive sampling was selected in choosing the participants.
Purposive sampling is a type of nonprobability sampling in which the units to be observed
are selected on the basis of the researcher’s judgment about which ones will be the most
useful or representative, (Babbie 2004). Merriam (2009) added that this type of sampling
allows the researchers to “discover, understand and gain insight from a sample from
which the most could be learned”.
The participants for this study consisted of Form 2 students, aged 14 and they were
selected because they fulfilled the criteria of this study which was to investigate the
effects on the usage of Instagram in teaching free writing to Form 2 secondary school
pupils.

As this study employed the use of smartphone as the research tool and all the participants
are considered as children, only those who volunteered and granted permission from
the parents or guardians (based on the consent form) were chosen as participants for
this study. This is in line with one of the key ethical principles listed by Halai (2006) that
researchers are expected to obtain informed consent from all those who are directly
involved in research or in the vicinity of research and consent is usually obtained through
written consent forms.

DISCUSSION

A Lesson Plan was written in order to utilize Instagram in the ESL classroom, [Appendix 1]
To begin with, this sample lesson plan was designed for Form 2 students and was written
using the current CEFR-KSSM syllabus. This was the lesson number 21 as stipulated in
the Form 2 Scheme of Work (SOW). The theme and topic of this lesson which were both
stated in the SOW of Lesson 21 were People and Culture and Leisure Time Activities.

114 This lesson focused on writing specifically on the free writing skill using the present-
practice-produce framework as it helped to scaffold the students’ learning process better.
The students were at first exposed to the target structure and then a controlled practice
was given to them and finally the students were given the opportunity to practise in which

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

they did the free writing process. In this lesson, the ways Instagram is used and integrated
at all levels in the lesson is explained.

Learning standards are the written descriptions that point out what the students will
have to know and be able to do at a certain level of their education. In this lesson, the
students were expected to explain simple content from what they had read, organise and
sequence ideas within short texts on familiar topics and spell written work with moderate
accuracy. This sample plan also demonstrated how all these three learning standards
were achieved in the ESL classroom through the utilization of Instagram.

Using the Instagram, the students were required to complete 3 tasks which then become
the indicator to assess the students’ learning formatively as well as to find out whether
the lesson objectives were met in the lesson. The three learning objectives of this lesson
were as below:
By the end of this lesson, students should be able to:

• fill in all the 15 blanks correctly as they read the 5 captions posted in 5 celebrities’
Instagram,

• write 2 sentences each for all 5 pictures shown in the Instagram story, and
• write 50 words caption in their individual Instagram post describing their leisure

activity using hashtag given by teacher.

When the students are able to complete all these tasks successfully using the Instagram,
it indicated that all learning objectives of this lesson were achieved.

Set Induction
During the set induction, students were shown a 2 minutes video on Instagram [Appendix
2]. This video explained a brief history of Instagram as well as the Instagram being used
other than as a platform to share videos and photos. Since the Instagram allowed only 2
a minutes videos, the length of this video was apt for the students to stay attentive and
focused. This is supported by Brame (2016) who explained that previous studies had
found that one of the most useful way to maximize students’ engagement and attention
was by keeping the video’s length short. This part of the lesson was to expose the
students to all the features that were available on Instagram so that they would be ready
for the tasks that would come later in this lesson.

Presentation 115
The next stage of this sample lesson was the Presentation stage. In this stage the students
were shown 5 random images shared by celebrities on their Instagram about their
favourite leisure time activities. The students had to log into their account and ‘explore’
into the celebrities’ accounts in order to find the five images that had been shown to
them earlier. The students then read the captions written under each of these posts and
filled in the blanks in the worksheet that were given to them. As these captions were

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

shared by celebrities who were native English speakers, this clearly certified Instagram as
an authentic online material.  

This activity reflected the real world as well as real language users and fulfilled a certain
social purpose as the Instagram posts were posted by the celebrities themselves and
were not edited by any parties for the language learners. Since the Instagram can be
associated with the real -world purposes, like Berardo’s (2006) claim, it appears to be
highly motivating for the students to learn English language because it reminds the
learners that there is an entire population who use the target language in their everyday
lives.

Practice
In the practice stage of this lesson, one of the prominent features of Instagram which
is the InstaStory was used. Students were shown an InstaStory of 5 pictures depicting 5
different types of leisure time activities that were done by random people around the
world. Since this feature displays a picture only for 15 seconds before it moves to the next
picture, students had to write 2 sentences about the picture within the stipulated time.
Since there was a time limit for each picture, students were forced to write free forms
of sentences and ideas continuously within a specific time disregarding the language
aspect like spelling and grammar. These 15 seconds pictures encouraged the students to
produce a raw writing material, but it eventually helped to build the students’ confidence
and was proven to be a good writing method for lower intermediate students like the
ones who were suggested in this sample lesson.

Production
Finally, in the production stage, the students were given a hashtag which was
#2zamrudinstaproject. Using this hashtag, students were asked to write 50 words captions
about their leisure time activities. The students were then asked to post a picture of them
doing their leisure time activities on their Instagram accounts with the 50 words caption
that they had written using the hashtag. Since this was a free writing lesson, the students
were encouraged to write freely, and no language was presented to them beforehand.
The students were then encouraged to look for their friends’ photos and their captions
using the hashtag and then write their own comments on them. The hashtag features in
the Instagram were useful in this activity as they allowed the users to make their photos
stand out and attract like-minded Instagram users. Apart from that, the hashtag also
enabled the students to have instant peer feedback which in turn was useful in assisting
them in their writing process.

Closure
116 At the end of the lesson, the whole lesson was recapitulated in order to reinforce the

students’ writing process and remind them of what they had achieved in terms of their
writing in the lesson. The students were reminded of what they had achieved when they
were asked to list 3 new things that they thought they learnt in this lesson.

ESL Practitioner: The Journal of the English Language Teaching Centre
Innovations in ELT Practices

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

There are few anticipated problems that might occur during the implementation of
Instagram in encouraging free writing among secondary school students. From the context
of the students, some students might not own smartphones, or Instagram accounts which
might cause it inconvenient for them to complete the tasks assigned as Instagram is the
crucial tool in the lesson. One way to solve this issue is that the teacher could pair these
students with others who own a smartphone and Instagram account and students can
take turns in completing the tasks. In a way, they could assist and collaborate with each
other in writing the caption for the Instagram posts. Another anticipated issue that might
arise is the distraction from Instagram itself. This could happen during Stage 1 when
students are asked to look for relevant posts in the celebrities’ Instagram profile, where
in the process of looking for information, they might be distracted by browsing every
post thoroughly rather than skimming and scanning for information which could take up
longer time than it should be. In order to solve this, it is suggested that the teacher set a
fixed duration of time and if the students are unable to finish the task, their marks on their
individual reward book could be deducted.

In addition, another issue could be from the parents. Some parents might be sceptical
in letting their children to use Instagram in learning English as they might not be able to
associate how Instagram could contribute to the learning. Therefore, in order to clarify
this issue, the teacher could write a formal letter to the parents involved, explaining
the purpose on the use of Instagram in learning free writing and the outcomes that
students will acquire throughout the process of learning. By doing this, it is hoped that
the parents will be much clearer and permit their children to use the smartphone for
learning purposes.

117

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APPENDIX 1: LESSON PLAN

ENGLISH: DAILY LESSON PLAN

WEEK DAY DATE TIME CLASS ATTENDANCE
2 Zamrud

LESSON Lesson 21: Writing
THEME /TOPIC People and Culture - Leisure Time Activities
LANGUAGE FOCUS Main Skill Focus- Writing

CONTENT STANDARD Main Skill
Writing 4.1: Communicate intelligibly through print and digital

media on familiar topics
Complementary Skill
Writing 4.1: Communicate intelligibly through print and digital

media on familiar topics
Writing 4.2: Communicate with appropriate language, form and

style

LEARNING STANDARD Main Skill
Writing 4.1.1: Explain simple content from what they have read
Complementary Skill
Writing 4.1.5: Organise and sequence ideas within short texts on

familiar topics
Writing 4.2.2: Spell written work with moderate accuracy

LEARNING OBJECTIVE(S)
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to
(i) fill in all the 15 blanks correctly as they read the 5 captions posted in 5 celebrities’ Instagram
(ii) write 2 sentences each for all 5 pictures shown in the instagram story
(iii) write 50 words caption in their individual Instagram post describing about their leisure activity

using hashtag given by teacher

ACTIVITIES
A. Set Induction

1. Students are shown a short video about Instagram

B. Stage 1:
1.Students are shown three different images shared by celebrities on Instagram about the
activities they do during their leisure time
2.Students are asked then asked to find these pictures and read the captions attached to them
3. Fill in the Blanks Worksheet – Students fill in blanks as they read the captions from the
celebrities
4. Pair discussion of the answers

C. Practice
1. Students are shown then an instastory with several pictures with each picture shown for only
15 s.
3. While looking at the instastory, students have to write 2 sentences describing each picture
4. Then students sit in groups to discuss their answers

D. Production
1. Students are given a hashtag in this task which is #2zamrudinstaproject
2. Students are asked to post a picture of them doing their leisure time activities with 50 words
caption. They also must attach the #2zamrudinstaproject hashtag in their individual caption
3. Students are then to look for their friends’ photos and captions using the hashtag and write
their opinions on the photos

E. Closure RELIEF CLASS
1. Lesson Recap CLASS:
TIME:
ACTION/FOLLOW UP/REINFORCEMENT/REFLECTION

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TEACHERS’ NOTES / REMARKS DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES

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APPENDIX 2: VIDEO ON HISTORY OF INSTAGRAM
Retrieved from www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JH2nRu2dNw

Tavamani Thiagarajan
SMK Balah, Jeli, Kelantan
[email protected]

122 Noor Diana Suhaimi
SK Pulapah, Jempol, Negeri Sembilan

[email protected]



ESL PRACTITIONER

English Language Teaching Centre
Ministry of Education Malaysia

Kompleks Pendidikan Nilai,
Lebuh Enstek, Bandar Enstek
71890 Labu, Negeri Sembilan
MALAYSIA