LEARNING ENGLISH INDEPENDENTLY THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

This study is aimed at investigating students’ independent learning through social media during
the COVID-19 pandemic situation. The research involved the first-year students of the English
Education Department of a private university in Jakarta. They were chosen purposively. To
answer the research questions, a qualitative approach was employed. Data were obtained from
the questionnaire, which was distributed via Google Form, and semi-structured interviews. The
results of this study show that students are learning English independently during the COVID-19
pandemic by using social media. Although they usually use social media for social networking,
they are aware that social media can be used for improving their English skills without any
instructions from the teachers. However, there are challenges in learning English independently
through social media. It can be concluded that students can use social media to learn English but
students’ self-directed learning needs strong motivation to start and to be consistent.
Keywords: Independent Learning, Social Media, English skills