A Comparative Study of Social Media Engagement for Learning Arabic Among Lower Secondary School Student

Abstract

In Malaysia, Arabic language is among the languages offered and commonly taken by lower secondary school students, where Standard Secondary School Curriculum (KSSM) and Integrated Dini Curriculum (KBD) are among the curricula offered. With the evolving development of social media use for language learning, there are lacking number of studies on its use for Arabic language learning among lower secondary school students. The use of traditional approach and teacher-centred learning in Arabic language has persisted for many years, despite the rapid shift towards digitalised learning. This study aims to investigate the statistically significant differences of social media engagement for learning Arabic among lower secondary school students according to KSSM and KBD curriculum. The engagement has been measured across three patterns, namely Critical Cognitive, Social Interactive and Active Language Use. This study applied the quantitative approach using the cross-sectional survey design. An online questionnaire has been distributed to 364 lower secondary school students in Kuala Lumpur, which has been analysed through the independent samples t-test. Results showed that there are no statistically significant differences in social media engagement for learning Arabic between the two types of curricula. This study emphasises the need to encourage the social media engagement for learning Arabic among students regardless of their curriculum, as both types require support for social media as a complementary mode of language learning.