Approaches Using Social Media Platforms for Teaching English Literature Online

1. Introduction

Practical trends in e-learning development in higher education are important to universities (Asgari, & Mehrpouyan, 2016). Online classes have become a distinctly

1 Corresponding Author popular method for college students to develop their education practically. Teaching an online direction requires special techniques from the face-to-face classroom hence instructors must undertake or increase their competencies to the online learning environment, to make their materials effective and engaging for students. Special teaching strategies can enforce to improve instructors' online education and make the online class a successful experience for each professor and their learners. Online teaching also needs exclusive kinds of interactions with students. Effective online teaching depends on gaining knowledge of experiences, which are appropriately facilitated and designed by methods of knowledgeable instructors. Since inexperienced students of English literature in e-classes have distinct studying patterns and a mixture of methods, online instructors ought to plan activities that consist of multiple styles of learning for different subjects e.g. poetry, fiction, drama, etc. Teaching methods have to also be tailored to the new learning environments. This paper covers the following forms of literature for an online class with below concepts and objectives: prose, poetry, story, play Biography, and autobiography, and essay.

Prose: Teaching prose seeks to develop knowledge and comprehension in students. They are enabled to evaluate and criticize the thought and factual content. They are taught various forms of available literature. By acquiring the ability to understand its meaning and theme, they become able to criticize and review it on both factual and psychological planes.

Poetry: Teaching poetry in literature seeks to develop understanding and appreciation in students of the various aspects of poetry so that they can understand and appreciate its themes. They are also expected to memorize poems while being able to analyze and criticize various forms of poetry.

Story and play: Teaching story and play seeks to provide knowledge and understanding so that students can analyze and criticize their different characteristics and aspects. They also become able to identify facts, events, and other occurrences mentioned in the story.

Biography and autobiography: This is concerned with the affective aspect, emphasizing the acquisition of knowledge and understanding about the subject's lifestyle, main incidents, and events; these enable one to analyze and criticize their role in the specific field.

Essay: Teaching essays in literature seeks to develop knowledge and understanding in students so that they develop skills in writing and evaluation on a subject while appreciating different forms of essays.

To implement a literature curriculum for the various mentioned forms of literature and different levels of learners, instructors should set clear expectations with students and build rapport and community with them through strategies for teaching English literature online. In this article, the method of using social media platforms such as YouTube as supporting resources in e-teaching and e-learning is focused on literary content in different genres.

The usual face-to-face learning space is instructor-centered. The educator controls the transfer of the information and lessons. With the fast development of the Internet, “access to widespread e-sources and materials: original literary texts, critical reviews, reading aloud the literary texts, live drama performance, etc., students are no longer dependent on college for gaining knowledge”. The potential to learn online has altered this dynamic enabling cyberspace that is monitored and discussed. A studentcentered online session that can increase interactivity and collaboration. Online instructors are now facilitators of data guiding college students towards solutions. Some change/amendment /improvement/update to the instructor’s pedagogy is required. For online education to be successful, educators, as properly as s, should target students to take on new roles in the teaching-learning relationship, and colleges have to be inclined to launch manage of gaining knowledge of to the college students (Instructional Strategies for Online Courses, 2011). Online instructors have discovered that by using incorporating a “full range of interactive methodologies” (Instructional Strategies for Online Courses, 2011), online discussions and forums produce higher quality, deeper communication, and responses. Below are countless teaching strategies identified with the aid of the universities’’ online Network for improving the strategies used in the face-to-face class that can be transferred into an online education environment in different scopes of instructional strategies for online literature courses: forum/discussion, assignments, assessments, projects, online presentation, collaborative learning, lecture, case study, etc. However, social media platforms for teaching English literature online are crucial and helpful. The question of this study is what approaches to use these platforms for teaching English literature online with a special focus on YouTube.

The research method used was the library and literature review method; practical and experimental methods were also employed to conduct this study.

2. Literature Review

Online educational methods refer to the ways and approaches that guide the organization of learning activities, course content, and student engagement in online courses (Bonk and Dennen 2003). Posting self-introduction videos at the start of an online class so that participants can feel that they understand their peers better is an example of an educational strategy. Strategies often adopted in online courses include (1) promoting interactivity through asynchronous and synchronous communication or delivery (Ku et al. 2011; Lawton et al. 2012); (2) facilitating the application of ideas (Steinberg 2010; Strang 2012); (3) using video demonstrations, such as screencasts for demonstrating tools and programs (Gemmell et al. 2011); and (4) fostering a robust social presence or a sense of belonging to a learning community (Thomas et al. 2008; Zhang and Walls 2006).

Students in online quantitative courses like statistics have restricted access to face-to-face support and have a higher rate of attrition than that of face-to-face courses (Ariadurai and Manohanthan 2008). The lack of adequate and deep interaction is a common issue in online courses because students and instructors are located in different geographic locations (Moore 1991). This lack of interaction can easily lead to a sense of isolation and frustration and a high dropout rate in online courses (Willging and Johnson 2004).

Interaction permits students in online classes to become active and cooperative learners. There are three types of interaction in online courses: student-to-instructor, student-to-content, and student-to-student interaction (Moore 1989). Student-to-instructor interaction refers to dialogue between students and the teacher, as well as the engagement of students and the teacher in the learning and teaching process (York et al. 2007). Student-to-content interaction refers to the amount of substantive interaction occurring between the learner(s) and the content (e.g., texts, audio, and videos). Student-to-student interaction refers to the dialogue and exchanges between and/or among different participants in an online course. These interactions affect not only how students perceive their learning and the overall educational experience, but also the perceived quality of the instruction and learning in an online course (Bonk and Cunningham 1998). Encouraging students to respond to each other and to the teacher in ways that demonstrate critical thinking and the application of course ideas may also promote higher-level cognitive skills (Davis and Snyder 2012; Lawton et al. 2012). Students who engage in cooperative learning can better relate new Cunningham to the knowledge they already possess and reflect on their viewpoint and those of others to reach a comprehensive understanding of an issue (Miller and Redman 2010).

Students can interact with each other and their teacher through synchronous or asynchronous communication. Synchronous communication depends on fixed meeting times and allows issues to be immediately addressed during the learning process (Ku et al. 2011). For instance, using Elluminate, an online conferencing program, to deliver a statistics class (i.e., using synchronous communication) was found to be more effective than having a text-based asynchronous communication delivery mode (Myers and Schiltz 2012). Asynchronous communication offers greater flexibility for students who prefer to work independently and provides more time for students to reflect on their learning. In asynchronous communication, students work at their own pace and generally interact with one another through threaded discussion boards (Ku et al. 2011). Asynchronous communication also allows students to reflect on readings and what they are learning from others, elaborate on comments, and post stimulating questions to encourage others to think more about topics. This leads students to further develop their ideas or consider new ways of thinking (Majeski and fodder 2007). However, students might not be happy with their instructors’ delayed explanations to their queries, and may not feel that the teacher is approachable, and/or feel comfortable collaborating with their peers through asynchronous communication (Summers et al. 2005). Strang (2012) noted that mathematically oriented topics are tougher to learn and teach, and it may be ideal to have both synchronous and asynchronous communication to facilitate active application and interaction to enhance learning. However, because many online students seek online courses to avoid fixed meeting times, it is sensible to adopt asynchronous communication for online courses (Huan et al. 2011).

3. Methods

Data were collected from practical instructional strategies and experiences in actual online literature classes and students’ reflections on a range of different strategies and course designs to help students learn literature in an online setting. The study was conducted through a literature review and mainly empirical and descriptive-analysis methods to address the objectives of the study regarding the right EdTech tools and curricular support, and it investigates how to use social media platforms, e.g., YouTube, as supplementary sources in e-teaching and e-learning for literary content.

4. Results and Discussion

4. 1. Prime Social Media Platform for Teaching English Literature Online

This article has a special focus on YouTube as a social media platform to help teach literature subjects. Some literary subjects are difficult to understand, and this platform might be helpful. Re-enactments of Shakespeare's drama exist in YouTube videos, and short videos can be used in literature classes. Instead of college students simply analyzing a text version of Othello, why not also have them watch a live performance of Othello to get them truly inspired to study literature? These different types of videos can be used to complement online literature classes. Students’ comments have improved, as they like listening to authors talk about why they wrote their literary works, etc. The students are now interested in literature through enjoying multimedia. Some approaches to using this social media platform are suggested for literature instructors in a variety of literary genres. Prime Social Media Platforms for e-Teaching English Literature can include: Live Performances of Plays, Reading Poems, Writer Interviews and Biographies, Evaluation of Literary Works, Students' Performances and Experiences, Performed literary pieces, Musical Selections of Many Historical Literary Periods, Full-Length Movies in 10-Minutes, Radio Productions and Audiobook Readings (Figure.1)

Figure1. Social Media Platform for e-Teaching English Literature

4.2. Watch Live Performances of Plays

YouTube has play performances, particularly Shakespeare performances, e.g., Othello, Hamlet, and The Merchant of Venice, as well as other Shakespeare plays. Students can watch specific remakes of these performances, and examine and contrast which performance they like best. Students can additionally stage their own renditions of a dramatist and upload their videos. YouTube has many renditions of Hamlet from the 20th century. It is fascinating to see how various actors interpret the same lines "To be or now not to be." Each actor has his way of delivering these lines, and it is enjoyable for college students to compare and contrast these performances in an online discussion forum (Animated Tales of Hamlet).

4.3. Retain Reading Poems Aloud by the Poets

In a video, Langston Hughes reads a piece of his literary work "The Negro Speaks of Rivers." Being attentive to the poet’s voice helps Literature students perceive his motivations and aspirations for writing that literary work. Whereas Hughes reads his literary work, one might hear in his voice the pain that racial discrimination points to. Hearing this ache enables college students to apprehend an extra non-public dimension of the poem. In the discussion forum, the online teacher can then ask college students what their concept about the poet is and how to investigate the reviews and modify their perception of the poem (Negro Speaks of Rivers).

4.4. Listen to Rare Writer Interviews and Biographies

In a rare interview, John Steinbeck talks about why he wrote the Grapes of Wrath. YouTube videos allow college students to hear and see the author and better understand the motivations behind his literary works. It is gratifying to raise students’ awareness by asking questions about what they learned about these authors from these videos, and students might then observe how listening to these interviews changed their interpretations of the literary piece (Steinbeck video).

4.5. Review the Evaluation of Well-Known Literary Works

YouTube has literary analyses of many notable works, such as Robert Frost's Mending Wall. The instructor can ask students if they agree or disagree with the literary analysis, and why (Literary Analysis of the Mending Wall by way of Robert Frost).

4.6. Observe Other Students’ Performances and Experiences of Literary Pieces

Students can examine how other college students have re-enacted a play they are analyzing in class. Students are encouraged to then create their own re-enactments of this play for a fuller understanding of the play. It is enjoyable for college students to embed these scholarly videos in their discussion boards and to talk about what they like or dislike about the performance.

4.7. Involve in Performed Literary Pieces in Their Native Tongue

For instructors teaching Dante's Inferno, there is a YouTube video of Dante's Inferno in its original language, Italian. Listening to it in Italian helps college students get an idea of how the poem sounds in its native language (La Divina Commedia).

4.8.Give Ear to Musical Selections of Many Historical Literary Periods

If, for example, a professor is teaching the Harlem Renaissance, one will find many videos presenting the music of the Harlem Renaissance. When students listen to the music, they can imagine sitting in a jazz club listening to a band of that period (Harlem Renaissance).

4.9. Receive Full-Length Movies in 10-Minute Intervals of the Preferred Literary Pieces

Literature students who begin reading Hamlet according to their syllabus might watch a full-length movie of Hamlet in ten-minute intervals on YouTube, or might watch short clips or selected videos. Professors can have students compare and contrast the movie adaptation with the original text.

4.10. Enjoy Radio Productions of Great American/ British Plays

Students can examine a play like The Glass Menagerie and then listen to radio productions and compare and contrast them with what they have read. Listening to these old radio productions also helps college students understand how older generations entertained themselves before the invention of television (World Performance of Glass Menagerie).

4.11. Have Audiobook Readings of a Literary Novel/Poem/Drama

YouTube has chapter-by-chapter readings of popular novels such as The Grapes of Wrath. Students can listen to the complete novel in ten-minute intervals. Listening to a novel offers another dimension of enjoyment and understanding for the student (Meet Ray Bradbury). Hence, literature professors might implement their e-creative and e-innovative techniques in their online teaching methods through the use of multimedia platforms, communication apps, browsers, websites, cyber play and games, bulletin boards, chatrooms, blogs, wikis, linguistic communication processes, podcasts, course management systems, annotated digital editions, text-analysis tools, ASCII text file applications, and YouTube channels (Lancashire, 2009).

There is an ongoing dialogue in the educational literature that the use of such social media and social networking sites facilitates collaborative learning. It is typical of human psychology that such communication media appear solely for entertainment, but it should be noted cautiously that if such communication technology is approached with due interest, it can prove productive. It is essential to acknowledge that most university students presently adopt social media communication to engage with colleagues and instructors, stay in contact with old friends, and even use it as a convenient means of transferring resources. In the current era, the majority of college students belong to different social media community groups like WhatsApp and Facebook pages, following specialized tutorial web pages to upgrade their knowledge.

Accordingly, the use of online social media for collaborative learning, interplay with mentors and colleagues Leadbetter student engagement, which hence influences student’s academic performance. The greater training authority ought to provide such a platform that can nurture the student’s mental talents. Based on the empirical investigation, it would be stated that students’ engagement, social media conversation gadgets facilitate college students to retrieve data and interact with others in real-time related to sharing educating substances contents. Additionally, such sophisticated conversation gadgets would prove to be more beneficial to the students who feel too shy in front of peers; teachers may open up on the web for collaborative studying and teaching in the international situation and additionally useful for physically challenged students. It would additionally make the experience that intensive use of such state-of-the-art technological knowledge in educating pedagogical in higher education, in addition, enables the instructors and college students to interact digitally, web-based learning, growing dialogue groups, etc. (Ansari and Khan, 2020).

Conclusions

The appropriate EdTech tools, which help the curricula, were recommended. The results exhibit that online pedagogy for literature subjects have active approaches and strategies to facilitate teaching and learning such as remodeling a Web-based environment and platform into an intimate social community spanning establishments and individual student. Literature professors should not think that because they are under the branches of the human sciences, they cannot, like other disciplines, not benefit from the facilities and tools of educational technology, particularly in online education, themselves and their students. These educators should try to adapt to the technology of the day and learn the updated methods and strategies to use them in the online classroom environment. With the help of their creativity and experience and collaboration with other colleagues, they can improve their teaching abilities and skills in the online space and provide a more enjoyable and productive learning environment. In this article, an example of a useful educational platform for academics is introduced with approaches on how to use it as a generalizable instance that can help to teach literature courses effectively in universities. These strategies and approaches can provide the ground for literature educators with their knowledge, experience, and creativity to be able to use these strategies in a way that is compatible with their learning environment and the level of online classroom students.

Ultimately, it is recommended to study other social media platforms for teaching English literature online and compare the different approaches to their use.

References