Abstract

Technological advancement with its extensive use in every field of life has also encouraged instructors to apply innovative techniques in enhancing English speaking skills. Vlogs, tutorials and lectures are the latest technique which is gaining popularity. The current research intends to explore the perceptions of ESL students towards the use of vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube. The researchers used a cross-sectional survey by adopting qualitative and quantitative procedures. The population of the study comprised ESL students studying in the Virtual University of Lahore and 100 ESL students were selected as sampling. The data were collected through a close-ended questionnaire, later analysed comprehensively and presented in tables and figures. The findings of the study illustrated that ESL students have shown a positive inclination towards the use of vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube for enhancing speaking skills. In the end, the researchers also recommended some suggestions for future researchers.

Key Words

YouTube, Vlogs, Tutorials, Lectures, ESL Learning, Speaking Skill, Students Perceptions

Introduction

The sharing of online videos is easier than with the enhancement of video-sharing sites such as YouTube and the expansion of the broadband internet. Youtube is widely used as an instrument for refining the English language speaking skills of ESL learners Sakkir, Dollah & Ahmad, (2020). The context of the present research study provides an overview of content created by users, concentrating on personal video vlogs, tutorials and lectures. Vlogs are places where, as traditional vlogs include, writers post stories and/or facts about themselves in the form of video, rather than text. They are self-expression community spaces where writers manage the published content. There are about 120,000 different blogs created every time, according to David Sifry in (2007) " Vlogs of their descendants are exclusive in the way that they are created by their authors and the way listeners interact with them. Vlogs do not include editors' teams; content and timing of release are managed by writers. By both listening and watching them, as well as commenting directly on the material, listeners engage with these circumstances. On blogs and vlogs, typical porters don't exist. Hollywood film productions are no longer dominated by video-watching viewers (Garfield, 2006). In teaching, the use of e-learning or online tutorials is very convenient and efficient in enhancing the advancement of learning. In the learning process, the use of online tutorials will offer benefits in terms of saving time and maintaining a healthier way of thinking. Online tutorials are learning support facilities that have the form of theoretical exercises for students. According to Afriani (2007), online tutorials are Internet-based tutorials or web-based tutorials (WBT) that occur in society and are linked to students through the Internet. Lecture developments are effective and active learning tools, and may be one of the finest approaches to learning. An organized lecture from a motivating, thoughtful expert is one of the standard methods of teaching. These lectures will occupy the verbal parts of your brain, supporting information increased through reading or practical skills. 

A previous study by Alaboudi (2014) shows that blogs are active resources for academic development because they facilitate higher levels of expectation and supportive learning for learners. As an integral part of the cooperative speech process, Algrami (2012) reports that 2 vlogs-based studies, enable students to develop a valid review culture. The specified research focuses on the impact of feedback through vlogs, tutorials and lectures on the enhancement of learner speaking skills. He also evaluates whether blogging improves the ability of students to speak, especially the use of pronunciation, by giving them the opportunity to publish oral performances and receive input from other learners and instructors. Vlogs, tutorials and lectures are admired as they teach us about ourselves and characterize a modern mode of self-expression that is embedded in communication today. In our culture, improvements in communication skills have an impact. Much as the expansion and adoption of the printing press enhanced the dissemination of information in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, tutorials, lectures and vlogging have the same impact. Publishing and posting text, audio, and video on the Internet is not only casual, it is almost instantaneous, and users find it at little expense. Scholars have begun researching blogging tutorials and online videos, such as YouTube, but they have yet to turn their attention to tutorials and lectures for vlogging.




Statement of the Problem 

Communication is one of the skills that students need to be fluent while studying English. A significant medium for communication is speaking. Numerous creative methods are being developed to teach speaking skills in the rapidly evolving 21st century. Technology is the means of gaining access to this productive environment. Technology is used widely in educational segments today, more than the development of contact, trade, and transactions. Technological devices have been used as ways to help students develop their language skills, especially speaking skills. In spite of the roles associated with speaking, Wulanjani (2017) faces difficulties with speaking skills for the majority of people in proper education segments and proficient environments. There are also difficulties for students learning English as a foreign language due to several causes, such as an absence of attention in learning English, lacking knowledge of speaking skills, and experience to insufficient teaching methodology and possessions for speaking skills. Restricted vocabulary, improper use of idiomatic and conversational words, unconventional use of grammar, word order and phrase structure problems, and recognizing meanings and interpreting them in conversation are some of the speaking skills problems among students. 3 The approaches and resources used to teach the method of speaking are important, such as teaching features of the development of speaking. Instructional resources such as linguistic textbooks should also have sufficient content relating to the teaching of the processes of speaking. However, teaching textbooks may have inadequate content needed to teach the speaking process, this problem resource can be solved by using additional teaching material such as web vlogging, tutorials and YouTube lectures. For example, learners can openly post blog posts, accesses to discourse their problems, speech skills, and other related information, and gain input about their blogs. Technology also offers chances for less expensive resources and processes to achieve speaking capacity. Technology is now really useful for students to learn something with the support of the internet for a day. And students often display a positive reaction to the use of technology. Researchers concentrated on various issues relating to the effects of incorporating technology into normal teaching practices, especially blogging, tutorials and lectures. The presented study shows the main objectives tell us about the perception of students towards the use of vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube for enhancing speaking skills. According to these objectives, the researcher wants to ask about the perception of students and get the views of learners about the use of YouTube videos. This study helps to solve the English-speaking problem of students in online learning and it will overcome the fears of ESL learners. There are both advantages and disadvantages when using authentic materials and media. One of the disadvantages is the time and effort it takes to find such material and, make it comprehensible to students, as students tend to focus more on content and meaning than on language/




Objectives of the Study

The main objectives of the present research study are to identify the perceptions of ESL students about the usage of YouTube channels for educational purposes and to explore the benefits of vlogs, tutorials and lectures that help undergraduate students in enhancing their speaking skills. To find the answer to these questions researchers developed the following two research questions.




Research Questions

I. What are the perceptions of ESL students about vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube?

II. How vlogs, tutorials and lectures are beneficial for ESL students in enhancing speaking skills?




Limitations of the Study 

I. The present research work is conducted in an international context disregarding continental and international contexts.  

II. Regarding the population of the study, the population of the study is selected from a specific public sector university which is not only sidestepping private sector universities but also ignoring other public sector universities. 

III. The research study is also limited to the university level ignoring other levels such as college, school levels etc.

IV. The sampling was selected only from the English department's 200 ESL learners. The research can be expanded to other faculties and departments. The sample size also can be enlarged.

V. The sample size is also limited it can be increased to find better results.  But instead of all these limitations this research study is very significant.




Significance of the Study 

The interconnectedness between learners and professionals includes changes in worldview and speaking skills, implying that the learning of English in Pakistan is an important feature. The research, therefore, analyses the speaking procedure and the oral production; therefore, the results of this learning are important in finding the difficulties faced in the English-speaking method in the Pakistani perspective by EFL students at the English Language Organization. Applied and evidence-based solutions to the recognized problems are needed to examine the problems associated with speaking abilities among students. For this purpose, to authenticate the theoretical structure of the research and build it on concrete proof, the study focuses on an experimental design to examine the effects of enhancing English teaching approaches with technology. The experiment offers tangible proof of the problems associated with student speaking processes and explains the effect on the output of students of blogging, tutorials and lectures as a technical resource. In practice and analysis, especially when using the given textbooks at the English Language Institute, students often see oral performance as a difficult ability. This difficulty is due to the lack of effective English language command and the incapability to establish a ridiculous vocabulary and pronunciation to clearly manage the speech progression and the manifestation of views. Enhancements in the content of speech and speaking behaviours of foreign language learners are likely to promote progress in the accomplishment and achievement of degrees of students in English language institutions. Therefore, in exposure to the features that are likely to develop success and achievement rates among English language learners, this research is significant. For education supervisors, it is also important because it provides learners with information about the need and usage of adaptive knowledge in learning perspectives. For education policymakers and prospectus creators, it is important because it demonstrates the essentials for speech skills, the disorganization of present teaching methods and tools, and the usefulness of innovations such as web-based blogs.

Literature Review

A review of the literature claims that published information is published in a specific subject area, and often information is published in a different subject area for a certain period of time. A review of literature may only be a clear overview of the sources, but it generally has an organizational pattern and incorporates both summary and output (Ahmad, Maitlo, & Rao, (2022). The literature review of the present study covers vlogs, tutorials, lectures on YouTube, and speaking skills, followed by some previous research.




Vlogs, Tutorials and Lectures on YouTube

Rakhmanina & Kusumaningrum (2017) stated that blog perform an important role in the development of communication among learners and instructors in ESL learning and it helps in the growth of students speaking skill. Saidalvi, Mohamad, & Wan Fakhruddin (2021) conducted research and explored the role of vlogs in enhancing English-speaking skills by selecting fifty-nine undergraduates as sampling from a Malaysian university. The findings of this study revealed that vlogs on youtube help students in improving their English-speaking skills. Moreover, they find that a vlog's major function is to produce an instrument for the purpose to benefit ESL learners to acquire the English language without difficulty especially speaking skills. A tutorial is an instrument for transmitting knowledge and can be used as part of an education process. More engaging and precise than a book or lecture, a tutorial aims to demonstrate by example and provide the information to complete a certain task. Depending on the context, a tutorial may generate one of many kinds, varying from either a set of task completion instructions to solving an interactive problem. Wilkins (2011) states that this paper explores various ways in which educators can use the YouTube.com video platform (or other online video streaming websites) to teach English and encourage autonomy for learners. If students and teachers have access to the Internet, YouTube lectures can be a valuable instrument for learning many foreign language skills. 

By using YouTube lessons both inside and outside the classroom, conversation, listening, and pronunciation skills can be developed. Videos from YouTube can also be used as regalia to encourage cultural lessons, increase exposure to world English, and promote genuine vocabulary development. This paper also explores different ways teachers can use the YouTube.com video website (or other online video streaming websites) to teach English and stimulate the autonomy of learners. YouTube can be a precious tool where many foreign language skills can be learned if students and teachers have access to the Internet. Reading and writing exercises can be structured around videos from YouTube. As well as homework and assignments involving the use of online streaming videos, in-class lessons and activities will be detailed. Berk (2009) implanted content-related video parts from YouTube and other comparable internet outlets into lectures by the teacher of an immersive science course for conscience majors. Through this research, the teacher wanted to know the views of students about how they were interested in video use and enhanced their curiosity and comprehension of skill. Students' written survey responses supported arguments that the videos helped sustain the attention of learners, generated interest in science, and explained comprehension. Students cited the importance of visual learning in helping them understand scientific processes and concepts, together with the lecture. The video provided learners with memory and associations that also helped them remember the idea.




Speaking Skill 

There are four competencies that need to be mastered in English language learning. In the English language speaking and writing skills are viewed as creative skills and becoming a master in these skills is a challenging and difficult task for ESL learners (Ahmad, Iqbal & Rao; Ahmad, Maitlo, & Jeevan, 2023). Speaking is one of them. Speaking is an important language-learning ability. According to Boonkit (2010), speaking is the most significant skill that has a role in communication. Speaking skill has many advantages if it is mastered. It can be used to communicate with people around the world because most of them are using English. In education, many students of foreign languages don't pay much attention to the importance of mastering English especially in speaking skills.




Some Previous Related Studies

Boonkit, K. (2010) and Watkins and Wilkins, (2011) used Youtube in EFL classrooms for the purpose of EFL learning. Hasan et al. (2018) employed Youtube video ESL learning in the Bangladeshi context. Harlinda (2019) surveyed and to know the EFL learners' perceptions about the usage of Youtube by means of the EFL learning tool. Ilyas& Putri, (2020) conducted research on Youtube channel as an alternative social media for enhancing EFL learners speaking skills. Yadav (2021) in his research work tried to discover the part of social media in adult ESL learners. Zulkflee et, al (2022) in their survey research in Malaysian and Indonesian contexts and noted EFL students' perceptions of using Youtube to progress their English speaking ability. Different researchers (Saidalvi, Mohamad & Wan Fakhruddin, 2021; Kim & Kim, 2021) conducted their research work on the related topic but in the Pakistani context, no researcher has conducted e single research on the exact topic. So, the researchers of the present study found that there is a need to work on this topic to fill the gap left by the previous researchers.

Methodology and Design

Research methodology addresses the nature of the study, setting and time, data source/participant, research variables and indicators, data collection techniques and data analysis. It aims to compile, evaluate and interpret information. This research has examined the use of vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube for enhancing the speaking skill of ESL learners. Through this research, we analyse the perceptions of ESL students about vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube. This study is framed in qualitative 

and quantitative research. Qualitative data are based on facts and figures in detail. It is also a quantitative study. According to (Rao, Jeevan & Ahmad, 2023) the researcher must be aware of some kind of survey or questionnaire to identify the attitudes, beliefs, habits, experiences or other characteristics of the population of a sample or in some cases an entire population. questionnaire.




Population and Sampling

The population of the present study was contained of ESL students of the Virtual University Lahore and 100 ESL students were selected as a sample by using a random sampling technique. The researchers seek permission from the principal of the concerned university to conduct their research work they meet the principal and were granted permission to complete their task. For the purpose of data collection, they face-to-face met 100 ESL students of undergraduate level in the university and asked questions which were included in the questionnaire. They collected data from the hundred available ESL students in the virtual university.




Instrumentation

The data comes from the questionnaire containing fifteen closed-ended questions. The data collection procedure involved defining the aim of the research and selecting a suitable data collection method. The data was collected by quantitative method. This method consists of a closed-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire is divided into four parts the first part was contain demographic information of the participants, the second part consists of five questions about Vlogs, the third part contains tutorials, and the fourth part covers lectures on YouTube.  The researchers identify the perceptions of the ESL students about vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube and want to get the views of these ESL students about watching videos.







Data Collection and Analysis 

The data was collected by using a close-ended questionnaire containing two parts, the first part contains the demographic information of the research contributors while the second part contains fifteen close-ended questions developed by the researchers to know the ESL students' perceptions regarding the role of YouTube vlogs, tutorials, and lectures in enhancing English speaking skill of ESL students of the undergraduate level of virtual university in Lahore. The researchers visited the Virtual University and met these 100 students face-to-face for data collection. But before collecting data keeping ethical concerns in mind, they find permission from the principal of the concerned university to conduct their research. In this way, they completed their data collection process by using a random sampling technique. The collected data was analysed by using SPSS and presented in numerical form in tables and graphical figures.

Findings of The Study

This part of the article defines the study's important observations and outcome and it covers the various sections as the demographic information of the participants, results of closed-ended questions through the methodology of frequency analysis, in which researchers interpreted the results and presented the results in table and graphs. The detailed discussion of the research findings by comparing all the major outcomes of this study with previous studies.

 

Frequency Analysis

The section on frequency analysis is divided into two parts, which includes the demographic analysis and survey results. The main objective of conducting frequency analysis was to better analyse the understanding and attitude of students towards the use of YouTube vlogs, tutorials and lectures and improve their ability to communicate through images. Therefore,

 

several important questions from students studying at the Virtual University in Lahore were asked in the survey questionnaire. This segment provides the analysis of all the answers received from the students with regard to the questions they were asked.

 

Demographic Information

Table number one blew presenting the demographic information of the research participants which includes the gender and locality of the participants.




 

Table 1

Gender and Location of The Participants

Gender/Locality	Participants/Area	Numbers	Percentage	Total
Gender	Female	50	50%	A total of 100/ (100%) ESL students contributed.
	Male	50	50%
Location	Rural	50	60%
	Urban	50	40%

 




Table number one shows that from the total hundred research participants, fifty belong to female and the other fifty belong to male genders. Similarly, regarding location fifty belongs to urban and the other fifty belong to the rural areas of Pakistan these all were studying at Virtual University, Lahore campus.

Figure 1

Responses to the first five Close Ended Questions 

Responding to the first close-ended question "Vlogs make students fluent in speaking English skill" 72% of ESL students agreed while 28% of ESL students disagreed with the statement. In the response to the second close-ended question, "Vlogs make me sure in pronouncing English words" 67% agreed 33% disagreed. 59% of students agreed and 41% were not agreed with the statement of the third question "Vlogs affect my intonation while speaking". For the fourth question, "Vlogs make the students actively involved in preparing the material for speaking skill" 79% responded positively whereas 21% of students responded negatively. While responding to the fifth question in which ESL students were asked "Vlogs remind the content of the YouTube videos" 62% agreed and 28% of ESL students disagreed with the statement given in the fifth open-ended question.  

Figure 2

Responses to the next five Close Ended Questions 

In the sixth close-ended question the researchers asked that "Tutorials remove my confusion, worry, embarrassment, shyness in speaking English" 53% agreed and 47% of ESL students disagreed with the statement. In response to the seventh close-ended question "Tutorials solve the problems of using incorrect grammar." 58% agreed 42% disagreed. 65% of students agreed and 35% were not agreed with the statement of the eighth question "Tutorials overcome the difficulties of pronouncing the words". For the ninth question, "Tutorials give me a limited amount of vocabulary" the 60% responded positively whereas 40% of students responded negatively. While responding to the tenth question in which ESL students were asked "Tutorials give me the opportunity to interact with a native speaker" 62% agreed and 28% of ESL students disagreed with the statement given in the tenth close-ended question.  

Figure 3

Responses to the last five Close Ended Questions 

In the eleventh close-ended question the researchers asked that "Lectures on YouTube is a useful tool for learning English speaking" 71% agreed and 29% of ESL students disagreed with the statement. In the response to the twelfth close-ended question "I learn English preferably and better by using YouTube lectures videos" 68% agreed 32% disagreed. 70% of students agreed and 30% were not agreed with the statement of the thirteenth question "Using YouTube lecture videos in language learning decreases my anxiety in the class". For the fourteenth question, "The authentic materials in YouTube lectures help me better understand the lesson" 77% responded positively whereas 23% of students responded negatively. While responding to the fifteenth question in which ESL students were asked "YouTube lecturers minimize my fears to pronounce words in front of the people" 73% agreed and 27% of ESL students disagreed with the statement given in the tenth close-ended question.  

Discussion of Findings

The first aim of this research was to describe ESL learners' perceptions of YouTube tutorials and lectures on vlogs. The researchers carried out frequency tests via SPSS to achieve this aim. On the other hand, the second research aim was to explore how vlogs, tutorials and lectures are beneficial for ESL students to develop their ability to communicate. It was accomplished by applying qualitative data analysis techniques. In the survey questionnaire, researchers asked several questions to understand the perceptions of ESL students towards using YouTube to improve speaking skills. The overall responses of the students to vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube for speaking skills were quite positive and encouraging. As per the results presented, most ESL students believe that the usage of YouTube videos is an efficient mode to speak. The overall frequency analysis outcome highlights students' constructive attitudes and understanding of the use of YouTube videos in speaking learning. The result of this study is also found to be consistent and confirmed from numerous previous studies, in which students display a positive attitude towards the teaching method of YouTube in speaking learning. Some of the findings of the present research study are contradictory and some partially match with the findings of previous studies but most of the results and findings match with the previous studies regarding vlogs, tutorials, and lectures.

Conclusion

The primary goal of this study was to explore the perceptions of ESL students towards using vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube to enhance speaking skills at Virtual University in Lahore. The findings of the study revealed that perceptions of ESL students show positive attitudes towards the use of vlogs, tutorials and lectures on YouTube. According to the second research question, the benefits of vlogs, tutorials and lectures help undergraduate students to enhance their speaking skills. Students showed that vlogs, tutorials and lectures enhance vocabulary, and pronunciation skills and also provide good content for better grammar usage. The students improve their speaking skills by watching videos because the learning environment is different and there are no restrictions for learning. It is also revealed that vlogs, tutorials and lectures help students for enhancing their fluency of speaking skills. The study recommends that the above-mentioned three social media platforms including vlogs, tutorials and lectures in the classroom setting would also make it easier to incorporate this technology into education.

Recommendations for Future Research

The incorporation into the learning environments of YouTube and other social media will lead to the development of new learning models. Since students have used social media such as YouTube over the course of a term without having issues, the acceptance of similar technology in their learning experiences can be encouraged. Relevant evaluation methods related to the cognitive and successful variables on vlogs, tutorials and lectures (such as attitude, self-efficacy, and self-assessment) can therefore be established and the number of relational studies can be increased. Growing the amount of research that suggests making instructional videos with vlogs, tutorials and lectures in the classroom setting would also make it easier to incorporate this technology into education. 

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