Title: Making sense of teachers' (dis)belief in the educational value of social media: a case of two language teachers in Rwanda

Authors: Felix Kwihangana

Addresses: Manchester Institute of Education, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, M13 9PL, Manchester, UK

Abstract: This study reports on the beliefs of two cases of EFL teachers regarding the integration of social media in the teaching of English in Rwanda. Using semi-structured interviews, the study found that the teachers believed social media had the potential to improve their students' learning of English but could also change their teacher positions within the institution. While both teachers viewed social media positively, their social media practices were more informed by the potential impact of the technology on their status as teachers than its potential pedagogical contribution to students' learning of English. These findings highlight the importance of understanding teacher's self-positioning before, during and after technology integration processes to ensure that the proposed technology integration aligns with their image of the self in specific contexts.

Keywords: teacher beliefs; social media; educational technology; EFL; ICT in language teaching; education in Rwanda.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTEL.2020.107983

International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning, 2020 Vol.12 No.3, pp.290 - 305

Received: 18 Oct 2018
Accepted: 09 Apr 2019
Published online: 01 Jul 2020 *

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