Maximizing EFL students' exposure to listening and speaking through MALL: Daily voice WhatsApp messages between students and the teacher

Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) has been widely used and researched recently.
However, more experimental studies are required to investigate the potentials of different
MALL applications. The aim of this research is to experimentally investigate the effect of using
MALL via WhatsApp application on EFL students' listening and speaking skills. Students'
perceptions of this learning experience are also investigated. The study adopts the mixed
methods approach. Tests for listening and speaking were designed and administered to 43
English major students at Jouf University, KSA. A detailed mixed (open-ended/closed-ended)
questionnaire was designed to investigate students' perceptions of the experience. Results of
the study revealed that the usage of MALL improved students' listening and speaking skills.
Results also revealed that participants have positive perceptions of using MALL in language
learning. The majority of participants are willing to use MALL in learning English both at the
time of the experiment and in their future endeavors as learners and teachers of English. The
most frequently perceived benefits of MALL are the increased exposure to listening, improved
speaking ability especially fluency, enhanced self-confidence during speaking, and improved
pronunciation of difficult words. Some participants expressed some difficulties when using
MALL including the loss of enthusiasm after some weeks of study, heavy load of tasks, and
some technical problems related to internet access. The study recommends the incorporation
of MALL in EFL language learning and teaching processes.