ABSTRACT
In light of the potential of social network technologies to enhance language and culture learning both inside and outside of the classroom, this chapter explores the most emerging issues arising from the existing research to address affordances and constraints of social media for L2 learning and development. Examples of studies illustrating the transformation afforded by the integration of social media into L2 instruction are used to highlight theoretical underpinnings (e.g., sociocultural perspectives) and pedagogical approaches (e.g., task-based language teaching), and practices beyond the classroom. Prominent studies are examined to discuss topics of task design, digital literacy skills, language awareness, and learner autonomy in social media use and its impact on language acquisition and cultural awareness. The discussion underscores the importance of helping students build connections between in-class and out-of-class learning experiences with the support of digital technologies. In addition to challenges facing teacher preparation for using multimodal communication, the chapter concludes with a discussion of future research directions for social media use in informal settings. Thought-provoking questions and Recommended readings are presented at the end of the chapter for language educators dedicated to building effective strategies for digital-mediated language learning.
