An Analysis of YouTube as Sustainable Educational Resources for EFL Learners

Abstract

YouTube can be a platform to facilitate sustainable English teaching and learning. This study aims to determine the videos that English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners tend to watch to learn English and their attitude towards using YouTube for a sustainable English Language learning. The respondents were the 6th-semester EFL students at one private Islamic university in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The data were collected through a questionnaire from 178 students adopting a cluster sampling. This study revealed the YouTube video categories as “always” watched by the EFL students to learn English were “Music” (M=3.71; SD=.52), “Talk Show” (M=3.35; SD=.76), and “How To” (M=3.28;SD=.78). Moreover, the results revealed that the students studying English as a Foreign Language (EFL) demonstrated a positive attitude regarding the use of YouTube as a means to sustain improvement of their English language proficiencies, as evidenced by an average score of 3.25 and a standard deviation of 0.44 (M=3.25; SD=.44). As a result, the students expressed the belief that YouTube could function as a valuable tool and an effective and sustainable platform for advancing their English language competencies. Consequently, language teachers should employ the use of YouTube videos as resource materials in teaching English as a foreign language making YouTube as a sustainable educational resource for both teachers and learners.