THE EFFECTIVENESS OF EDMODO TOWARDS INDONESIAN EFL LEARNERS’ ENGLISH PROFICIENCY

As a result of the utilization of technological advances to achieve competency integration, the 4.0 technology era is gaining traction in the field of education. This study aims to explore the efficacy of using the Edmodo application as an online-based learning medium in order to improve the way in which EFL students learn English using technology. By a mixed-methods research design, this study recruited twenty-two tenth graders in the Mathematics and Natural Science stream from an integrated Islamic senior high school in Aceh province, Indonesia. The data indicate that the majority of students possess the necessary devices to assist them in completing their tasks, and a significant proportion of them use these devices to play games and conduct research. By categorizing aspects and components, Edmodo improves students' vocabulary when used to assess their learning progress through assignments and quizzes. In addition, the students are more willing to request assistance from teachers and peers when using the application. Despite the fact that Edmodo requires a smartphone and a reliable internet connection to utilize it, the participants do not report having any significant issues with the two requirements, however, half of them report having trouble attaching assignments from different types of files such as Doc, Pdf, Video, and Audio. Overall, Edmodo is an outstanding and highly effective online resource for reading, writing, listening, and speaking English classes (e-learning


Introduction
Teachers and students use electronic gadgets to enhance learning in the digital age, which is typified by the concept of "4.0," which combines the worlds of education and technology. This causes all members of society, including adults and children, to conform to societal trends, such as the development of technology (Croitoru & Dinu, 2016). The current educational environment makes great use of technology in an effort to improve the quality of free, online learning accessible to anybody with an internet connection. Botero, Questier, and Zhu (2019) find that students, particularly millennials, are increasingly interested in learning that combines electronic gadgets. Students, particularly those of the millennial generation, are becoming increasingly interested in technology-based instruction (Fithriani, 2021;Fithriani & Alharbi, 2021). Internet connectivity offers web-based convenience features and applications via computer programs that are designed as an alternative to technology-based online English language training or English Language Teaching (ELT). These technological advances have been utilized to achieve competency.
Combining face-to-face (direct learning encounters) and online learning (online learning meetings) is an effective use of technology as a web-based or online learning paradigm in the modern era (Fithriani, 2021). Blended learning is a strategy utilized by a large number of educators worldwide. This explains the introduction and growth of learning support tools such as Edmodo, Schoology, Google Class, and Latvia for both classroom and media-based learning. The application developed by the researchers will be based on the Edmodo application developed by Gay and Sofyan (2017).
Edmodo is a social media learning platform geared towards the classroom setting (school-based environment). This application is secure and straightforward to use (userfriendly). This application combines traditional and contemporary teaching aspects (Kayaizmir, 2012). As a consequence, Edmodo has been widely utilized as a learning tool, both in fully virtual and hybrid language instruction around the world (Fithriani & Alharbi, 2021). A plethora of studies has documented its beneficial effects on English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching and learning (Fithriani & Alharbi, 2021;Vijayakumar & Viswanathan, 2018;Wichadee, 2017). This study aims to contribute to the existing literature on Edmodo usage in the EFL context by examining the significance of technology, specifically Edmodo, in establishing a positive learning environment (traditional or conventional) and how it can be used to teach both technical and humanities subjects.
Edmodo as a learning platform is built on a customized learning management system (LMS) for virtual learning. The majority of learning management systems (LMS) make interactive elements like threaded conversations, video conferencing, and discussion forums more accessible to students (Balasubramanian, Jaykumar, & Fukey, 2014). In the 4.0 education era, the LMS platform is also used to provide students with assignments, assess student skills and comprehension, and transmit information. Previous research has focused solely on reading and writing skills; very few empirical studies have evaluated EFL learners' integrated language skills. It will be intriguing to investigate whether Edmodo as an LMS can be used to hone EFL learners' language skills (speaking, reading, listening) and to enhance their critical thinking. Thus, this study was conducted to fill the empirical void (Vijayakumar, & Viswanathan, 2018).

The Creation of Edmodo as a Virtual Platform
Internet and technology enhance teaching and learning outside the classroom by providing access to a variety of web-based learning platforms. Edmodo is one of the best websites for encouraging individual study in a variety of methods. On Edmodo, a free social learning website, teachers and students can engage, communicate, and exchange educational materials, as well as monitor notifications, homework, grades, and class discussions (Al-Kathiri, 2015). Its purpose is to assist instructors in leveraging the potential of social media to individualize instruction for each student (Enriquez, 2014). Edmodo was initially introduced in 2010 to facilitate collaboration and communication among K-12 instructors (educators of kindergarten to 12 th grade), educational leaders, students, and parents by enabling the use of social networking tools with minimal privacy and security issues (Fithriani & Alharbi, 2021). Today, Edmodo is used as the preferred learning platform by teachers, students, and parents from all around the world.
Borg and O'Hara founded Edmodo in late 2008 as a social learning platform for instructors, professors, students, and parents/guardians that feel the need to adapt the school/college atmosphere to reflect an increasingly interconnected and globalized world. They collaborated to create Edmodo because they both desired to bridge the gap between how students learn in school and on campus and how they live their lives. Edmodo was designed as a social networking site for educators, students, and parents; assignments and events for students.
In addition to providing a platform for communication, Edmodo was designed to instill in smaller groups of students an enthusiasm for learning. Teachers and lecturers can carry on class discussions online on Edmodo, offer polls to gauge student understanding, and recognize individual students with badges depending on behavior or performance. They are also part of a robust network that links them to students, lecturers, administrators, parents, and book publishers. This network represents the finest surface resources and tools accessible anywhere in the world, providing the foundation of excellent instruction.
In addition, tracking student and student development is straightforward with Edmodo as it stores and makes accessible all grades and study plans that are issued to or provided to students. Students' responses to tests, assignments, and discussion postings that demonstrate student-to-student comprehension, bewilderment, or aggravation can provide teachers and lecturers with classroom feedback (Wichadee, 2017). The Edmodo interface is also a user-friendly, aesthetically pleasing tool that allows for the individualization of learning for each student. By connecting with Edmodo, which offers all digital content in one location, this software aids teachers and lecturers in strengthening their lesson plans and lectures.
Edmodo is frequently referred to as the Facebook of education because of its resemblance to the popular social networking program (Fithriani & Alharbi, 2021). However, Edmodo is equipped with educational functions such as grades, assignments, and tests that lecturers and teachers can send to students. In addition to viewing their grades and any comments that their teacher or lecturer may have posted about their assignments; students can submit their homework. Teachers and lecturers can post polls and discussion topics for students to discuss. The establishment of subgroups within a course enables instructors to diversify instruction and encourage independent learning. After each course session concludes, the teacher or lecturer terminates the network and creates a new one for the next course.
Edmodo's features are specifically developed to facilitate educational activities. According to its users; teachers and students), Edmodo organizes its features into categories. Listed below are the features of Edmodo: a. Teachers use Assignment Assignment to assign homework to students online. Students can deliver assignments to teachers in file form because this feature includes a deadline and a file attachment feature. The "Turn in" option on assignment submissions additionally serves as an indicator that pupils have finished their assignments. Teachers are able to directly evaluate the outcomes of student-completed tasks. The guide book feature will automatically store the supplied grade (Al-Naibi, Al-Jabri, & Al-Kalbani, 2018).

b. Links and Files
This feature allows teachers and students to send messages with files and links attached to class groups, students, or other teachers. All file types with extensions like.doc,.pdf,.ppt,.xls, etc. are considered attached files.

c. Quiz
Using multiple-choice, short-answer, and descriptive questions. Quiz offers online evaluations. A quiz can only be made by the teacher; students are the only ones who can take it. A processing deadline, information regarding the quiz that will be prepared, the quiz title, and the quiz's appearance are all included in this feature. While the scoring of the description questions must first be approved by the teacher, the scoring of the multiplechoice questions and short answers is automatically calculated for each quiz item.

d. Poll
Only teachers may develop polls to distribute to their pupils. Polls are frequently used by teachers to get student opinions on various aspects of the lecture. Below is a depiction of the poll that asked students about their opinions of the logic function information before instruction was offered.

e. Gradebook
Students' grades are kept on file using the grade book feature. The teacher can either manually or automatically complete the scoring. Only the outcomes of the Assignment and Quiz scores can be used to automatically fill in grades. Gradebook assessments can be exported to an a.csv file. The teacher is in charge of managing the evaluation of each student's learning outcomes in this feature. The maximum score for each topic is up to the teacher. The technology automatically converts the entire score to a percentage of each student's overall score.

f. Library
This feature serves as a clearinghouse for a variety of learning materials with varied content. Teachers can contribute lesson plans, resources, presentations, references, photographs, videos, audio, and other digital information using the library feature. Students and groups can share the files and links found in the library. Additionally, students can add teacher-shared materials to their libraries. Various sources from both inside and outside can be accommodated with this functionality. So that students can save different outside information and still access it through Edmodo.

g. Prize Badges
Students and groups are both eligible for awards using this feature. So as not to limit the teacher's creativity in deciding on the award, the award can be chosen by the teacher themselves.

h. Parenting codes
According to (Croitoru, & Dinu, 2016) this feature allows each student's parents/guardians the opportunity to engage in monitoring their children's learning activities and accomplishments. The teacher must access the code for parents and then distribute it to each parent or guardian. By clicking on the class name, parents can obtain access codes.
The company developing Edmodo is quite different from many other educational technology companies that allow the use of Edmodo for free, but not for profit. In spite of being freely accessible, Edmodo offers professors, lecturers, and students a secure environment to communicate, collaborate, and share content. Edmodo was developed based on the idea that the purpose of educating users on privacy-related issues might be examined, and a website could be created to give educators, students, and parents access to industry resources as well as privacy best practices and guidelines. Because of this, the developers value customer confidence highly (Shams-Abadi, Ahmadi, & Mehrdad, 2015). Edmodo features a variety of built-in privacy measures, including: a) Students need to be invited by their teacher and given a specific Group Code before they can create an account on their own (Canapero, 2004); b) Students simply need to submit their first and last names to create an account; no other personally identifiable data is required.; c) Edmodo doesn't track geolocation data in any way.; d) No student information is rented or sold by Edmodo to third parties for marketing purposes. e) Edmodo requires parental authorization for students under the age of eighteen. f) The site encourages parental involvement, and parents can create profiles to monitor their children's activities. g) The ability to communicate privately between students is restricted. The teacher is always present and is aware of everything that occurs on Edmodo (Bicen, 2015). h) Edmodo employs a number of people who are solely responsible for handling privacyrelated issues, such as a Chief Privacy Officer, a User Trust & Safety Team made up of representatives from almost every division, and a group of security engineers whose daily duties include keeping an eye on and enhancing the safety and security of Edmodo's services.
In conclusion, Edmodo is a private microblogging platform designed with the privacy of students in mind and utilized by instructors and students, who can exchange notes, links, and documents through it. Teachers have the option to post warnings, events, and assignments for students in a publicly accessible time window.

Edmodo as a Virtual Learning Platform
While there are many ways to help students get better learning results, employing internet resources is one of the best. Charoenwet, and Christensen, (2016) claim that using online learning resources can help students accomplish certain objectives in addition to simply viewing the content. The capacity of the teacher to have more influence over the pupils' ability to study independently is another advantage of using online learning. Additionally, students can access online education from anywhere they choose to learn (Ekmekc¸i, 2016).
Many different methods of using Edmodo for blended learning have greatly improved the learning experience (Charoenwet, & Christensen, 2016). This is a result of many Edmodo is an interactive process in an online learning environment where the learner is assisted by others (teachers or peers) in obtaining knowledge or abilities that are currently impossible to obtain without help. Using Edmodo, teachers, and students can exchange notes, links, and documents. In addition, educators can choose to transmit information to students in a timeline that the whole public can view. Students can gain from Edmodo as an online learning platform by promoting self-directed learning in a variety of ways. With Edmodo's resources and tools for language learning, students may select and work with materials that match their interests and objectives whenever and wherever they want (Charoenwet & Christensen, 2016).
Students are expected to advance in their English language proficiency in a predetermined period of time by using Edmodo as an extension of face-to-face interaction. This is due to the fact that it will lengthen their time spent in front of teachers and promote peer feedback, both of which could lead to a more effective learning environment (Hutchinson, & Waters, 1987). It is predicated on the idea that when this technological tool is used, individual thought becomes the center of cognitive transformation. Students actively participate in preparing their lessons at this early stage of the unit, and both the teacher and the students grow passionate about learning.
When it comes to managing a large class throughout the teaching and learning process, Edmodo can easily solve this problem. According to Ekmeck (2014), Edmodo is a more practical technique for administering tests and evaluations, managing huge classrooms, assigning homework, leading a debate beforehand, managing tests and evaluations more effectively, and more. (Chang, Chang, & Shih, 2016).
Along with the aforementioned learning situations, educational social networking sites like Edmodo present special chances to engage with students, assist them in developing norms, and encourage reflection on how various online behaviors will be viewed. Edmodo gives teachers the chance to start a conversation that allows students to share their experiences while engaging in a critical analysis of social media usage and the moral application of online media and forms.
Edmodo offers unique codes for schools/campuses and classes in an effort to prevent outsiders from connecting to the school/campus network. Students are given these codes, which must be entered in order to join the group. By introducing SQL injection protection, the company has recently improved the security of its Edmodo service by preventing unwanted access to website resources and databases.

Research Method
The researchers try to collect data based on settings or conditions (Fraenkel & Wallen, 2012: 459) and is also known as descriptive research. This study attempts to provide a full description of the findings in addition to watching and collecting data. Methodologies for obtaining intensive and thorough research include qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approach. In a nutshell, the Mix Method blends qualitative and quantitative research techniques (Johnson, Onwuegbuzie & Turner, 2007). Researchers are required to take a series of steps to gather and analyze data using qualitative and quantitative methodologies. In order to determine the extent to which the Edmodo application is used effectively during the teaching and learning process, a combination of descriptive measures of relationship quality, achievement, and several rubrics related to students' abilities was employed (Hinton, McMurray, & Brownlow, 2014). This strategy was chosen because the researchers would evaluate the data descriptively and provide the results in the form of an effective application explanation to facilitate the learning process in a single high school class. According to the preceding explanation, the researchers describe the results of Edmodo's effectiveness as an online learning platform for enhancing students' English comprehension, where the researchers collect and analyzes data without manipulation before drawing conclusions based on the results of the data analysis (Crotty, 1998).
This study was conducted in an integrated Islamic senior high school in Aceh province, Indonesia. This location was purposefully chosen due to its accessibility as the first researchers also serve as the English teachers in the school. Twenty-two students of the tenth-grade streaming in the Mathematics and Natural Science stream were purposefully invited to participate in this study. Prior to conducting the study, the researchers addressed the issues of ethical considerations by collecting the signed consent form from the participants (Ito et al, 2013).

The Utilization of Edmodo in English Class
Technology utilization, particularly the Edmodo application, in the field of education, is a requirement for teachers and students to interact and synergize in technology-based education in the current era. Edmodo is a component of an application that provides benefits and convenience for teachers who teach online. This is in conformity with the school's principal, who has encouraged teachers to undertake learning activities using technological gadgets that serve as learning drivers. Some teachers, on the other hand, are still unable to use the Edmodo application completely and thoroughly. Teachers benefit from the usage of this application through the online platform (Edmodo) because it provides direct scores on student assignments and tests, and it allows teachers to penalize students in the completion of their work (Chen & Bryer, 2012).
Edmodo is mostly utilized by educators; nevertheless, it can be used to check students' English understanding. When registering for the first time or registering on Edmodo, there are three application sections. When enrolling, the user can choose between "I am a teacher," "I am a student," and "I am a parent." Each assignment divides a portion of the whole. For instance, all the participants in this study must register as "I am a student," while the teacher needs to register as "I am a teacher" when starting a class (as seen in Figure 1). This application may be used by teachers, students, and parents, and it is all in one application to track student development. Parents might also exert control over their children to ensure that they comprehend the content completely.  The Edmodo application includes numerous features that assist teachers in disseminating learning materials such as videos, quizzes, word-related materials, and document sharing. Because of its benefits and convenience of use, Edmodo was launched and recommended to all Indonesian teachers. Aside from that, Edmodo can provide direct scores on assignments or tests, as well as provide feedback to students, reducing the amount of paper used (paperless) (Graham, 2016).
The Edmodo application, as shown in Figure 1, assists teachers and students in continuing to learn through online platforms and makes it easier for students and teachers to interact with one another on a regular basis in order to discuss material more flexibly, not only in class but also outside of it. Students join the course by logging in and enrolling to become a student from the group view of the learning course produced by the teacher (attach and fill in e-mail, password, and code only). Students are automatically connected to the teacher's course, and they can individually ask or ask questions to the teacher. Edmodo is similar to Facebook in that some of the features are specifically meant for use in the area of education via online learning platforms. Figure 2 depicts an example of an assignment delivered through an Edmodo class. As previously explained, one of the features that Edmodo offers us assignment distribution. To reprimand all students, teachers can also establish time limits for submitting assignments. It is easier for teachers to use an application to grade assignments, as practiced in this study. The Edmodo class in this study has 22 active student users, thus has 22 samples or responders.

Some Merits and Demerits of Edmodo as a Learning Platform in English Class
Despite the program's user-friendly characteristics, the teacher and the students in this study encountered a number of issues when implementing learning through the usage of this program. This limitation pertains to the inability of students to attach assignments to the application. This is the result of a two-month assessment of students' use of this app to determine Edmodo's performance as an online learning platform for enhancing students' English proficiency. Many students are averse to utilizing a smartphone as a communication device (Ferguson, 2007). Furthermore, students frequently utilize their mobile devices to play video games and maintain their own social media accounts, which requires close supervision.
Concerning the purpose of this study, which was to determine how effectively high school students utilize Edmodo to boost their English learning, this research reveals new information on Edmodo as an online learning platform. The demographic data shows that 77 percent of the student participants owned cellphones, however, prior to the study, they primarily used their gadgets to play video games and access social media. After the implementation of Edmodo in their English class, the students are becoming more aware of the benefits of mobile-assisted language learning, such as using their mobile devices as search tools to assist them in completing assignments, as well as the benefits of employing applications in engaging learning and overcoming technological obstacles encountered in  (Klimova, & Poulova, 2015). The data reveals that the students perceive Edmodo to be beneficial as an additional tool for learning. However, since for an instruction to be successful, the students must be able to comprehend the learning process. Technology, in this case Edmodo, serves as a supplementary tool that will be advantageous if utilized to the extent that the students can comprehend. In order to achieve this objective, the learning method in this study needs to integrate traditional face-to-face meetings with virtual learning.
In addition, students report that Edmodo helps them acquire new vocabulary, such as the names of application features. However, the new feature names, connectivity issues, and document attachments (pdf, doc, pic, and so on) left the pupils bewildered. As a result, Edmodo is less effective in assisting students to develop certain aspects of English. Data reveals that 39.4% of participants said they were unable to improve their speaking and sentence processing abilities, which is due to their inability to construct sentences and other items. However, the data analysis indicates contradictory results for listening skills. When the teacher shows movies, the students are able to express their ideas about the movies using their own sentences, regardless of their form. Thus, it also serves as a technique of assessing students' grasp of the material. This study confirms the findings of Enriquez (2014), who found that university students in the Philippines view Edmodo as an online learning platform with both merits and demerits.

Conclusion
Technological improvements have an impact on people's life, notably in terms of communication and activity completion. Technology is presently essential in the subject of education. Without recognition, technology has both negative and positive effects. It is utilized by some schools to make the teacher's job easier. This application is excellent for assessing and executing distance learning to integrate learning in the digital 4.0 era of education. Edmodo facilitates teachers' and students' interactions and permits teachers to participate in seminars run by subject matter experts. It is effective for online learning and can be used by all teachers to promote paperless assessment. However, this application also has an operational flaw as it requires a device (laptop or smaTutrtphone) and a strong internet connection, which is a barrier for some teachers and students to overcome. Some students viewed online learning via Edmodo as beneficial for boosting their vocabulary through Edmodo's features and engagement activities with teachers and other students through the program. Nonetheless, other students reported to have no significant improvement in their English proficiency, particularly their speaking skills, utilizing this application.