Teaching English during COVID-19 Pandemic Using Facebook Group as an LMS: A Study on Undergraduate Students of a University in Bangladesh

The article investigates the effectiveness and feasibility of teaching 1st year undergraduate students an English language course focusing on listening and speaking skills during Covid-19 pandemic by using a Facebook Group as an LMS. The purpose of this research is to successfully combat one of the greatest crises occurring to global education by utilizing the most available and affordable resources while keeping the students from facing too drastic or difficult changes in their academic activities. While thousands of people are getting infected with coronavirus every day in Bangladesh, students, especially young adults who study at universities cannot bring themselves to readily cope with the renewed classroom etiquettes such as using Google Meet or Zoom for classes, submitting assignments on Google Classroom and so forth. Therefore, the present study examines how a designated Facebook Group can be used for conducting regular classroom activities as well as improving teaching practice of the instructors at a time of crisis such as Covid-19. It also explores whether the Facebook Group can help students build speaking and listening skills and accelerate interactions among students and instructors and ultimately help foster an online learning community. As a whole, the study emphasizes ways of using various features of a Facebook Group to the benefit of teachers and students in conducting a successful language class.