Digital Literacy in Saudi Tertiary EFL Context: Perspectives of Students and Potentials for Listening Skills

Abstract

Technology is regarded as a vital aspect in modern society, revolutionising various fields. Consequently, evolutionary knowledge and skills raise in this paradigm, referred to as digital literacy. The necessity to reveal the influence in EFL, English as a foreign language, context is fundamental. The exploration seeks to examine digital literacy perspectives of 117 Saudi undergraduate EFL learners enrolled in English Language and Translation bachelor’s programme at a Saudi university. It also scrutinises the prospects for improving English listening skills. To achieve the exploration objectives, mixed-method approach is integrated via adopted questionnaires from scholarly work (Mudra, 2020; Najmi & Navaee Lavasani, 2021; Ng; 2012a; Ng; 2012b; Yukselir & Yuvayapan, 2019) with minor adjustments. Findings demonstrate EFL learners’ confidence to their digital literacy skills. They reveal high confidence to solving technical difficulties; conversely, the least positive positioning denotes towards literacy to web relevant activities. Findings advocate for the benefits of listening skills, especially for pronunciation and vocabulary improvement, authentic materials for learning, language learning motivation, and access to entertaining educational materials. The exploration serves endeavour to subsequent academic and pedagogical implementations.