EFL College Students’ Perceptions on Synchronous and Asynchronous Communication Tool Usage in E-Language Learning

Synchronous and asynchronous communication tools are used to assist teachers and students in supporting an e-language learning environment accessible from anywhere and at any time. Thus, the current study aims to discover EFL college students’ majority perception of using synchronous and asynchronous communication tools. This study used a quantitative research design, that is, a survey. The research involved 237 Indonesian EFL learners pursuing their Bachelor‘s degrees in the English Education Department. The data was collected using a close-ended questionnaire adapted and modified from Perveen (2016) with three indicators: students’ awareness and activeness, students’ perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages, and students’ preferences on synchronous and asynchronous communication tool usage. This questionnaire was made in a Google Form and was distributed through WhatsApp. Furthermore, the data was assessed using Sudijono’s (2018) assessment criteria. The research findings highlight two main points. First, 54.01% of students positively perceived using synchronous communication tools. Second, 52.74% of students have positive perceptions of using asynchronous communication tools. Therefore, the research suggests lecturers can combine synchronous and asynchronous communication tools since students positively perceived both communication tools.