The effect of Edmodo, an educational social networking site, on secondary school students success in mathematics achievements and mathematical communication skills

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of Edmodo, which is one of the social networking sites, on the mathematic achievements and mathematical communication skills of secondary school 8th grade students. In the research, quantitative research methods a semi-experimental design with pre and post test control groups was used. In addition, all the results were supported by qualitative data. The study group of the research consists of a total of 56 students which are studying at 8th grade in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, with equal numbers in the experimental and control groups. In the control group, the lessons were applied with the methods suggested in the regular curriculum, while the Edmodo application was used in the experimental group in addition to the curriculum. The experiment process was carried out by the researcher and lasted for a total of 12 weeks. As a data collection tool, mathematics achievement test, mathematical communication skills scale and questionnaire form were used. One of these tools is the mathematics achievement test applied to the control and experimental groups at the beginning and at the end of the study. The achievement test contains 20 questions. The other measurement tool namely the mathematical communication skills scale, consists of the reading and listening, speaking and writing, and using the mathematical language effectively. The last but not least measurement tool is the questionnaire form that is applied to the experimental group students. Independent sample tests were used to analyze the quantitative results. Content analysis was applied at the examination process of qualitative data. The following results were obtained at the end of the research: It was observed that there was a significant difference in favor of the experimental group using Edmodo, in terms of the achievements of the students development in mathematics compared to control group. The reason for this significant difference is considered as the use of Edmodo application. It was observed that there was also a significant difference in favor of the experimental group using Edmodo, in terms of the reading and listening, speaking and writing, and using the mathematical language effectively compared to control group. It was determined that the reason for this significant difference in favor of the experimental group was the use of the Edmodo application. According to the results obtained from the qualitative data, the students emphasized that they were satisfied with the process, the application helped them to increase their motivation towards the mathematics lesson in general, and that the Edmodo application tools used in the process assisted them about learning and communicating with their teachers. Moreover, they stated that they found this application funny and useful, and could be used in their other lessons also. As a result of this findings, the following recommendations were made: Teachers who want to ease homework control in their classes, increase student motivation, share some stuff and do group and online discussion activities can use Edmodo. The differences between the lessons held with educational social media platforms and the lessons held with traditional methods can be the subject of future work. According to the inferences made from the students' opinions, it is evaluated that the use of Edmodo application in the lessons by the teacher can make the lesson more productive, the correct use of the application will support the communication skills of the students with their teachers, and the application of this method in different disciplines may be beneficial. It can be examined as a future work that whether the use of Edmodo application in school time is effective in terms of academic success of students or not.