The Influence of Social Media Language on English Learning Among Teenagers

In today’s digital era, social media has emerged as one of the most influential platforms affecting the daily communication habits and educational experiences of teenagers worldwide. With the increasing integration of platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and WhatsApp into the lives of adolescents, the nature of language exposure and usage is rapidly evolving. The present research investigates the influence of social media language on English learning among teenagers, focusing on how digital communication affects vocabulary development, grammar, writing skills, and language identity. The primary aim of this study is to explore the extent to which social media contributes positively or negatively to English language acquisition during adolescence, a critical phase in cognitive and linguistic development. To achieve this, a qualitative and descriptive research methodology was employed, relying solely on documentary and library-based sources without conducting any field or case studies. Relevant academic materials were gathered from scholarly databases such as Civilica, SID, MagIran, Noormags, and Google Scholar to analyze existing findings on the topic. The study synthesizes the insights of multiple empirical studies conducted in diverse cultural contexts, offering a comprehensive view of the phenomenon. The findings reveal that while social media significantly enhances vocabulary acquisition through constant exposure to real-life English content, it simultaneously encourages the frequent use of non-standard language forms including abbreviations, emojis, slang, and grammatical shortcuts. This dual impact can be both enriching and problematic; on one hand, it fosters motivation, engagement, and self-expression among learners, but on the other hand, it blurs the boundaries between informal and formal language use, sometimes weakening students’ academic writing proficiency. Ultimately, the study suggests that educators should strategically integrate social media content into teaching practices and raise awareness among teenagers about the appropriate use of language across different contexts. Social media, when used responsibly and critically, can serve as a powerful supplementary tool in the English learning process.

کلیدواژه ها:

social media ، teenagers ، English learning ، digital language