INTEGRATING TIKTOK INTO CYBERPRAGMATICS INSTRUCTION: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS' ANALYTICAL ENGAGEMENT

Sari

This study examined the implementation of TikTok-based cyber-pragmatics instruction and explored students' analytical engagement during the learning process. The study focuses on the integration of digital media into higher education, which has created new opportunities for teaching pragmatics through authentic online communication. Among various social media platforms, TikTok provides abundant examples of naturally occurring discourse that can support students' understanding of language use in digital contexts. Using a descriptive qualitative design, the study involved eight sixth-semester students in the English Education Study Program at the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Barat. The data were collected through non-participant classroom observation, field notes, and learning documentation during a 100-minute Semantic-Pragmatics class. During the learning process, the students were required to analyze TikTok videos and comment sections focusing on speech acts, politeness strategies, and conversational implicatures. The results of this study indicated that authentic TikTok discourse encouraged active classroom participation, collaborative discussion, and critical analysis of contextual meaning. Students demonstrated increased awareness of pragmatic phenomena by connecting theoretical concepts with everyday digital communication. Although students initially had difficulty distinguishing conversational implicature from inference and interpreting internet slang, guided discussion helped them develop a deeper understanding of how meaning is constructed in online interaction. This study suggests that TikTok can serve as an effective pedagogical resource for cyber-pragmatics instruction by providing authentic data that enhance students' analytical thinking, pragmatic competence, and digital literacy. These findings contribute to the development of research on the use of digital technology in higher education.