Online Popular Culture in Language Learning: Reading and Writing Online Fanfiction

Abstract

With the reach and accessibility that technology has provided, in particular the Internet, language learning has taken a different height. With the reach of the Internet worldwide, it is now very important to learn an international language, such as the English language, which the language most widely used in the Internet realm. Also, with the immense consumption and distribution of popular culture within the Internet, the concept of learning has evolved and given new meanings. One particular field that education researchers consider as a platform in language learning is the reading and writing of online fanfiction. This literature review examines a small number of research done so far on online fanfiction and its effects on learning the English language. In this review of studies of online fanfiction in language learning, the author discusses the participants of online fanfiction and the types of participation they engage in when reading or writing online fanfiction that thus lead to them learning about the English language.