Effective or Impractical? Discussing Students' Perceptions Toward Learning Management Systems in English Language Learning

Universities or institutions currently use the Learning Management System (LMS) platform as an e-learning platform. It may be utilized successfully as a platform to engage students in a classroom context. This study aims to determine the use of the learning management system (LMS) in English language learning based on analyzing students' perceptions and to establish whether the platforms used contributed to the learning goals in the English Department at Tadulako University. The research design utilizes the descriptive qualitative research method. The study's findings indicated that learners expressed both sides of using the LMS platform in English language learning; practical and impractical perception. It is effective because the LMS platform improved their comprehension, promoted independent learning, inspired students to complete all tasks and quizzes, and eventually allowed students to achieve good learning outcomes. Meanwhile, for impractical usage, the LMS platform has network instability and limited opportunity for real-time discussion and gets immediate feedback from lecturers. However, the benefits of the LMS platform outweigh its drawbacks.


Literature review
The effectiveness of the choice and utilization of Learning Management Systems (LMS), Information and Communication Technology (ICT), and social media affect student and teacher activities in teaching and learning languages. For the learning and teaching process, the choice and use of LMS, ICT, and social media are based on their appropriateness and use for accomplishing learning objectives (Aldiab et al., 2019;Cavus et al., 2006), ease of access (Murray et al., 2012), usefulness and effectiveness Holmes & Prieto -Rodriguez (2018), and implication (Jones & Ryan, 2014;Tutkun, 2011). For the LMS, ICT, and social media to be successfully integrated into language instruction, teachers need to play an active role in the teaching and learning process and understand how ICT, LMS, and social media may promote the accomplishment of educational objectives. Language teachers need to upgrade their knowledge of language teaching in light of cutting-edge methods and the application of ICT, social media, and LMS or a software program (Ellis, 2009;Harmer, 2007;Murray et al., 2012). The teachers' ability to apply LMS in the teaching and learning process indicates that they can change their role from teaching to facilitating learning.
The use of LMS today is an inseparable part, not only in educational institutions but also in other institutions and industries (Chaubey & Bhattacharya, 2015). Using LMS or software in the teaching and learning process makes activities more interesting, and more opportunities are open to achieve institutional goals effectively (Ellis, 2009). Educational institutions have used LMS in most teaching and learning activities (Holmes & Prieto -Rodriguez, 2018;Nagel, 2009;Weigel, 2002), and the results show that the use of LMS is effective in learning, especially for students who live far from campus or who experience health problems (Alam et al., 2014). Types of LMS that are commonly used in language learning include Moodle, Blackboard, Canvas, and D2L (Desire2learn/Desire to Learn) (Heirdsfield et al., 2011;Putri & Sari, 2020b;Santiana et al., 2021;Tawalbeh, 2018;Thamrin et al., 2019;Unal & Unal, 2014). The results of the research reveal that the implementation of LMS is effective in developing the language mastery of EFL learners.
Teaching English has experienced LMS's involvement in developing language skills and language components. The involvement of LMS in the teaching of productive skills, speaking and writing (Seau & Azman, 2021;Sundari & Leonard, 2021;Truong, 2021) and the receptive skills, listening and reading, has improved learners' mastery (Sulistyanto & Imada, 2020), as well as the mastery on language components (Ivanjko & Grubješi, 2019;Novitasari et al., 2018;Safitri & Lestari, 2021). It is also perceived that the involvement of LMS provides learners with autonomy (Zainuddin et al., 2019) where learners study at their own pace and time availability (Manurung, 2005;Rahman, 2014), the teachers become ICT literate (Omar & Yaacob, 2020), and the institutions provide support to facilitate the language teaching (Lalima & Lata Dangwal, 2017). It indicates the practicality of the involvement of LMS in language teaching to achieve instructional objectives. Although there has been a great deal of contribution and support provided by the implementation of LMS in English language learning, it is necessary to contextualize instructional materials so that instructional materials are not only merely virtualized (Valdez-Silva et al., 2013) but are applicable in the learners' actual daily activities (Manurung, 2015), where learners and social needs are fulfilled (Richards, 2001) concerning language needs. Suitability and practicality of the application of LMS in English language learning, therefore, are regarded as crucial to be investigated from the points of view of English language learners, and this is the primary concern of the current study.

Research design
A descriptive qualitative was used as the research design for examining the implementation of the learning management system (LMS) in English language learning by analyzing students' perceptions. The method opts as it is the best-suited method to dissect students' perceptions of the effectualness of various platforms of learning management systems to achieve their English language learning goals at Tadulako University.

Participants in the study and data collection
Since the study centers around students' perceptions, the data were collected through online questionnaires specifically addressed to English Department students at Tadulako University. The questionnaire was distributed to a total of 57 students from different classes.

Design of questionnaires
All items in the questionnaires were validated by credible researchers and pre-tested on different participants to confirm the questionnaires' trustworthiness. The questionnaire contains 15 questions, with 14 close-ended questions with a rating scale and one open-ended question. Regarding the first 14 close-ended questions, the responses are classified into a four-point Likert scale covering categories: 1) strongly disagree, 2) disagree, 3) agree, and 4) strongly agree.
Meanwhile, the open-ended question is provided to explore more detailed perspectives and for the researcher to understand better students' perceptions.

Data analysis
The data obtained from students were analyzed based on the focus and aim of the questions. The questions in the questionnaires were divided into two sections. The first part reflects students' perceptions of LMS by looking into accessibility, appearance, and functionality. The aspect of accessibility focuses on the student's accessibility to LMS platforms and their materials. Students were also questioned on their perception of LMS platforms' visual display and design.
Meanwhile, the functionality aspect scrutinizes the features available in the platforms, such as the features for the task, quiz, and exam submission and tools to obtain feedback. Moreover, the second part aims to discover students' perceptions of the effectiveness of the LMS in their learning outcome, including the scale of their satisfaction and personal opinions. More specifically, it looks at how LMS platforms support students in their learning process, such as supporting their learning comprehension, independent learning, facilitating discussion with their peers, enhancing learning experiences, and improving their learning outcomes (grade). The criteria for rating the students' perceptions can be seen in the table below.

Results
The findings below show the students' perception of LMS accessibility, appearance, and functionality. The percentage of the responses can be seen in Table 2 below. The questionnaire findings revealed that most students find the LMS utilized in the English Department at Tadulako University to be easily accessible and comprehensible. More than twothirds of the participants agreed that they could easily access and use the and almost a quarter strongly agree. Regarding accessing learning materials uploaded by the lecturers, the result showed substantial similarity, whereby more than two-thirds of the participants agree that materials uploaded to the LMS platforms are highly and easily accessible. In contrast, almost a quarter of the participants strongly agree.
Students' perceptions of the layout and design of the LMS were also investigated, mainly focusing on whether these visual and structural aspects presenting the tools and features of the platforms are transparent and penetrable. Almost two-thirds of the participants agree that the display of LMS platforms is clear and easy to understand, and more than a quarter of the participants strongly agree. Only less than ten percent of the students disagree with the statement.
Finally, the aspect of the functionality of the LMS was also evaluated based on students' perceptions. The functionality looks at various platform features, including task submission, feedback, participation, and examination completion.
Regarding the task submission feature, slightly over two-thirds of participating students agree that they can easily upload and submit assignments in the LMS platforms and strongly agree with this. However, over a fifth of the participants have differing views on the flexibility of submitting tasks through the LMS.
There were mixed reactions to the feedback feature in LMS, whereby almost half of participating students disagree that they can easily and quickly obtain feedback or responses for the materials they have yet to understand, and students strongly disagree. On the other hand, slightly over two-fifths of students agree, and 5.3% strongly agree that they can use the feature well to obtain feedback and responses.
A large percentage, precisely almost two-thirds of students, agree that they can quickly and swiftly complete assignments and quizzes in LMS platforms at the English Education Department at Tadulako University. This statement is additionally backed by nearly less than a fifth of the participants who choose to agree strongly. However, It must be noted that almost a quarter of the respondents disagreed with the statement.
Regarding their perception of the use of LMS platforms for examinations, just over half of the respondents agree that they can complete exams online swiftly through LMS platforms, while slightly lower than a fifth of students strongly agree. However, approximately almost a third of the students disagree with the statement. Regarding the implication of the LMS platform for learning comprehension, the result is presented in Table 3.
The second part of the questionnaire examines students' perceptions of the effectiveness of using LMS platforms in their English learning process to their learning comprehension and, subsequently, learning outcomes. Regarding the implication of the LMS platform for learning comprehension, the result is presented in Table 3. First, we investigated whether the LMS platforms used in the English Education Department at Tadulako University help the students grasp the materials the lecturers taught. The result presents that seven out of ten percent of the respondents agree that the LMS platforms support their learning process, particularly in understanding the materials given by the lecturers. In comparison, a little over ten percent of the participants strongly agree. There is almost a fifth of students choose to disagree with the notion.
In addition, their perception of how LMS platforms encourage independent learning on the materials provided was also explored. The finding shows that over three-quarters of students agree that LMS platforms helped them learn independently, while approximately less than a fifth of students strongly agree. There is a small number of students that show disagreement with the statement.
Support for learning comprehension also regards whether the LMS platforms ease students to discuss materials with their peers they have yet to understand. A large proportion of respondents agree with this statement, with 12.3% of students strongly agreeing. However, many students disagree with almost a fifth of students who need help finding the LMS platforms to support their peer discussion.
The effectiveness of LMS platforms in supporting students' learning process was also scrutinized in terms of whether it encourages the students to learn further on the learning materials from other sources. Students' perceptions were gathered to determine whether they agreed with the notion. Many students agree, and 12.3% strongly agree with this statement. The findings also revealed that almost a fifth of the respondents and one student disagree and strongly disagree.
Students' perceptions of how LMS platforms enhance their learning experiences were also evaluated, particularly looking at whether the platforms have increased their motivation to be active in completing tasks and quizzes given by the lecturers. The result shows that many students agree with the statement, and 5.3% (3 out of 57) strongly agree. The rest of the respondents, however, show disagreement.
Furthermore, in specifically addressing whether LMS platforms enhance students' learning outcomes, students' perceptions were gathered. Almost four-fifths of the participants agree that they receive good grades on online courses by LMS platforms, and 7% strongly agree. Less than a fifth of students choose to disagree with this.
Finally, the students were asked if they were satisfied learning online with the support of LMS platforms used by the lecturers. Seven out of ten participants agree with the statement, and 7% strongly agree. However, the percentage of students who disagree with the statement should be considered, whereby over a fifth of the participants disagree, and 1.8% choose to strongly disagree.
Concerning the students' opinions on the implications of using LMS platforms in their learning process to their learning outcome, the participants were given an open-ended question to discover their detailed opinion on using LMS platforms for their learning process and their impacts on their learning outcomes. The finding shows mixed responses, some of which correspond to their responses from 14 previous questions under the 4-point Likert scale.
Overall, most students agree that utilizing LMS platforms has been supportive and helpful in enhancing their learning process and, subsequently, their learning outcome. Among the positive reactions, students frequently mention the ease of accessing materials through the LMS platforms, which supports them in further learning for exams and completing tasks or quizzes. Additionally, quite a few students testified how LMS platforms enable them to access structured and organized materials. For instance, these students stated:

"… learning with the support of the LMS platforms has helped me in my studies as I can easily access various structured and organized materials provided by the lecturers in the form of documents and videos..." (student A)
"… Utilizing LMS platforms, I can easily find materials provided by the lecturers ranging from materials we have learned and discussed as well as the upcoming materials that we will learn…" (student B) Moreover, several students wrote testimonials on how LMS platforms are equipped with helpful and comprehensive features that enable them to submit tasks and complete quizzes or exams efficiently. For example, two of the many students that back the notion mentioned: "… LMS eases me to submit tasks online..." (student C) "… LMS helps the users to send and submit assignments online quickly and easily" (student D) On the other hand, many students also presented their negative testimonials about using LMS platforms and their positive experiences. Among various reasons, one of the most commented was the inefficiencies of LMS platforms in supporting students' learning process as it highly depends on internet networks which are prone to occur, leading to error in accessing the platforms and materials within. It also hinders the effectiveness of the learning process and task and exam submissions. Many of these students also added internet access to be the underlying problem. For instance, several students testified the following: "…frequent error can be encountered in LMS platform which makes it difficult for me to access materials or tasks given by lecturers ..." (student E) "… using LMS platforms can sometimes be very difficult for students, especially for exams in times when the network is unstable..." (student F) "… in my opinion, learning with LMS platforms is very inefficient because I encounter many issues, such as an error in accessing the platform, which makes it very difficult to download materials. Accessing the platform can also become very slow due to the network instability..." (student G) I have difficulties learning online through LMS platforms due to limited internet access..." (student H) In addition to network instability and limited internet access, students also needed help understanding materials online, especially compared to the face-to-face learning process. This problem is exacerbated by how LMS platforms, in nature, limit the opportunity for real-time discussion and to obtain direct learning feedback. For instance, several students mentioned: "…I find it difficult to learn materials only downloaded from LMS platforms, and I would always have to ask my colleagues to try to comprehend the materials..." (student I) "… It is difficult for me to grasp the materials when the lecturers are not there physically and directly give explanations..." (student J) "… students have a hard time learning when only given materials without direct explanation from the lecturers ..." (student K) Furthermore, a typical response that frequently came up was the issue of miscommunication between students and lecturers when utilizing the LMS platforms, particularly regarding the setting of the due date for tasks displayed on the platform. The following statements were present: "… frequently the assignment given by the lecturers are not synchronized with what is uploaded to the platform ..." (student L) "… sometimes there are certain lecturers that put the different due date in LMS platform which confuses the students and also not being able to submit tasks on time..." (student M) "… the due date displayed changes frequently and even not shown which are problems for me..." (student N)

Discussion
The above result revealed that the students perceived positively the accessibility, appearance, and functionality of LMS for the online instructional platform utilized at the English Department of Tadulako University. The LMS was easily accessible and had clear and understandable tools, displays, and features. Similarly, the students found uploading and submitting tasks through the LMS easy. Given these features, students found it more accessible to complete assignments, quizzes, and exams online. These findings affirm the previous study conducted by Putri & Sari (2020), which suggests that LMS was easy to access, readily available, and downloadable.
Similarly, Maulana & Lintangsari (2021) found that university students had a positive attitude to the use of LMS given, features made the students convenient to download and upload their tasks, homework, and assignment. The aspect of accessibility and flexibility of LMS has also been identified by previous researchers, which made it acknowledged as the most effective platform for blended learning (Holmes & Prieto -Rodriguez, 2018;Rymanova et al., 2015;Srichanyachon, 2014). The optimistic view expressed by the students in this study for three aspects of LMS above could be associated with the advantages of LMS used for educational purposes, such as the ease of accessing contents and materials for individual or multiple users anytime and anywhere, allowing learners to track learning progress, review performance based on the tests and quizzes given by lecturers, the ease of upgrading new content on LMS for learners' thorough understanding of a particular topic, and easily used by learners given its various features (Srichanyachon, 2014).
This study confirms that the students perceived the LMS platforms used in the instructional process helped them improve comprehension, encourage independent learning, motivate them to accomplish any task and quizzes given, and ultimately help them gain good learning outcomes. These findings align with a previous study investigating the effect of LMS as a learning platform on EFL students' learning outcomes. Sholihah (2022), for instance, found the significant effect of the LMS on students' writing skill ability. Similarly, a qualitative study conducted by (Putri & Sari, 2020a) found the impact of using LMS on students' improvement in four English skills. Thamrin et al. (2019) conducted a study on the impact of LMS on learning grammar in the context of this study and found that most of the students viewed the LMS used positively, and their learning grammar constraints were improved. Moreover, as Khan et al. (2021) state, attitudes toward technology integration may be depleted to determine the level of motivation and determination of users (learners and instructors) of available technology to integrate technology into educational pursuits and investigate its positive and negative effects on the learning environment.
The excellent learning outcome experienced by the students above may be linked with increased independent learning, identified from this study and others such as (Maulana & Lintangsari, 2021;Zainuddin et al., 2019). This result supports a study conducted by (Zainuddin et al., 2019) with ten undergraduate EFL students in an Indonesian college. They found that LMS promotes students' self-directed learning, where they can practice and enhance English skills and components anytime (in and out-of-class time). In addition, the easy-to-use features and exciting content uploaded by lectures may ignite students' interest to learn more from LMS and affect their learning results. Alshorman (2018) points out that LMS provides features that raise students' motivation to learn, such as audio, video, image, animation, games, and images. In particular, Zainuddin et al. (2019) found that video lectures posted by lecturers evoke students' interest in online learning. The benefit of blended learning(LMS Platform based) is reliable and widely recognized (Suriaman et al., 2022). This result may imply that providing exciting content and valuable materials uploaded by lecturers in LMS may facilitate students' motivation to learn and help them understand taught courses and eventually obtain satisfactory learning results.
Despite the positive view on LMS as explicated above, this study found that the students experienced two challenges when exposed to LMS: network instability and limited opportunity for real-time discussion and getting immediate feedback from lecturers, compared to face-to-face learning mode. This result supports other studies which claim the low internet connection and realtime teachers' responses inhibited the effective learning process in distance education (Bestiantono et al., 2020;Putri & Sari, 2020a;Syafri, 2022). The first challenge found in this study was mainly found by students who live in a geographical condition with unstable internet networks, particularly in Central Sulawesi (Syafri&Saude, 2022). In line with Suriaman et al. (2022), the surveyed students also showed the severe drawbacks of blended learning (LMS Platform based), such as defective materials, login problems, low creativity in searching for knowledge, and internet connection problems. Nevertheless, these drawbacks seemed to occur in different places. Moreover, the advantages of blended learning outweigh its drawbacks.
Based on the challenges experienced by students in accessing the LMS platform, mainly network instability and restricted involvement of lecturers' response toward online classroom activities, therefore, the awareness of the university's support and teaching staff are highly needed. The degree to which one believes the organizational and technological infrastructure can support the system is known as the facilitation condition. Concerning their use of technology for learning, the university's free internet connection and the government's free credit program to support online learning are particularly advantageous.

Conclusion
The study aims to determine the use of the learning management system (LMS) in English language learning based on analyzing students' perceptions and to establish whether the platforms used contributed to the learning goals in the English Department at Tadulako University. The research design utilizes the descriptive qualitative research method. The method opts as it is the best-suited method to dissect students' perceptions of the effectualness of various platforms of learning management systems. Based on the analysis of research results and discussion in the previous section, it can be concluded that the students perceived the usage of LMS platforms in the learning process improved their comprehension, promoted independent learning, inspired them to complete all tasks and quizzes, and eventually allowed students to achieve good learning outcomes. Nevertheless, the LMS platform is effective for the online instructional process; some challenges and impractical have also occurred, such as network instability and limited opportunity for real-time discussion and get immediate feedback from lecturers. However, the benefits outweigh its drawbacks.
For further researchers interested in searching more concerning the LMS platform usage, they can expand their research to distance learning classes that primarily access LMS for online learning. The present study's research subjects might be relatively small (N=57). However, researchers still hope this size can satisfactorily provide empirical data for the foundation of LMS platform application and future research.

Declaration of conflicting interest
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest to this article's research, authorship, and/ or publication of this article.
Funding acknowledgment