The present study examined the comparative effectiveness of a social media–based instructional approach, centered on WhatsApp, compared with traditional classroom teaching for English language learning among Iraqi secondary school students. This study involved 30 EFL students from Basrah Province, equally divided into two groups of 15 male and 15 female students. The participants ranged in age from 18 to 25 years and shared the same educational and professional backgrounds in English. All participants were chosen from the same area using convenience sampling. To run the study, a controlled experimental design was employed: participants were randomly assigned to either a WhatsApp-mediated instructional group or a conventional face-to-face group, and all subjects completed pre-test, instructional, and post-test phases. Statistical analysis of the post-test scores revealed a significant overall difference between the two modalities (p = .01), indicating that the instructional method had a measurable impact on learning outcomes. Specifically, students who received instruction via WhatsApp demonstrated marked improvement in vocabulary learning, whereas those taught through conventional classroom methods showed greater gains in grammatical competence. Follow-up interviews with teachers highlighted that online peer discussions facilitated by WhatsApp enhanced reading comprehension, critical thinking skills, and learners’ academic confidence. These findings suggest that an optimal language learning environment should integrate the strengths of both modalities, leveraging social media platforms to complement structured classroom instruction. Educators are encouraged to combine digital collaborative activities with teacher-led instruction to address distinct skill areas-lexical development versus grammatical accuracy, within a unified curriculum.
