UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon Holds International Seminar on "English for Social Media" to Strengthen Students' Digital Literacy
Participants, organizers, and speaker pose for a group photo after the "English for Social Media: Boost Your English Skills for the Digital World" International Seminar at UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon, Wednesday (August 5, 2026). (Doc.IO)
CIREBON (Ziyah Nujumul Inayah) – The International Office of UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon, in collaboration with PUSAKA, UNISSC, Cyber Islamic University, and BLU, organized an international seminar titled "English for Social Media: Boost Your English Skills for the Digital World" at the Teleconference Room, 4th Floor of the New Cyber Building, on Wednesday (August 5, 2026). The seminar featured Sirniawati, S.Pd.I., M.A. from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, as the keynote speaker.
The seminar brought together Indonesian and international students who were eager to enhance their English communication skills for social media and learn how to create effective digital content in academic settings. The event aimed to equip participants with practical knowledge of media literacy and responsible digital communication.
Ivo Dinasta Yanuar delivers the opening remarks and serves as moderator and chair of the organizing committee alongside keynote speaker Sirniawati, S.Pd.I., M.A., from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, during the "English for Social Media" International Seminar. (Doc.IO)
"Social media has become one of the primary channels through which universities communicate with students, prospective students, alumni, and the wider community. Through this seminar, we hope participants can develop the ability to create meaningful content, communicate effectively in English, and contribute to strengthening the digital presence of their institutions," said Ivo Dinasta Yanuar.
Sirniawati, S.Pd.I., M.A., presents material on media literacy, digital communication, and English content creation for social media at the "English for Social Media" International Seminar held at UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon, Wednesday (August 5, 2026). (Doc.IO)
During her presentation, Sirniawati explained that using English on social media is not solely about language proficiency but also about understanding how messages are created, interpreted, and influence audiences.
"Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act using different forms of communication. It enables people to become responsible content creators and critical consumers of digital information," Sirniawati said.
She emphasized the importance of distinguishing between media messages, which reflect the values and intentions of content creators, and media effects, which describe the impact of content on audiences. She also introduced the concepts of encoding and decoding, explaining how different interpretations may arise depending on each audience member's background and experience.
In addition to discussing media literacy, the seminar focused on strategies for writing engaging social media captions. Sirniawati introduced a practical caption framework consisting of a compelling hook, informative content, a clear call to action (CTA), and relevant hashtags to maximize audience engagement.
She demonstrated how the framework can be adapted for academic social media accounts, including department, faculty, and university platforms. According to her, each account should tailor its communication style to its target audience while maintaining informative and persuasive content.
The seminar concluded with a collaborative workshop in which participants worked in groups to develop social media campaign concepts. Each team created visual content, wrote English captions, designed effective calls to action, and selected appropriate hashtags for institutional promotion.
Through this hands-on activity, participants applied the principles of media literacy while strengthening their English communication skills in a real-world academic context. Each group later presented its work and received feedback from the speaker and fellow participants.
The event concluded with a group photo session involving the speaker, organizing committee, and participants. Through this international seminar, UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon reaffirmed its commitment to developing students' digital communication competencies, promoting responsible social media practices, and strengthening the university's international academic engagement.