Gamification of language learning
Juntunen, Rosa (2019)
Juntunen, Rosa
2019
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2019051710328
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2019051710328
Tiivistelmä
This is a study on how gamification facilitates language learning. It is written from the point of view of an individual language learner in the framework of language learning theory and studies made in the field of gamification.
Language competence is a trump card for individuals aspiring to create vast and deep connections in private and professional life. Language skills are sought after by many, but few have the resources to study a second language effectively. Lack of time, money, instruction and motivation create obstacles for individuals trying to acquire communicative competence in L2 (second language). There is a vacuum for engaging alternatives that facilitate learning outside the bounds of schedule and funds.
In recent years, game design has become an attractive approach to making non-game contexts more engaging and motivating. There are many low cost and freemium applications for language learning that apply game design elements to increase user engagement. This study aims to clarify how gamification facilitates language learning, which gamification strategies are used in modern language learning applications and how they relate to theories of second language acquisition.
This study explores aspects of language learning and gamification drawing practical examples from an educational computer game series, Learn Japanese to Survive! and a language learning application, Duolingo. For the purposes of this study I reviewed both LJS (Learn Japanese to Survive!) and Duolingo from a user perspective drawing comparison between the strategies the games employ and learning theories introduced in the theoretical framework. To supplement my own thoughts, I interviewed two academic language students about their preferred language learning strategies and views on game-based alternatives.
The results indicate that gamification facilitates learning by encouraging user engagement, problem solving and out of the box thinking. The results do not indicate however that the examples LJS or Duolingo are effective learning tools on their own, they don’t facilitate learning, but they can support it. Acquiring communicative competence requires skills that contemporary applications cannot teach yet, but future applications might.
This study was conducted between September 2018 and May 2019.
Language competence is a trump card for individuals aspiring to create vast and deep connections in private and professional life. Language skills are sought after by many, but few have the resources to study a second language effectively. Lack of time, money, instruction and motivation create obstacles for individuals trying to acquire communicative competence in L2 (second language). There is a vacuum for engaging alternatives that facilitate learning outside the bounds of schedule and funds.
In recent years, game design has become an attractive approach to making non-game contexts more engaging and motivating. There are many low cost and freemium applications for language learning that apply game design elements to increase user engagement. This study aims to clarify how gamification facilitates language learning, which gamification strategies are used in modern language learning applications and how they relate to theories of second language acquisition.
This study explores aspects of language learning and gamification drawing practical examples from an educational computer game series, Learn Japanese to Survive! and a language learning application, Duolingo. For the purposes of this study I reviewed both LJS (Learn Japanese to Survive!) and Duolingo from a user perspective drawing comparison between the strategies the games employ and learning theories introduced in the theoretical framework. To supplement my own thoughts, I interviewed two academic language students about their preferred language learning strategies and views on game-based alternatives.
The results indicate that gamification facilitates learning by encouraging user engagement, problem solving and out of the box thinking. The results do not indicate however that the examples LJS or Duolingo are effective learning tools on their own, they don’t facilitate learning, but they can support it. Acquiring communicative competence requires skills that contemporary applications cannot teach yet, but future applications might.
This study was conducted between September 2018 and May 2019.