The impact of a serious game on vocabulary and content learning

Howard Hao-Jan Chen · Hsiao-Ling Hsu

109 citations0/0 files storedComputer Assisted Language Learning

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Educational Games and Gamification EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning Second Language Acquisition and Learning

Abstract

One of the more rapidly advancing subfields of second language acquisition research is Digital-game based language learning (DGBLL) and many studies have found that Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) games can have a positive effect on vocabulary acquisition. COTS games are specifically made for entertainment purposes, while serious games, which studies have found to enhance language and content knowledge, are designed for educational purposes. In the present study, a serious game titled Slave Trade was adopted to examine whether vocabulary and knowledge of history can be acquired at the same time and to investigate how the participants perceived the serious game regarding language and history learning. Sixty six college EFL students were recruited to take part in this study. They were required to take pre- and post-tests in both vocabulary and content knowledge and to respond to a user survey. The study found statistically significant improvements in both vocabulary and history knowledge. The vocabulary learning can mainly be attributed to the rich contextual clues of the gaming environment and repetitive exposure to the target words (i.e. more than six times). However, it was also found that words of fewer occurrences could be acquired because of the gaming environment. In addition, the students reported that they had enjoyed a positive learning experience via the serious game. Finally, it is suggested that language teachers should consider making educational use of serious games.

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References

2004What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy 2003What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy 2005The Psychology of the Language Learner: Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition 2012A systematic literature review of empirical evidence on computer games and serious games 2013Teaching and Researching: Motivation 2005Digital game-based learning: Towards an experiential gaming model 2011Teaching and Researching Motivation 2001Incidental vocabulary acquisition in a second language: the construct of task-induced involvement

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