Innovation in Language Learning

While in traditional content classes teachers use children’s mother language to teach and explore the main topics and in traditional language classes children learn grammar structures associated with particular semantic fields, in CLIL classes there is the need to provide students an integrated and holistic learning process. Therefore, language and content are taught together in the foreign language, developing social, intercultural, cognitive and linguistic skills (Mehisto, 2008). Nevertheless, combining CLIL with Gamified Pedagogy, can provide new experiences by using game elements in “non-game contexts” (Deterding et al., 2011). This can be a strong ally in English Teaching for reconciling elements with whom the twenty-first century learner is familiar with in the learning process, making it motivating, engaging, meaningful and experiential (Fernández- Corbacho, 2014). It is the authors intention to show that it is possible to combine these two approaches in the primary Estudo do Meio classes. Moreover, it can influence pupils’ motivation, engagement and participation and promotes the skills that pupils must be given in order to master them in the future. The developed activities were based on game elements with the main aim of increasing pupils’ motivation in a playful context while the learning process occurred.This project was a case study with investigation - action contours in a qualitative methodological perspective and it was carried out within a group of 3rd year primary pupils.
The chosen data collection instruments were participant observation and content analysis in order to answer to the question which led us to our investigation, which was: Can CLIL and Gamification be used in the same context? The project’s main results show that this combination can be very positive and attractive to both teachers and pupils, for providing immediate and effective feedback and also assessment, by using game features in a CLIL primary classroom. 

Keywords: CLIL; Gamification; Language learning; Primary English teaching;