Innovation in Language Learning

In recent years, the educational market has been challenged by an unprecedented use of technology for instructional purposes. Educators and students have started to approach teaching and learning in a more engaging way to bridge the gap between face-to-face education and the opportunities of the online environment. In this paper, we address the issue of teaching Romanian for Specific Purposes (RSP) in a blended form, designing face-to-face activities according to a gamified environment that is meant to increase involvement and make learning engaging and entertaining. Using the methodological approach of design-based research, we discuss how activities and syllabi of courses in RSP can be macro-designed according to gamification principles, so that it could offer the students the opportunity to immerse themselves in a complex system of interactions whose main purpose is to boost motivation during the process of learning. The target group consisted of 28 international students who had studied the Preparatory Year in Romanian for 5 months, reaching the CEFRL A2 level of Romanian, before starting the classes for specific purposes. The main fields of study were Engineering, Medicine and Sports. The research was carried out from late February 2022 until early June 2022 and was tailored to address the productive language skills, as well as the specialised terminology pertaining to the fields mentioned above. Thus, after deciding upon the main frames of gamification to be applied in class, we also selected various apps to cater for the specific needs of our students, by means of which we customised the learning experience in the form of games (GooseChase, Storyjumper, Plickers, Wordwall, Kahoot) that could be played either individually or as a team. The platform used for interaction was ClassDojo, which opened options for other activities such as online portfolio design, poster presentation, or interactive written assignments. The gamified environment created a sense of community and built on their intrinsic motivation since students were required to practice their vocabulary in the real world or to get involved in creative activities. In the blended class, students are actively engaging in their language learning and building their linguistic competence.

Keywords: digital teaching, communicative teaching, gamification, game-based learning

References

[1] Oblinger, Diana (2004) “The Next Generation of Educational Engagement.” Journal of Interactive Media in Education. 8(1): 1-18.

[2] Domínguez Adrian, et al (2013), “Gamifying learning experiences: Practical implications and outcomes”. Computer & Education 63: 380-392.