The Effects of Competitive Gaming Scenarios and Personalized Assistance Strategies on English Vocabulary Learning

• Published in: Educational Technology ＆ Society Vol. 21; no. 3; pp. 146 - 158
• Main Authors: Wei, Chun-Wang, Kao, Hao-Yun, Lu, Hsin-Hsien, Liu, Yi Chun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Palmerston North International Forum of Educational Technology ＆ Society 01-07-2018; National Taiwan Normal University; International Forum of Educational Technology & Society
• Subjects: Anxiety; Boredom; Business competition; Competition; Computer supported collaborative learning; Data processing; Educational research; Educational technology; English; English (Second Language); English immersion; Foreign Countries; Games; Gamification; Information Processing; Instructional Effectiveness; Learning; Learning Activities; Learning strategies; Memorization; Methods; Pretests Posttests; Retirement planning; Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Special Issue Articles; Statistical Analysis; Students; Study and teaching; Submerging; Teaching Methods; Video Technology; Vocabulary; Vocabulary Development; Vocabulary skills; Taiwan; Flow theory; English anxiety; Competitive gaming scenario; English vocabulary learning; Personalized assistance strategy
• EISSN: 1436-4522
• ISSN: 1176-3647; 1436-4522

English vocabulary is the foundation of English learning. According to information processing theory. recitation helps learners remember and understand English terminology. However, this type of exercise may lead to boredom, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and other negative effects. This study proposes the integration of competitive gaming with personalized assistance as a means of reducing anxiety and enhancing the degree of immersion, as well as raising the overall effectiveness of the lesson. The board game Monopoly was used as the basis for the design of a vocabulary-focused competitive game. Personalized assistance was provided to help learners study and review new English vocabulary words in an attempt to improve their memorization. A total of 120 students were recruited to serve as participants in the study. Each was randomly assigned to one of four different groups to take part in select English vocabulary activities. The results show that the integration of a competitive gaming scenario with a personalized assistance strategy helped students improve their vocabulary acquisition.