View Content #28056

Michaela Parisi is the International Baccalaureate and University of Missouri Kansas City Dual Credit French Teacher at Raymore-Peculiar High School. She presented her methods of gaming for second language acquisition at the American Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages and Foreign Language Association of Missouri conferences in 2019. Her research interests include the use of gaming in the foreign language classroom and the incorporation of technology in the twenty-first-century classroom.    

In today’s classroom, teachers often feel pressure to make learning entertaining. While there is a plethora of activities to engage students in learning a foreign language, gaming has taken the forefront. Because gaming is a staple in students’ lives outside of school, it becomes the perfect tool for language acquisition. From board games to escape rooms to video games, foreign language teachers can harness the fun of gaming to serve as a mechanism for language acquisition. 

Prior to hosting any discussion regarding gaming, it is important to establish two certainties: first, one cannot acquire a language unless one practices it, and two, when practicing a language, there must be an intent to communicate, a negotiation of language. The question then becomes how do games relate to these two certainties? Games require participation and communication that is spontaneous and appropriate for accomplishing an objective. When playing games, students have to communicate with one another and establish their ideas (negotiation of language) in order to work together and win the game.* They discover how to convey the ideas in their head to the other members of their team in the target language. This is why incorporating games into the foreign language classroom is remarkably effective.

As an example, let us consider a game of Pictionary. The goal of player one is to prompt player two to say the target word. Player 1 must use drawing as a language to direct Player 2 towards the target word. Drawing is not the first language of Player 1 (nor is it of Player 2); therefore, Player 1 is guessing what Player 2's understanding of certain drawn images mean. Based on the guesses of Player 2, Player 1 will adjust their drawing to more accurately align with the schema developed by Player 2. The two players work together until they reach mutual understanding and Player 2 correctly deduces the word. Together, the players have co-constructed meaning.

This strategy used in Pictionary is the same strategy students employ while playing a game in the target language. Students have a common goal that must be reached to win the game, such as another player guessing a keyword or concept. To communicate the concept, students must interact with each other in a give-and-take, negotiating the meaning of unfamiliar language to achieve success. 

When deciding on appropriate games for the foreign language classroom, teachers must consider the goal of the game, how students will negotiate meaning, and what language must be interpreted and produced by students. This week’s Activity of the Week provides a sample game for teachers to adapt and use in their own classrooms.

*Single-player games are useful in a different manner. Individual games are useful for interpretive communication, but not necessarily interpersonal communication since there is no negotiation of meaning. For example, in the game Minecraft, players must understand what the word “sand” means. They must understand how they may use sand to build and complete missions. However, players do not necesarily negotiate with others to establish the meaning of “sand” in individual player modes; they must infer the meaning based on a given situation.