Reflective Paper 2

Reflective Paper #2

As with some of the terms used in this course, the word gamification comes new to me. When I first read the title of the booklet written by Graham Stanley, I knew that it was related with games. Still, I went to the dictionary to check what exactly gamification is all about. The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines it as “the process of adding games or game like elements to something (such as a task) so as to encourage participation”. It also mentions that even though the concept is not new, the word was added to the English lexicon in 2010. I thought this fact was really interesting because we are dealing with so much new terminology in this 21st century. In this essay, I am going to examine what this concept means to me and whether or not I can consider integrating digital games and gamification in my own teaching experience.

I have always been fond of using games in the classroom to motivate students’ learning and engagement. Through games, students can practice all fours skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. Games can be played by all students regardless of their age. Games promote friendly competition which is something that make students feel enthusiastic about. All in all, games provide a positive impact on students in many ways.

In this technological era, we can find a vast number of options for using digital games in our teaching. The author of the booklet gives many ideas as to how to start, when to start, and how to do it. In my case, since I am not a real digital gamer, I would have to start experiencing myself with some of the games that are available on internet. Then I need to see how the game can be adapted to my own teaching environment and with the type of students I have. In any case, it is all a matter of trying out and analyzing the viability of using this or that game in my class.

One of the ideas that the author gave which called my attention is about using “walkthroughs”. Again, this is another term that I had never heard before in relation to computer games. Basically, a walkthrough is a set of instructions given in order to complete the task of a game. The value in it, as Stanley explains, is that the text with the instructions is full of vocabulary, verbs and directions for the student to follow. What I like about this way of gaming is that it does not require a lot of preparation from the part of the teacher. The negative side of it is that it can be time consuming, so it means I would have to consider this aspect so it does not affect the pacing of my lesson.

As far as gamification is concerned, I agree that it is possible to motivate our students to be as engaged in learning as we all want them to be. Lately, I have observed how many children, youngsters, and even adults, have become absorbed by digital games. I am sure that we can use this to our benefit to make our students learn better through appropriate games that can be used for learning and practicing English. People in general, especially children, are curious about trying out new games. So why not use this curiosity to our advantage as teachers. As the author well says it, “learning needs to be made fun again” so the students learn better in a more relaxed and engaging way.

In my own personal teaching experience, I see countless positive aspects to implement gamification in my classes. I have the advantage of having the necessary tools in my class to use digital games. I am sure students will get much more engaged in the learning process, and they will definitely learn much faster. My challenge will now be taking time to search for the suitable game that copes with the learning objective of a given lesson. I know it is feasible and I can accomplish it if put the necessary effort in it.