Here is my action plan piece.
The impact of gamification using digital tools in foreign language learning (French)
To what extent does gamification using digital tools impact on engagement in French for Year 9 and 10 students at Wellington College?
In order to be able to address my inquiry question in a meaningful and valid way, it is first essential to define the two key terms within it. Gamification is defined as the applied use of game mechanics in a non-game situation (Deterding et al. 2011). There are many definitions of student engagement, but for the purpose of this inquiry it will be defined as “how involved or interested students appear to be in their learning and how connected they are to their classes.” (Axleson and Flick, 2010). I will also use “enjoyment” as a proxy for engagement because I see this as a word to which students easily relate.
I will be focussing this inquiry on my students in Years 9 and 10. My department is constantly seeking ways to increase the number of students in our senior classes and a lack of engagement with their language has been identified as a factor in the decline in students taking a foreign language beyond Year 10. Our experience at Wellington College is a reflection of a nationwide trend. (Ashton 2018). It is school policy that all students in Years 9 & 10 take a language, so it is essential that I endeavour to find ways to increase levels of engagement in these critical years to ensure the viability of our senior programme. My research suggests that gamification in languages using digital tools may well have a positive impact on motivation and engagement, it is therefore important to try to measure that impact both qualitatively and quantitatively. I will also survey students who were in my classes last year as Year 10 students, to gain some baseline data on whether an ad-hoc use of gamified tools had any impact on their engagement. Finally, it will be important to share my findings with my colleagues in the languages department so we can make any changes to our programmes based on the evidence that I gather.
At this stage I have a hunch that gamification will have an impact on student engagement but as the Ministry of Education (n.d.) states “without evidence to back them up, hunches remain subjective”. If my research is to be viewed as valid within the school context, then I need to be able provide some form of evidence in order to persuade my colleagues that a change towards an increased use of gamified digital tools is going to be of benefit. Given the relatively short time constraints of this inquiry, it is important to have a precise plan of action, which I outline below.
| Date | Wellington College
Week |
Action | |
| 28 Jan – 1Feb | 1 | · Develop Google site for Y9 and Y10 French with embedded links to Quizlet and other gamified language activities.
· Send out survey to students from last year’s Y10 French classes |
Focus question on what students enjoyed most in class |
| 4 – 8 Feb | 2 | · Check that all students have a device that they can use in class. Provide school funded laptops for those who do not have a device.
· Ensure that all new year 9 and 10 classes are able to access new site and have created accounts on Quizlet. · Arrange and discuss class observation with a colleague |
Analytics from Quizlet may help as evidence |
| 11–15 Feb | 3 | · Actively use gamified digital tools in class
· Discuss purpose of inquiry with students |
Regular use of Quizlet (match game, Live) and Learning App activities. |
| 18 – 22 Feb | 4 | · Actively use gamified digital tools in class
· Qualitative observation by colleague – how does “engagement” change when students are using gamified digital tools? |
Body language, gestures, collaboration participation levels |
| 25 Feb – 1 Mar | 5 | · Student surveys and interviews with Year 9 and 10 students.
(What do they like about language classes so far? What motivates them to learn new vocabulary? Specific questions about Quizlet, Learning Apps.)
|
Explain purpose of interview and survey.
Seek consents where applicable |
| 4-8 Mar | 6 | Analyse and compare data collected | |
| 11-15 Mar | 7 | Write up findings | |
| 18-22 Mar | 8 | Share findings with classes and colleagues |
In my earlier definition of student engagement the three key words were involved, interested and connected. I will also be using “enjoyment” as a proxy for engagement. It is difficult to be able to quantify “involvement” and “enjoyment” making qualitative data relevant in my research. Babione (2015) endorses the benefits of observation by saying that it provides insight into the complexity of human behaviour. Class observation of the ways students react, their body language and gestures will indicate whether gamified activities impact on my definition of student engagement. Student interviews will also provide information in perhaps more detail to explain why they might find gamification engaging or not. Online anonymous surveys will give students the opportunity to have their say in a non-threatening environment. Coding and categorising of responses provide some triangulating quantitative data. Quantitative data through the use of analytics, the number of “hits” on my new website, may also provide useful information. However, this alone this will not necessarily measure engagement as I will be expecting students to use it actively. However, without ‘hitting’ a site, engagement is not possible. One measure, which might indicate engagement, is to look at timestamps to see if students actively use the site outside of class. Once all the information has been collected and analysed, simple triangulation of the data will allow me to create findings with increased validity.
When considering my research and data collection I need to take into consideration ethical principles. The New Zealand Association for Research in Education (NZARE) state a number of guiding principles for research with a basic premise of avoiding harm and doing good. It is vital that I ensure that any students whom I interview, do not feel threatened or anxious in any way. Owen Barden from Liverpool Hope University (2015) sums this up succinctly by identifying six ways researchers can cause harm – disturbance, intrusion, secrecy, self-esteem and resentment. Both NZARE and Barden insist upon openness and I will make sure that I fully explain to my students what I am researching and how I value their input into my research. The aim of the research is to listen to their collective voice in order to improve our courses and thus “doing good” (NZARE). This meets the kaupapa maori principles of ako. How and what can I learn from my students? I also need to be aware of privacy issues and by using an anonymous survey students should not feel threatened to answer honestly. Resentment will also be a factor in particular if students feel I am taking up too much of their time, I need to keep interviews clear and to the point, this will also no doubt lead to better data for my analysis. Finally I need to ensure that my students, when interviewed, know that they can give me honest answers and not what they think they should say. Tthis will lead to genuine and clear feedback.
I have briefly touched on the kaupapa maori principle of ako, the importance of the teaching and learning relationship. My students need to know that I also learn from them and that āta and whakawhanaungatanga, the development of relationships that are honest and open, will also be of importance in this research. Likewise I will consider kia piki ake i ngā raruraru o te kainga, I must ensure that no student feels disadvantaged in any way. I can do this by making school funded laptops available in the classroom for any student who does not have a device. I will do this discreetly and with sensitivity so as not to cause a loss of mana with any student. Finally kaupapa, the principle of collective philosophy, I must ensure that my research with the community does not impinge in any way on our aspirations and the purpose of our learning – instilling a love of language and an understanding that languages open doors and break down barriers. Additionally, the research must listen to the students and community and act on what they say.
If my hunch is correct and that I find that gamification does have an impact on student engagement then this could have a number of outcomes. Firstly and foremost is the benefit on students, increased levels of engagement in language learning will hopefully also lead to a better learning experience. More engaged students could lead to increased numbers of students wanting to continue with their language beyond Year 10. Clearly, whatever the outcome, I need to share my findings with my colleagues in other languages and potentially to look at ways to incorporate gamification using digital tools in their courses. It would also be important to share my findings with the wider languages community and to see in what other ways we could gamify the language learning experience. However, perhaps most importantly, I should consider further inquiry into whether gamification has an impact on student performance.
References:
Babione, C. (2015). Practitioner teacher inquiry and research. USA: John Wiley & Sons.
Barden, O (2015) Research Ethics; Liverpool Hope University, retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pCfq5QH_v4
Deterding, S., Khaled, R., Nacke, L., Dixon, D. (2011) Gamification: Toward a Definition, CHI 2011 Gamification Workshop Proceedings, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Ministry of Education.(n.d.). Data analysis. Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Teaching-as-inquiry/Data-analysis#js-tabcontainer-1-tab-2
New Zealand Association for Research in Education (NZARE). (2010). NZARE Ethical Guidelines. Retrieved from http://www.nzare.org.nz/portals/306/images/Files/NZARE%20EthicalGuidelines2010.pdf
Peters, T. and Irish, J. (n.d.). Introduction to Survey Research Methods. Retrieved from http://hms.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/assets/Sites/Academy/files/CTL%20Resource%20Survey%20Research.doc
Rick D. Axelson & Arend Flick (2010) Defining Student Engagement, Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 43:1, 38-43, DOI: 10.1080/00091383.2011.533096
Te Kete Ipurangi (n.d.). Data Analysis. Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Teaching-as-inquiry/Data-analysis
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Guy Mance - Mindlab Research Inquiry 