The Effect of Gamification on EFL Students' Oral Production and their Willingness to Learn English

Undoubtedly, games as one of the most important components in EFL classrooms, include activities which enjoy specific goals, rules, engaging activities as well as fun. This study attempted to investigate the effect of gamification on the EFL learners’ oral production and willingness to learn English. To achieve this goal, ۶۰ students, were divided into four main groups, adult females, adult males, teenage females, and teenage males with ۱۵ students in each group. In a mixed-method, participants took part in both the pre-test and post-test of oral production and filled in the willingness-to-learn-English questionnaire. To access in-depth insight, a ۵-item question interview was also administered. It was found that the difference between the pretest and posttest means was statistically significant in both teenage and adult female and male groups, meaning that gamification has a significantly positive effect on them. As the gamification was effective in all four groups, the first null hypothesis was rejected. The outcomes of the ANCOVA procedure revealed that the most gamification effect was on teenage males, teenage females, adult females and the least effect was on adult males. The results also proved significant on the effect of gamification on EFL learners’ willingness to learn English in all four groups. The highest gamification effect was on teenage females, followed by teenage males, adult females and the least effect was on adult males. The study holds clear implications for language teachers, teacher educators, and stakeholders.

کلیدواژه ها:

EFL Students ، Engagement ، Gamification ، Motivation ، Oral production ، Willingness to Learn English