The effect of augmented reality games on English as foreign language motivation

What is it about?

Today educational practices are being designed and varied due to advance of millennium generation who tend to use mobile technologies in every aspect of their lives. Accordingly, growing interest towards mobile learning in education brings several opportunities and advantages for English as foreign language teachers and learners. Augmented reality, which is another growing phenomenon on mobile devices, is a technology that incorporates digital information such as images, video and audio into real-world spaces. As a part of mobile learning, augmented reality technique has potential to facilitate learning through enjoyment over learning tasks, engagement and motivation. Designed in descriptive survey model, this study intended to assess English as a foreign language learners' subjective experience regarding the implementation of augmented reality-based learning materials in their language classes with a game-based approach in Anadolu University, Turkey. The analysis of the questionnaire items showed that most of the students accepted the activities in augmented learning environment highly motivating and enjoyable, which is common in augmented reality research.

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Photo by Daniel Frank on Unsplash

Photo by Daniel Frank on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Foreign language learners often lose interest and motivation towards classroom activities due to experiencing similar exercises and learning materials provided either by course book publishers or the language teachers themselves. Even if publishers and language teachers provide students with audio- visual classroom materials, such materials often fail to allow learners to interact with each other, engage in activities, and more importantly, enjoy their learning experiences. When AR-based learning materials are designed with games-based approach, they can offer learners rich, real time, collaborative and contextual learning experiences. Since learners are likely to perceive such materials as games, their motivation and interest towards learning a foreign language might tend to increase. In their oral productions, they may feel less anxious, but more confident while collaborating with their classmates. As a part of mobile learning, AR technique has potential to facilitate learning through enjoyment over learning tasks, engagement and motivation. Augmented reality simulations could provide language learners with intrinsically motivating gameful experiences, challenge and unexpected delight, which in return might result in crossing the border between formal and informal learning. Designed in descriptive survey model, this study intended to assess EFL learners' subjective experience regarding the implementation of AR-based learning materials in their English language classes with a game- based approach via Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI) as the data collection tool during 2016-2017 academic year. Two subscales of IMI, which focused on interest/enjoyment and value/usefulness, were used in order to assess participants' experience related to AR-based learning materials.

Perspectives