HUE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES --------------- PHAM THI ANH NGOC EFL TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES AND USE OF GAMIFICATION IN TEACHING ENGLISH AT UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN QUANG TRI PROVINCE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, University of Foreign Languages and International Studies, Hue University THUA THIEN HUE, 2022 HUE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES --------------- PHAM THI ANH NGOC EFL TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES AND USE OF GAMIFICATION IN TEACHING ENGLISH AT UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN QUANG TRI PROVINCE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 8140111 SUPERVISOR: DR. TRAN QUANG NGOC THUY THUA THIEN HUE, 2022 ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ --------------- PHẠM THỊ ÁNH NGỌC THÁI ĐỘ VÀ VIỆC SỬ DỤNG TRÒ CHƠI HOÁ CỦA GIÁO VIÊN TRONG DẠY TIẾNG ANH TẠI CÁC TRƯỜNG TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG TỈNH QUẢNG TRỊ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 8140111 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: TS. TRẦN QUANG NGỌC THUÝ THỪA THIÊN HUẾ, 2022 STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL AUTHORSHIP The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted for a degree in any university. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, my thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself.
Signed: ……………………… Pham Thi Anh Ngoc Date: .…/……/2022 i ABSTRACT It can be seen that emerging technology has had a positive impact on learning in several aspects. Gamification has recently been implemented noticeably in learning and teaching. By enhancing students' engagement with the teaching materials and raising their level of competency, gamification has demonstrated its effectiveness in students’ integration of the educational process. Since learning and teaching a new language is a complicated and strenuous process, learners usually need to be motivated.
Hence, the introduction of gamification in classroom would bring some benefits for learning English. This study aimed to explore 60 teachers’ attitudes and use of gamification in English language teaching at upper secondary schools in Quang Tri. To learn about the use and attitudes among teachers, both questionnaire and semi- structured interview were employed. The questionnaire was delivered to 60 teachers, and 15 of them were also invited to participate in the follow-up interviews.
The research findings indicate that teachers value the benefits of gamification in the classroom. However, there are still challenges that must be considered and overcome when using gamification tools. Based on the findings, pedagogical implications were made with the aim to enhance teaching and learning English in the foreign language context. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, my deepest gratitude goes to my supervisor.
It is a great honor and a tremendous opportunity for me to undertake M.A thesis under her helpful guidance and to learn from her expertise. Words are not sufficient to express how grateful I am for her professional advice, her infinite patience, and unconditional support to help me in the process of doing this thesis. I would like to offer my special thank to 60 teachers from different upper secondary schools in Quang Tri province for being willing to complete the questionnaire and sincerely providing me with valuable information in the interviews. Without their enthusiasm, this thesis would not have been possible.
This last, but by no means least, word of acknowledgment I have saved for my family. I do not think I would ever have finished this thesis without their unconditional love, caring and support. iii List of Tables Table 3. Demographic characteristics of respondents to the questionnaire Table 4.
Teachers’ purposes of using gamification Table 4. Mean scores of the benefits and its minor groups Table 4. Mean scores of all items in motivation Table 4. Mean scores of all items in engagement Table 4.
Mean scores of all items in feedback Table 4. Mean scores of all items in learning outcomes Table 4. Mean scores of the challenges of gamification tools, external factors and teacher- related factors Table 4. Mean scores of 5 items of external factors Table 4.
Mean scores of 5 items of teacher-related group iv List of Figures Figure 4. Percentage of gamification teachers used in all the lessons in the school year 2021- 2022 Figure 4. Class mode teachers use gamification in their English classes Figure 4. Gamification tools teachers often use in their English lessons Figure 4.
Gamification elements teachers often use in their English lessons Figure 4. Lessons teachers often use gamification in v List of Abbreviations L2.Second language FL.Foreign language SRS.Student Response System EFL.English as a Foreign Language vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of Original Authorship. iii List of tables. iv List of figures.
v List of abbreviations. vi Table of contents. vi Chapter 1: Introduction .4 Scope of the study .5 Significance of the study .6 Structure of the study. 3 Chapter 2: Literature Review .1 Gamification in education .2 Gamification in learning English as a Foreign Language .3 Differences between gamification and serious games.
9 Points and levels .6 The use of gamification in teaching English for students .7 The advantages and disadvantages of using gamification tools in teaching English. 30 vii Chapter 3: Methodology .5 Reliability and validity. 41 Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion .1 Teachers’ use of gamification in their English classes .1 Percentage of teachers using gamification in their English classes .2 Percentage of gamification teachers used in all the lessons in the last school year 43 4.3 Class mode teachers use gamification in their English classes .4 Gamification tools teachers often use in their English classes .5 Gamification elements teachers often use in their English classes .6 Lessons teachers often use gamification in .7 Teachers’ purposes of using gamification .2 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits and challenges of using gamification tools in English classes at high schools .1 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits of using gamification tools in English classes at high schools .1 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits of gamification tools in motivation .2 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits of gamification tools in engagement .3 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits of gamification tools in feedback .4 Teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits of gamification tools in learning outcomes .2 Teachers’ attitudes towards challenges of using gamification tools in English classes at high schools .1 Teachers’ attitudes towards challenges of using gamification tools caused by external factors .2 Teachers’ attitudes towards challenges of using gamification tools caused by teacher- related factors. 68 Chapter 5: Conclusion and Implication .1 Summary of the findings .3 Limitations of the study .4 Recommendations for further research.
74 References Appendices ix Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Rationale The outcomes of English teaching are not only stricken by teachers’ English language competence but also, to a substantial extent, by their didactic approach which they adopt, students’ motivation to learn, and therefore the learning method they use. In fact, learning is really made more simpler by integrating computer technologies; this process is known as e- learning. Electronic devices like computers, laptops, smart phones, etc. enable learning in isolated locations.
The most creative form of learning happens with electronic gadgets, as it can incorporate animations and gives a feel of experiencing the subject of learning. Gamification is one method that uses a variety of computer-based applications, such as games, videos, and interactive lessons, to teach both fundamental and more complex aspects and concepts. The use of games or game elements in education is not new and can be traced back to the sixties when Piaget (1962) mentioned that games could not only help children to master their environments but also to create the worlds of their imagination. Additionally, games encourage students to play an active role in the learning process thus supporting active learning, experiential learning, and problem-based learning (Oblinger, 2004).
Previous research has detected that the use of games or game elements in the classroom can also enhance the classroom atmosphere (Yang, 2012). Moreover the use of video games in the classroom may be appealing and motivating for the new generations of students that have grown up in the age of video games (Glover, 2013). Other reasons supporting gamification include the facilitation of scaffolded instruction based on each individual student’s needs (Hanus & Fox, 2015); the immediate and frequent feedback that games provide (Kapp, 2012); the capacity to give students the freedom to fail without fear when learning (Lee & Hamer, 2011); and a trial-and-error learning process which makes mistakes recoverable (Hanus & Fox, 2015). Despite all the positive outcomes that might be expected from gamification, teachers play a crucial role in incorporating new practices and methods in their courses and 1 literature review clearly suggest that a number of factors can prevent teachers from introducing pedagogical innovations –and especially technologyrelated innovations– in the classroom (Mumtaz, 2000).
Attitude towards a target behavior (e. using gamification) is one of such key factors because attitude is an important predictor of an individual’s intention toward performing the target behavior (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975). Very little is known about teachers’ attitudes and use of gamification. To fill this research gap this study main goal is to analyze: i) teachers’ use of gamification, and ii) teachers’ attitudes towards gamification.
This study will explore teachers’ attitudes towards gamification and the use of gamification in teaching English. Hopefully, this study will provide an insight on teachers’ attitudes regarding the usefulness and effectiveness of gamification, and to see how teachers use gamification in teaching English.2 Research objectives This research, in particular, is carried out to achieve the following objectives: - To investigate the upper-secondary teachers’ use of gamification in English language teaching. - To investigate the upper-secondary teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits and challenges of using gamification in English language teaching.3 Research questions The study is conducted with a view to finding answers to the following research questions: 1.How do upper-secondary teachers use gamification in English language teaching? 2.What are the upper-secondary teachers’ attitudes towards the benefits and challenges of using gamification in their English classes? 1.4 Scope of the study The data of the study is collected from 60 EFL upper-secondary teachers in Quang Tri province about the use and attitudes towards using gamification in English language teaching.5 Significance of the study Gamification is thoroughly studied to live up to the following expectations: Firstly, the research is hoped to investigate the use of gamification in English classroom, how often teachers incorporate gamification into the lessons and in what skills they are adopted. The research also aims to identify the most preferred gamification tool/website used among Quang Tri secondary EFL teachers.
Secondly, another research’s aim is to explore upper-secondary school teachers' attitudes towards gamification in English language learning classroom in terms of the benefits as well as challenges faced when using gamification in teachers’ lessons. Eventually, the research is expected to promote the learning potential of using gamification in schools and teachers’ use of it when teaching, and in this case, for teaching English not only among schools in Quang Tri province but also all over Vietnam in the near future. The report will also be a source of reference for other researchers who intend to study gamification in English language teaching in Quang Tri Province as well as other areas, thereby producing reciprocal benefits amongst schools and communities alike.6 Structure of the study This study consists of the following parts: Chapter 1: Introduction This chapter gives a brief introduction about the background of the research and explains the reason why the research topic is chosen. The research questions, significance of the study, scope of the study as well as the structure of the study are also included.
Chapter 2: Literature review Chapter 2 presents the concepts and definitions of the key items related to the study as well as a review of the previous studies.