Reading and writing game in the teaching of English in a collaborative environment: a case study in Primary education

Abstract

This presentation, grounded on an ongoing PhD project, focuses on the impact of gamification on the promotion of learning reading and writing in a collaborative problem-solving context in Primary English classes. This is a qualitative case study that relies on different data collection techniques and instruments and their triangulation, to make its conclusions more consistent and provide it with scientific validity. It pursues two objectives: i) to identify and analyse the influence of gamified activities on the learning of reading/writing in Primary education and of its implication for their resolution; 2) to identify and analyse the impact of these activities on the development of collaborative work skills in a problem-solving context, namely: i) understanding, exploration and resolution; ii) groups? organisation and cohesion. The preliminary results analysis have made it possible for us to ascertain that: i) learners were engaged and motivated for English language learning; ii) the improvement of pupils’ performance in reading and writing activities; and iii) the contact with reading and writing activities in English, stimulated by the principles of the gamified pedagogy, aiming to solve real world problems, seemed to foster the development of soft skills, such as creativity and critical thinking and also the deployment of group work strategies.