Escape the Room Games- Phantasy Quest!

Over the past week, I have been exploring the concept of gamification. I have seen and experienced the use of games in the classroom but had not come across the term, gamification, until recently. According to the article, 7 Things You Should Know About Gamification, the term gamification can be defined as, "the application of game elements in non-gaming situations, often to motivate or influence behavior." In general, there are many reasons for the support of gamification for language learning. Specifically, gamification provides ways for students to build connections with one another and also to provide an engaging and interactive way for students to participate in their own education. It is both rewarding and pleasing at the same time which allows for students to enjoy learning. With language students, it can provide concentrated practice on specific areas or a whole language approach depending on the game. Additionally, gamification allows language learners to use graphics and visual aids to assist their learning along with the chance to interact with others.

Over the past few days I have tried several different games, specifically "escape the room" games. One game that I especially liked is Phantasy Quest. I have played it twice, once without the walkthrough and once with it. After playing the game both ways, I would have to say that the walkthrough is definitely necessary in order to prevent frustration. Playing around without the walkthrough could be a fun initial activity for students to get used to how the game works, however, it is definitely necessary for completing the game without getting frustrated to the point of quitting.

The language learning objectives for students playing this game would be to be able to recognize beach/nature vocabulary along with being able to give and understand directions. The role of the teacher during this activity would include verbally giving directions to the students using an appropriately modified version of the walkthrough. The point of verbal directions for the walkthrough would be to increase listening comprehension for both giving and receiving directions. The teacher can provide the directions using North, East, South, and West vocabulary or simply Up, Down, Right, and Left depending on the teacher's preference. The students would be actively involved because the game provides many different ways for the students to interact with the environment on the screen. After the initial walkthrough by the teacher, the students can even use the game to create their own set of directions for what they want the character to do. Then the students can practice giving and receiving various directions with a partner. Images from the game could be used by the teacher to reference vocabulary and possibly draw out a map for students to reference directions in the classroom. One specific way for the teacher to assess learning objectives is by looking at the progress of the students while the walkthrough is presented. If the students understand the directions then they will be able to follow the directions on the screen for the teacher to see. However, if the students do not have listening comprehension for directions and the vocabulary then they will not be able to complete the steps as said by the teacher. The teacher should walk around the classroom to assess the progress of the students in relation to each direction of the walkthrough that is presented.

Overall, I thought this was a really fun game and it provides the students with a lot of different options for interacting within the game. I think it would be a great way to work on both vocabulary and directions with students!