Happy Wednesday, language learners! I’ve been doing a lot of research on how board games and language interact, and I came across this study called “The Effect of Using Board Games in Reducing Language Anxiety and Improving Oral Performance” published by Yi-Chun Cheng. I came out with a lot of useful insights regarding how I could move our own board game project forward.
The Findings
Cheng found students with lower-intermediate English to test how games could reduce anxiety to improve learners’ speech.
Overall, Cheng found that board games had a good impact on lowering people’s anxiety when using their second language (L2). Specifically, he found that board games did a good job in lowering student anxiety while speaking in their L2, causing the students’ oral performance scores to go up.
Students reported that they felt more confident, less shy with their fellow learners, and learnt more useful vocabulary for daily life than they would have using a textbook (especially when considering the socio-cultural aspects of language). The students reported a variety of other positive effects, such as a reduction in negative affect – boredom, demotivation, reluctance to practice – and a boost in confidence and ability to deal with real-world problems in the L2. The students also became more readily available to use their new and old vocabulary to express themselves succinctly.
What this means for us
We can leverage the power of board games to our advantage. By using board games, we can make learning a new language more fun and less stressful.
Learning a new language, whether be it by passion or to fulfill your breadth requirement, should be fun and relaxing – it should be a way for you to experience a whole new world through the lens of other cultures.
If what Cheng suggests in his study is right, then using board games should be a fun, low-stress way of acquiring new vocabulary in your target language AND increasing your confidence and readiness to talk to people in it. How cool is that?
Source: Cheng, Yi-Chun, “The Effect Of Using Board Games In Reducing Language Anxiety And Improving Oral Performance” (2018). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 899. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/899