The Impact of Ecological Factors on Game‐Based L2 Practice and Learning

Abstract

AbstractVarious empirical studies have demonstrated that digital gaming can promote second language (L2) use and learning and that game‐based L2 learning is a dynamic, emergent activity that is shaped by the interactions of different factors. Although a deeper understanding of gaming ecology on game‐based L2 use and learning is necessary to inform the selection and adaptation of digital games for L2 learning and teaching, to date the ecology of digital game‐based learning remains underexplored. To address this gap, the present exploratory case study investigated the effect of learners’ L2 proficiency, L2 learner identity, and gaming experience on the use of L2 in‐game discourse of six learners of Arabic when playing the simulation‐management video game Baalty. Informed by ecological approaches to L2 learning, data collected through questionnaires, think‐aloud protocols, observations, walk‐throughs, gaming journals, and interviews were analyzed and triangulated. Data analysis revealed that player–game interaction was deeply embedded in the gaming ecology and that learners’ L2 proficiency, L2‐learner identities, and gaming experience shaped the L2 learning potential of digital gaming. Pedagogical implications are discussed.