The use of vocabulary games in the ESP classroom

Abstract

Studies show that engaging students with game-based activities increases their involvement and leads to better language acquisition. Students who associate learning with playing games and having fun are more relaxed, at the same time being more involved and competitive. Therefore, language games can prove to be a very useful tool in teaching vocabulary effectively in ESP. They can be used as warm-up activities or time fillers, as review exercises or even as an assessment tool. The present paper discusses a series of fun activities aimed at improving students’ vocabulary mastery, their spelling skills, inference making and morphology knowledge, such as: alphabet and spelling games, fun matching activities, concentration and memory games, vocabulary review games, etc. These activities advocate for a change in the teaching techniques, which could provide some variety and turn standard textbook activities into playful tasks meant to revive the ESP classroom and improve learners’ vocabulary and fluency