Video Games in the Secondary English Language Arts Classroom: A State‐of‐the‐Art Review of the Literature

Abstract

AbstractEnglish language arts (ELA) teachers and literacy researchers are increasingly attending to the ways that digital technologies may be integrated into the curriculum. Video games, which now feature extensive narrative structures, interactive play systems, and complex multimodal semiotics, offer one avenue through which ELA teachers can expand upon the texts and literacy practices included in language arts curricula. However, professional resources and research on the use of video games in literacy classrooms remain scarce. To understand how educators have begun to integrate games into ELA curriculum and instruction, the authors conducted a state‐of‐the‐art review of the emerging literature on video games in secondary ELA classrooms. Through an inductive search and coding process, 21 studies were identified and analyzed. Two major findings emerged regarding both the specific instructional practices that instructors in the studies employed and the overall effects on students' learning described in the studies. First, the studies highlighted examples of video game instruction through the use of game analysis, game design and production, text production, and inquiry/research. Second, studies emphasized students’ expanded conceptions of literacies, development of literacy practices, growth of critical and analytical thinking skills, enhanced engagement, and increased opportunities for peer collaboration and mentoring. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for literacy instruction and research.