Empirically determined strategic input and gamification in mastering Russian word forms

Abstract

We propose two designs to gamify second language (L2) learning of Russian inflectional morphology: Treasure Hunt and Story Time. The goal of these designs is to focus learning on high-frequency word forms that are most strategic and effective for L2 acquisition in a way that stimulates engagement and builds lifelong learning skills. These two gamification designs emerged from a student focus group that was convened to propose implementations for the SMARTool (see Section 3). After an initial brainstorming session, the ideas were further developed by the instructor, honed by the students, and tested in class. Students have also contributed to and commented on the contents of this article. In Section 2 we briefly identify the problem, namely, the enormous number of paradigm forms potentially present in Russian paradigms and their skewed distribution. We cite research showing that inflectional morphology is a major hurdle for L2 learners but not for native speakers, who use only a fraction of the potential forms and can easily understand and produce forms that they have never encountered. Furthermore, evidence demonstrates that learning can be enhanced by strategically concentrating on the highest-frequency forms. Access to the highest-frequency forms of over 3,000 lexemes is provided by the SMARTool described in Section 3, but that resource is relatively static, meaning that more guidance is needed on how to implement this tool in the classroom and in self-study. Our two proposed designs are presented in Section 4 (Treasure Hunt) and Section 5 (Story Time). Conclusions are offered in Section 6.