GAMING AND LEARNING: YOUNG ADULTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF VIDEO GAMES AS AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING TOOL

Abstract

Video games have already become essential to everyday life, and millions worldwide play various video games. Globally, there are approximately 3.09 billion active video game players (Howarth, 2024). Many people encounter language exposure by playing various video games in a foreign language with others and alone. The purpose of this study is to examine young adults’ experiences of learning the English language through video games. To grasp the experiences and perceptions of the participants, this study employed Gee’s (2007) principles of Good Games for Good Learning, adapting them to capture linguistic aspects of video game processes and learning outcomes. This qualitative case study had 6 participants gathered from different parts of the world, united under one gaming community for gamers named Discord. The data obtained through semi-structured interviews revealed a positive perception of video games as a source for learning English. This study paid attention to the language choice of the participants and, through the participants’ narratives, identified the potential benefits of games in learning aspects of reading, listening, speaking, and vocabulary. In addition, the findings suggest that communication processes that occur during gameplay have positive and negative effects on the learning process. Thus, this study identifies the possible limitations and advantages of video games as an English language learning tool. The study findings carry implications for the field of video games and language learning, pointing out this study’s limitations and future research directions.