Gamification in English Language Acquisition: Systematic Literature Review (2015-2024)

Abstract

Gamification is one of the newest teaching methods for learning English these days. Gamification tends to have a diminishing effect over time, even though initial engagement is sometimes rather high. This poses significant problems about how to keep students engaged and guarantee that gamified learning has long-term positive effects on education. As a result, the influence of gamification on English language acquisition is methodically identified in this analysis. 25 articles were selected among 128 publications published between 2015 and 2024 using three databases: Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, and Educational Resources Information Centre (ERIC). Both inclusion and exclusion criteria were considered. First, the noteworthy results showed that gamification is being employed extensively in elementary schools these days, and that when students are given tasks that are specifically designed to be like games, gamification has an impact on their motivation and interest. Second, when gamification is added to the English curriculum, students' attitudes significantly improve. These two results suggested that gamification research in English language acquisition is still lacking. In general, practitioners can benefit from this review by learning how gamification affects students in language classrooms and by identifying research gaps on English language acquisition, which will help to sustain education over time.