Pedagogical gamification in the FLE class room: a path towards optimizing learner oral expression

Abstract

This article proposes a reflection on the use of gamification as a pedagogical tool to improve the oral expression of learners in French as a foreign language (FLE). It is part of a research project whose main objective is to verify the contribution of playful activities in oral teaching and learning. Our study took place in a Moroccan public primary school in the Oujda-Angad provincial district, specifically in the sixth-grade class. To do this, we adopted an experimental approach to assess the impact of a set of playful oral activities on the oral expression of learners in our control group. We used a mixed-methodological approach, combining quantitative and qualitative methods, to analyze the collected data. Thus, this article reveals that pedagogical gamification of traditional oral activities in the sixth-grade primary classroom is a valuable means of promoting oral expression in FLE learners. Given its positive contribution to the learning process, playfulness enhances the acquisition of targeted skills by allowing learners to engage with FLE in a more effective manner. Additionally, playfulness could also counteract classroom boredom and bring about renewed enthusiasm among learners for learning situations and activities proposed, thereby contributing to the innovation of the pedagogical model adopted in FLE classrooms, with the aim of improving academic success and making school more attractive

Keywords : gamification- oral expression- FLE classrooms- student- playful activity.

JEL Classification : M15

Paper type : Empirical research