Digital Games, Literacy, and Language Learning in L1 and L2: A Comparative Systematic Review

• In Event: Gaming and Literacies: Implications for Equitable Futures

Abstract

Objectives
This presentation showcases a comparative systematic review of how the use of digital games inside and outside school settings (K-12) might support primary and secondary students’ literacy and language learning in relation to first language (L1) and second language (L2) educational contexts.

Perspective(s)
The review is both informed by insights from New Literacy Studies (Street, 1984) and related sociocultural and social semiotic literacy research (Mills, 2010), and from cognitive approaches to reading and writing (e.g., Hayes, 2012; Snow et al., 1998). Using this inclusive literacy construct, we understand literacy as multiliteracies (e.g., multimodal production of game designs) put to use through language practices, and literacy as cognitive processes that involve developing particular skills for reading, writing, speaking, and listening in L1 and L2 contexts.

Methods and Data Sources
This systematic review included studies that address digital games and literacy and language aspects in L1 and L2 quantitative and qualitative research. We first searched library databases, which focused on peer-reviewed journals published between 2000 and 2020. This procedure generated 48 selected studies for close reading. Then we conducted a breadcrumb search on all the included studies (i.e., following references from one article of interest to additional articles), followed by additional searches in selected journals that related explicitly to the L1 and L2 research fields. The breadcrumb search and focused journal search provided an additional number of studies that met our criteria, giving us a total of 77 peer-reviewed studies for further analysis. All the included studies were read closely and coded in relation to: (a) country of origin, L1 or L2 (or both); (b) education level and age (K-12); (c) game context (e.g., in-school or out-of-school); (d) game type; (e) game title; (f) game genre; (g) game aspects; (h) literacy or language aspects; (i) theoretical framework; (j) research methods; (k) and key findings (see Table 1).

Findings
Our findings indicate widely different patterns from utilizing diverse game aspects, theories, and research methodologies in relation to the two different subject areas, which show that L1 and L2 are less convergent than what often is suggested in research that compares the two subjects in a globalized world. The L1 studies indicate positive findings with mainly commercial games in relation to writing, multimodal production, critical literacy, and, partly, to reading. The L2 studies report positive findings with educational games in relation to the investigated language skills (vocabulary, reading, and writing), though with an increasing number of studies conducted in out-of-school settings examining commercial gaming practices.

Scholarly Significance
This is the first systematic review conducted on the learning outcomes from using digital games in L1 and L2 contexts. We discuss the findings from the two K-12 subjects using a cross-disciplinary perspective, and we suggest directions for future research.

Authors

• Thorkild Hanghøj, Aalborg University
  Presenting Author

• Kristine Kabel, Aarhus University
  Presenting Author

• Signe HANNIBAL JENSEN, University of Southern Denmark
  Presenting Author