On Digital Game-Based Reading Strategy Training: Implications for L2 Reading Ability Development

Abstract

This article summarizes the results of an experiment that examined the effects, if any, of a digital educational game called Into the Book¹ on the learning of the L2 reading strategies and in turn on the L2 reading ability development of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. To this aim, the experimental group practiced and applied eight common reading strategies to the reading of English passages while playing the game. Chief among them was the summarizing strategy that required the learners to watch cartoon characters narrating a story. They then chose and dragged the main ideas into a virtual box popping up on the screen. The visualizing strategy, on the other hand, required them to use stationary tools by which they could draw mental maps that would eventually help them understand the link between key events as they read the texts. The other strategies likewise required the participants to interact with different objects in the game to be able to successfully serve the reading objectives. The control group, however, received treatment on the same strategies via a conventional, teacher- fronted method. The findings showed that the mean difference was in favor of the participants in the experimental group. This carries several main implications for teachers and courseware designers.