Game time: games for the consolidation of grammar and assessment

Game time: games for the consolidation of grammar and assessment

Games are more than just entertainment. Games can form social connections, allow for meaningful exchanges between players and offer opportunities for repeated practice. There is a growing research base describing the benefits of game design for literacy and learning (Gee, 2003; 2007); how games can situate literacy learning (Apperley and Beavis, 2013; Beavis, 2012; Beavis et al., 2017) and how games can be used to support students' critical literacy skills (Bacalja, 2018; Gutierrez and Beavis, 2012; Lowien, 2016). Many of these principles apply whether a game is played with the use of a game board, a set of cards or on a mobile phone, console or computer. In this article, I explore how games can be used to consolidate students' knowledge of explicitly taught grammar concepts, through opportunities of repeated practice. These opportunities of repeated practice also act as moments in which students can use peer and self assessment.