KAHOOT IT OR NOT? CAN GAMES BE MOTIVATING IN LEARNING GRAMMAR?

Gamification is not a very new concept. It is the use of game elements and game design techniques in a non-game context. It is used in various contexts for various purposes. There is strong evidence that shows the relationship between game playing and increased motivation. More and more learning games emerge and bring a promise to help to learn a language. There are certain game elements that could be used in non-game contexts to trigger effective player engagement as well as persistence and motivation to win/learn. The paper outlines the influence of specific game elements onto players, presents the motivational aspects of game involvement, and investigates what game elements could be responsible for increasing motivation to participate and engage in a grammar learning game. All of these are investigated on the example of a Kahoot.it online game, which was used with the General English language course students attending the classes in The Modern Languages Centre at the Pedagogical University, Cracow, Poland. The main objective of the research paper is to observe and assess how the students’ motivation increases – if – to learn and practise grammar and how effective this mode of learning is. It also presents the teachers’ evaluation of the design process, its implementation and recommendations for further use.