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Games In The Classroom Essay

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Games have a great educational value and can be used in the classroom to make learners use the language instead of just thinking about learning the correct forms. They involve students in the process of learning. Lee(1979) says that games are enjoyable and that the essence of games lies in the goal which is visible and stimulating, and that is, among other things, to improve one’s own performance. Because the activities in the class are interesting, learners look forward to their language lessons. Lee adds: “it’s hard to see any difference between ‘work’ and ‘play’ – there is a pleasant, informal, and often relaxed atmosphere, favourable to language learning… A language is learnt by using it – and this means using it in situations and communicatively” (Lee, 1979: 1). Most language games distract the learners’ attention from the study of linguistic forms. They stop thinking about the language and instead use it productively. Repetition is basic to the language learning, but not the repetition of mechanical drills, although they should not be entirely eliminated. By …show more content…

They need to gain exposure to “comprehensible samples of language and they need chances to play with and communicate with the language themselves” (Scrivener, 2011: 23). Students need to talk themselves, they need to communicate with a variety of people, they need to do a variety of different language-related tasks, they need feedback on how successful or not their attempts at communication have been. Using games in teaching creates the opportunity for every learner to use the language much more than in traditional teaching. By creating group work, pair or individual work, the teacher can ensure “that each and every learner has optimum opportunity for oral practice in using language, going beyond what is possible in class work” (Wright, Betteridge & Buckby, 2006:

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