User Centered Game Design: Evaluating MMORPGs for Second Language Acquisition

1. User Centered Game Design:Evaluating MMORPGs for Second Language Acquisition Yolanda Rankin - Northwestern University McKenzie McNeal – Tennessee State University Marcus Shute – Clark Atlanta University Bruce Gooch – University of Victoria

2. Traditional Game Design Conceptualization Prototyping Playtesting

3. Motivation • Serious games promote acquisition of information and development of skills valued in both the virtual realm and the real world. (Abt 1970; Aldrich 2005; Chatham 2007; Kelly et al. 2007; Mayo 2007; Squire 2005). • Successful integration of learning objectives with engaging gameplay experiences. (Adams 2005)

4. User-Centered Game Design • Domain • Affordances of gameplay relative to a specific application or subject matter • Targeted Audience • Assessment • Desired impact on player (Chen & Michael 2005)

5. User Centered Game Design

6. Computer Assisted Language Learning Tools Traditional Language Learning Software

7. Computer Assisted Language Learning Tools Traditional Language Learning Software Computer Mediated Communication (Beauvois 1992; Beauvois & Eledge 1996; Chapelle 1998; Harless et al 1999; Johnson et al 2005; Kern 1995; Payne & Whitney 2002; Thorne 2008; Valente 2004; Warschauer 2003)

8. Computer Assisted Language Learning Tools Video Games Traditional Language Learning Software Computer Mediated Communication (Beauvois 1992; Beauvois & Eledge 1996; Chapelle 1998; Harless et al 1999; Johnson et al 2005; Kern 1995; Payne & Whitney 2002; Thorne 2008; Valente 2004; Warshaurer 2003)

9. Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) EverQuest 2

10. Benefits of MMORPGs: Virtual Identity

11. Benefits of MMORPGs:Context for Second Language Acquisition

12. Benefits of MMORPGs: Social Interactions “They're dangerous… Thanks. Let’s go." Okay…Take the quest… Wait for me.

13. Playtesting: Experimental Studies Hypothesis: MMORPGs provide adequate support for Second Language Acquisition compared to traditional second language (L2) pedagogy?

14. Assessments Test Of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Intensive English Program Exam Student Profiles 12 Advanced ESL students 8 females, 4 males Chinese Independent Variable Exposure to game 6 ESL students play EQ2 for 3 hours 6 ESL students attended class instruction English as Second Language (ESL) Participants

15. Prior Knowledge of L2 Vocabulary • Sentence usage of potential L2 vocabulary • Average Pre-Test Score: 8.86 (SD 6.21) • Max: 21.43% • Min: 0%

16. Post Test Assessments

17. Sentence Usage Post-Test Assessment • One-way ANOVA • F[1 , 9] = 10.33, p = 0.01 • Average scores: • L2 instruction = 54.78 (SD=8.81) • EQ2 = 16.67 (SD=9.65)

18. Playtesting: Experimental Studies Hypothesis: In-game social interactions between Native English Speakers and ESL students promote L2 vocabulary acquisition.

19. Assessments Pre-test of L2 Vocabulary Post-tests Student Profiles 6 Advanced ESL students 7 Native English Speakers Enrolled in southern liberal arts colleges Exploratory Study Teams of 4 – 5 people 5 hours of game play Independent Variable Play EQ2 solo Play EQ2 w/NES Collaborative Play Between Native Speakers & Non Native Speakers

20. Post Test Assessments

21. ESL PC 1: i need to examine the parchment scrap to see if i can decipher anything NES PC 1: click on the white message box NES PC 2: from the spiders? NES PC 1: and select group ESL PC 1: how to do this quest NES PC 1: nice, you’re using group chat NES PC 2 : just kill a bunch of spiders and you'll get what you need ESL PC 1 : ok Language Socialization

22. Lessons Learned • Traditional classroom instruction • Facilitates ESL students’ ability to demonstrate semantic knowledge of L2 vocabulary using sentences. • In-game social interactions • Higher level of engagement for L2 vocabulary acquisition than traditional classroom instruction. • Social interactions between Native Speakers (NS) and Non Native Speakers supports L2 vocabulary acquisition & reading comprehensions skills.

23. Design Implications • Universal Usability Interfaces (Shneiderman 2004 & Plaisant 2004; Shneiderman 2003) • Interpersonal & Intercultural communication (Thorne 2008; Thorne & Reinhardt 2008) • Communicative performance: knowing what to say and when to say it (Hadley 2001; Krashen 1991) • Communication tools that facilitate emergent cooperative behavior for diverse users

24. Conversational Prompts

25. Design Implications • Virtual environments that achieve shared context of meaning • Contextual information via text, graphical images and audio that assist with the development of second language vocabulary and reading comprehension skills(Bourges-Walgers & Scrivener 1998; Rankin et al. 2006; Steinkuehler 2005)

26. Dictionary as Shared Representation

27. Summary • User Centered Game Design to integrate learning objectives with gameplay experiences to assess learning outcomes. • MMORPGs embody ideal virtual environments for L2 vocabulary, reading comprehension and conversational fluency. • Game interfaces that leverage in game social interactions as key component to designing video games that support SLA.

28. Sony Online Entertainment Scott Hartman John Smedley Raph Koster Microsoft Research John Nordlinger National Science Foundation Mississippi College Demetria Rankin-Li Beth Stapleton, Ph. D. Tennessee State University Acknowledgements

29. Sentence Usage Post-Test Assessment • F[2,15] = 9.65, p = 0.002 • Average scores: • L2 instruction = 54.78 (SD=26.98) • EQ2 Solo = 16.67 (SD=10.76) • EQ2 w/NES = 13.10 (SD=12.30)