A Pilot Ethnographic Study of Gamified English Learning Among Primary Four and Five Students in a Rural Chinese Primary School

摘要

This pilot ethnographic study examines the feasibility of learning English with a gamified English e-learning platform among Primary Four (P4) and Primary Five (P5) students in a remote primary school in Henan, China. Forty-one students participated in a summer reading camp where the gamified platform in question was used. Results show that following 4 weeks of playing on the gamified platform, the majority of students developed substantial interest in reading more English books upon the fulfillment of their innate psychological needs for competence, relatedness and autonomy. The authors conclude that under a self-determination framework, the gamified platform has been effective in helping Chinese students in a rural community to learn English.