Publications

The Games2Teach project offers downloadable publications over the course of the four year grant, including materials, reviews, white papers, working papers, and a manual. These publications will be listed on this page as they become available. In order to download a copy of any of these publications , please put your name and email in the form below, click any number of the checkboxes next to the publications you would like, and click 'Submit' at the bottom of the page. A pdf of the publication(s) will be sent to you within 24 hours. Please note that for the materials and reviews, you will still need to secure the actual games and hardware separately.

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A. Digital Game-enhanced Learning Materials

Our materials series offers sets of classroom materials for L2 teaching around commercially available games.

Series 1

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Language: Chinese
Level: Intermediate


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Language: Spanish
Level: Novice-Low to Intermediate-Low


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Language: Spanish
Level: Intermediate-High to Advanced-Low


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Langauges: Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish Level: Intermediate



Series 2

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Languages: Chinese, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: English, Spanish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish
Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced


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Languages: English, Italian, Polish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, Japanese, French, German, Spanish Level: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced



B. Game Evaluations

Our game evaluations are reviews of commercially available games in consideration of their suitability for L2 teaching and learning. Language codes: CN-Chinese, EN-English, FR-French, GE-German, IT-Italian, JP-Japanese, KO-Korean, NL-Dutch, PG-Portuguese, PL-Polish, RU-Russian, SP-Spanish


C. White Paper Series

Our white papers are brief documents intended to be introductions to or overviews of specific issues related to digital game-mediated L2 learning and teaching.

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This white paper is an outline of our literacies-oriented framework for developing materials for game-enhanced materials L2 teaching and learning. The framework is applied in white paper #2 and in the materials in section A.


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This white paper is an application of the framework for game-enhanced materials development, and is offered as an example set of materials.


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This white paper presents a conference talk, with presentation slides and transcript, on how to use social network games in the L2 classroom.


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This white paper outlines seven social network games that have potential as language learning tools for intermediate levels in a variety of languages.


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This white paper presents a conference talk, with presentation slides and an extensive bibliography, surveying the current state of research in digital games in L2TL.


D. Working Paper Series

Our working paper series is comprised of pre-publication drafts of academic-level work, for the purpose of dissemination of ideas, review, and general feedback. Working papers should not be cited without author permission.

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Abstract: As digital gaming becomes a mainstream, global cultural force, researchers have begun imagining and developing digital games and simulation environments for educational purposes (e.g., de Freitas, 2006; Gee, 2007), as well as critically examining the adaptation of existing commercial games for learning purposes (e.g., Lee and Hoadley, 2007; Nardi, Ly, and Harris, 2007; Steinkeuhler, 2008). While researchers have noted potential applications of various digital games in second and foreign learning and pedagogy (L2LP) (e.g., Purushotma, 2005; Sykes, Oskoz, and Thorne, 2008; Sykes, Reinhardt, & Thorne, 2010; Thorne, 2008; Thorne, Black, and Sykes, 2009), applied linguists have also begun empirical investigation of game-mediated L2LP practices using a variety of heuristics, for example, conversation analysis (Piiranen-Marsh & Taino, 2009), L2 pragmatics (Sykes, 2008, 2009), ecological psychology (Zheng, Young, Wagner, & Brewer, 2009), learner behavior patterns (Sykes, 2010), place-based learning (Holden & Sykes, forthcoming), language socialization (Thorne, 2008), and cognitive load theory (deHaan, Reed, & Kuwada, 2010). The current chapter adds to this body of work by surveying game-mediated L2LP research and proposing a taxonomy grounded on their game-enhanced or game-based nature, and their focus on L2 learning or pedagogy. By exploring the synergetic potentials of these perspectives, we hope to offer both researchers and practitioners a framework for conceptualizing their own work in this emerging, interdisciplinary field.


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Abstract: There are several common myths about digital gaming that challenge the young field of digital game-mediated foreign language (FL) teaching and learning. Critics believe, for example, that digital gaming is only a sub-cultural phenomenon, that it is addictive, violent, and anti-social, that games are primarily an American or Japanese phenomenon, and that learning cannot result from play. In the face of current realities, however, these beliefs do not hold. In fact, pioneering research in the young field shows that many digital games can afford FL learning, implicating potential and future opportunities for FL teaching. This article challenges these myths and presents an overview of current research.


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Digital games can be categorized according to several typological parameters: platform (computer, console, handheld, browser-based, stand-alone, internet-supported), cost (free, purchased, rented, subscription, freemium), player configuration (single, multiplayer, massively multiplayer), type (traditional, casual, social), and genre (action, adventure, roleplay, strategy, simulation, other). In this guide, we define and discuss these parameters with regards to their application to game-mediated L2TL. The guide is meant as an introduction to these concepts and does not necessarily indicate the only possible division of game types. It is one organizing principle that will be useful for your understanding of the immense variety of digital game types.


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This document is designed to be a teacher resource for the use and integration of ARIS in the classroom. It provides research evidence that supports the use of games in the language learning classroom, followed by specific frameworks for implementation and activity design.


E. Professional Development Manual for Game-enhanced L2 Pedagogy with Slides

This manual offers different frameworks for evaluating vernacular games for L2 pedagogical uses, designing game-enhanced learning activities focused on the development of L2 literacies, and implementing these activities in the L2 classroom.

We are happy to offer our latest publication “Understanding and Implementing Game-enhanced L2 Pedagogy: A Professional Development Manual”, as well as the PowerPoint slides (as a pdf) that accompany it. The 24-page manual is designed as a self-study guide, to be completed with the slides and separate appendices that can be requested separately. It is meant to guide interested educators who want to:

  • Understand why digital games are relevant and interesting for language learning
  • Analyze and evaluate vernacular, or ‘off-the-shelf,’ digital games for language learning purposes
  • Develop game-enhanced activities for the classroom, using appropriate vernacular digital games
  • Understand a literacies approach to developing principled activities

If you would like a copy of the manual and slides, please consider taking our survey on game-mediated L2 teaching practices before you submit this form.