Event Title

PD21 - ELLE, The EndLess LEarner Videogame: Language Acquisition Through Interactive Technology

Presenter Information

Georg Anemogiannis, University of Central Florida
Eric Butt, University of Central Florida
Tyler Chauhan, University of Central Florida
Megan Chipman, University of Central Florida

Location

VAB-108

Streaming Media

Start Date

3-11-2017 4:45 PM

Description

With our lives being more interconnected than ever due to technology, persisting language barriers still hinder valuable opportunities of cross-culture collaboration. The idea of using technology to teach a second language is not a novel one, but with the continued rise of virtual reality (VR) technologies, our team felt that there was a great opportunity to utilize the unique components that VR has to offer for Second Language Acquisition (SLA) purposes. In order to accomplish that goal, our team believes that the most effective and engaging way to do this would be through an interactive game. Our hope is that the knowledge gained through immersive and entertaining gameplay will have a significant impact in bringing down the language barriers that separate us while also encouraging people to try and learn a new language when they might not have considered doing otherwise. The final goal of ELLE is to study how virtual reality affects SLA. ELLE is planned to be implemented in several language learning environments where participants will be able to use the system to aid in their language development. Various gameplay mechanics will be experimented with and tested for effectiveness, but the overall format of the game itself is that of an endless-runner, with players navigating through a track and answering language comprehension questions. Through data analysis of the participants involved, valuable insight into how various demographics process and learn a second language will be obtained, including what parts of language acquisition prove to be most challenging, how quickly a language can be picked up, what gameplay mechanics are most effective for each group, and so on. Through its combination of VR technology and embedded language learning techniques, the ELLE project hopes to make SLA a more simplified process in order to bring down the language barriers that still exist in our modern world. This project's demonstration will be a live look at the ELLE VR game in action, giving participants the opportunity to put on the headset and test their knowledge of the Portuguese language. A non-VR version will also be available for those interested in comparing the two approaches to SLA for themselves.