Evaluation activities in Cyprus
An additional evaluation activity to what is foreseen in the project proposal took place in Pafos, Cyprus on 19th of December, 2014. The evaluation activity was in the form of small-scale case study involving 9 higher education students enrolled in the ‘IELTS program’ offered by the Private Foreign Language School ‘Georgios Sofokleous’. The aim of this evaluation activity was dual:
- to see whether or not students recognized the rationale underpinning the game
- to gain an insight into students and participant teachers’ perceptions regarding the siLang intervention.
The evaluation session started with a brief presentation of the 7 chapters of the game scenario. Students were provided with basic instructions on how to navigate from scene to scene and how to use the available game elements. Then the students were given the opportunity to play the game and to complete within the time allocated several language learning tasks and challenges. The class tutor and two members of the siLang team supported the students when needed. It was observed that students enthusiastically engaged in the siLang scenario and did not encounter any difficulty in using the siLang serious game interface.
The students recognized that the primary focus of the siLang serious game was not the formal development of skills in English. When the asked to identify the primary focus they mentioned three aspects that combined together is what siLang intervention aims at achieving. More precisely, the students closely associated the game with 1) development of communicative skills in professional environments 2) the sensitiveness that one should perform when interacting within multicultural communities 3) the ‘international’ use of English for communication and collaboration. The graphics of the game and the interface received positive comments by the students and the class tutor. The tutor highlighted the fact that the user-friendly interface encouraged students’ concentration on the game scenario and the learning tasks. In her own words:
The graphics are eye-catchy. The interface is easy to use. You can easily tell what does what. This is very important as it enforces students to focus on the game plot and on the language learning tasks
The class tutor also stressed the fact that the game provides links to real life challenges. For example, she considers that in a clever way the game simulates specific aspects of the process of ‘looking for a job and making initial professional steps’. Towards this direction, the class tutor suggested as a follow up the integration of an additional chapter where people from different countries will submit their experiences from job interviews, job post reviews, good practices in negotiations and more. This idea was in line with students; recommendations for the addition of a new chapter that focuses even more on the job interviewing process.
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