“Good games stay within, but at the outer edge, of the player’s ‘regime of competence’ (diSessa, 2000). That is, they feel ‘doable,’ but challenging. This state is highly motivating for learners” (Gee, 36).

Sound familiar, education theorists? Sounds to me like Gee has just supported Krashen’s language acquisition input theory using video games.

For those of you not familiar with Krashen’s theory, he states that language knowledge progresses when students are exposed to language that is slightly more advanced than their current level (a.k.a. “doable but challenging”). The theory is associated with the equation interlanguage + 1:  “interlanguage” means the version of the target language produced by the speaker, usually informed by their first language and the “1” stands for the next level of target language acquisition.

In the classroom, educators must scaffold their lessons to support our English language learners. Video games, according to Gee’s article, offer great examples of scaffolding, including multiple chances to try the same task, well-ordered problems and timely feedback. If you’ve ever beaten a video game, you know that the satisfaction acts like positive reinforcement and your motivation to keep playing skyrockets. Conversely, if you are stuck on a level for what feels like forever and cannot beat it not matter what different techniques you try, chances are you’ll want to throw the controller across the room in exasperation.

Krashen’s input theory is supported by video games in that when language learners are subject to a task that they feel is just outside of their abilities, they are more likely to try and succeed compared to when they perceive the task to be too far from reach. As an educator, I’m excited to challenge myself to scaffold foreign language teaching using the supportive aspects of video games listed in this article so my students feel that the language goal is “doable but challenging.”

Gee, J.P. (2005). Good video games and good learning. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 85(2), 33-37.