Game on: enhancing argumentative writing with digital gamification

Abstract

Purpose: In this article, we propose a digital gamification approach to foster online collaborative argumentation. Design: To achieve this, a gamified online platform called Argument Arena is introduced. Argument Arena incorporates various game elements, such as points, leaderboards, and role-playing, to engage students. It provides a framework that guides students through the entire argumentative writing process, including idea generation, essay composition, and peer evaluation. Additionally, this article reports on an evaluation study conducted with thirty-three Chinese first-year undergraduate students who used Argument Arena and participated in a questionnaire survey. Findings: The results indicate that students had a high level of interest, perceived usefulness, and sense of relatedness to peers when learning argumentative writing on the platform. Value: This article provides language educators with a new tool to facilitate the teaching and learning of argumentative writing.