Teaching English through Educational Games in Yemeni High School Classes

Abstract

This study is an investigation of the educational games used in Yemeni high school classes. The main objective is to find out the extent to which Yemeni teachers are aware of the utility described in the theoretical part and whether they make use of EFL games in their classes while teaching English. Equally, this study tries to probe into some of the Yemeni EFL learners’ viewpoints towards using EFL games in the learning process-besides shedding light on the types of games they generally prefer. The approach I used was purely quantitative in nature, but I also relied on the qualitative approach. Twenty teachers and one hundred high school students were given a questionnaire about using games in English teaching and learning. The results were analyzed and show that games can be a unique opportunity for teachers to teach meaningfully and communicatively English in real-life contexts as well as the learners encourage and increase cooperation and collaboration among them and acquire the vocabulary easily. Using English teaching EFL games, in my opinion, can mitigate such difficulties facing Yemeni teachers in teaching English. Carefully choosing the right games can help a great deal in encouraging students to learn avidly. Furthermore, good EFL games have a great role to play in creating a stress-free learning atmosphere, and at the same time make it possible for students to practice the desired language skills. The key significance is that games are not mere time-fillers; rather, this study tries to guide and help teachers see when to use games, how to choose games that cater to students’ needs and interests. Based on these results, some practical recommendations were formulated in order to enhance Yemeni EFL teaching and learning through using games.