Abstract
Games and mobile applications have become an important part of our lives. Games and mobile applications are very useful tools for both students and teachers in learning and teaching cultural values and intercultural communication. Well-designed games and applications can provide different perspectives, develop understanding and empathy of language learners towards differences, provide important contributions to learners in ensuring social justice. This chapter aims to evaluate two different digital games in terms of content, measurement, learning, and teaching. It also offers suggestions on how the analysed games can improve social justice, intercultural communication, and multilingual communication. The usability and effectiveness of the selected games are discussed over the existing literature. In addition, the chapter deals with the role and contributions of game-based applications in the development of intercultural communication.
TopWhy Do Individuals Play Digital Games?
This study constitutes relatively a popular area which has emerged from a tendency towards mobile assisted applications in the new digital era (Klimmt, 2003). Digital games that are so common among users from all ages have attracted the attention of people across nations due to their availability with a variety of language options. Also termed as ‘computer games’, ‘console’, ‘online games’, and ‘video games’, digital games have proven as a major leisure time activity which is preferred by a large group of users (Nabi & Oliver, 2009). The tendency to digital games has evolved rapidly as leisure activity even during a worldwide recession (Chatfield, 2010). In its broadest sense, intercultural simulation can be described as formulating instructional activities that aim to improve intercultural encounters among participants of more than one cultural group that engage in challenging cultural experiences (Fowler & Push,2010). As explained by Fowler & Push (2010, p.94), “the cultures can be national, ethnic, occupational, gender, racial, or any other groups that can be construed as cultures because they are inherently different due to values, norms, behaviour patterns, and the like”.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Digital Games: A digital game is an interactive program for one or more players, meant to provide entertainment at the least, and quite possibly more.
Intercultural Communication: Is a symbolic, interpretive, transactional, contextual process, in which people from different cultures create shared meanings.
Intercultural Literacy: Is defined as the understandings, competencies, attitudes, language abilities, participation, and identities that enable effective engagement with a second culture.
Simulation: A game in which participants are provided with a simulated environment in which to play.
Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL): The use of mobile device (e.g., smart phone) to foster learner language proficiency.