Using Instructional Games in Teaching Grammar: The Case of Moroccan EFL Common Core Students

Abstract

This paper reports on a quasi-experimental study that examines the use of instructional games in teaching grammar, and in particular, it explores the effect of tic-tac toe and board game on the present continuous and present simple. The study was conducted among 60 (N=60) Moroccan EFL common core students from two different high schools in Casablanca. All the participants took a pre-test prior to instruction and a post-test immediately after the training, which lasted three sessions. The experimental group (n=30) were instructed using instructional games, mainly tic-tac toe and board game. However, the control group (n=30) received no treatment. The experimental group was also given a feedback questionnaire at the end of the training. The data sets were submitted to SPSS, using the Independent T-test. The findings indicated that all the participants were equal in the pre-test. Nonetheless, the experimental group outscored the control group in the post test. The results of the feedback questionnaire were also in line with the whole-results of the study. It can be concluded that the tic-tac toe and board game had a momentous effect on the subjects’ understanding of the present simple and present continuous.