Gamifying Referencing Learning
- Harvard Referencing Style as an example
|
Course area: |
EAP Writing |
|
Level: |
CEFR B1 |
|
Technology used: |
|
|
Target skill(s): |
Referencing |
|
Activity length: |
30 mins |
Contributed by Kun Li, ELC SoL
Referencing is rigid. You gotta do exactly what your referencing guide tells you to do, no questions asked, no matter which style you are required to use. Teaching and learning referencing doesn't have to be rigid, though. Using Kahoot in class to teach referencing offers students a hands-on experience, which can be more effective than students being told what to do through PPT and looking at good and bad examples. Kahoot also adds in a gaming element to spice things up and keep students engaged.
Aims:
.....
Students will be able to:
-
-
-
- confidently navigate through a referencing guide
- quickly locate specific referencing requirements
- accurately identify referencing errors and self-correct them
-
-
Set-ups:
- Teacher needs to have the Kahoot set ready before a class*.
- Prepare copies of the Harvard Referencing Guide (prints or PDF) for each group of students. Recommended group size: 2-3 students per group.
Hardware requirements:
-
- Teacher: computer; projector; (Firefox and Chrome work better than IE)
- Students: any device that connects to the internet (laptop/tablet/smart phone)
*The Kahoot set in this activity is designed for Anglia Ruskin University's Guide to Harvard Referencing style of Referencing, used by IBSS at XJTLU. The guide is available below for download. Students will need to learn the skills of how to use any kind of reference style guide, so it's OK for them to use this particular one as a practice. However, if a different guide is preferred, be it a paper/PDF/online version, you can duplicate the Kahoot set to your own inventory and tweak it to fit your guide.
Activity materials
Kahoot set for Harvard Referencing Guide
Click the picture above to access the Kahoot set
File(s) to download
-
Download Harvard_referencing_2016.pdf
Harvard_referencing_2016.pdf Details
- Friday, 12 March 2021 [772.6KB]
Procedure:
Step 1: Introduce Academic Integrity and referencing.
Step 2: Put students in groups of 2-3, and then distribute the Harvard Referencing Guide to each group.
Step 3: Show Kahoot set play mode, and guide groups to join the game.
Note: Choose "Teach" - "Team mode" for this activity. Under "Team mode", only one student in the group needs to connect their device to this game.
Step 4: Play through this Kahoot set. Since this game is meant for teaching and learning, check results and students' feedback for each question. Explain when necessary.
Note: Questions 4, 6, 8, and 12 are designed to teach students to locate information in the referencing guide. Both answers will be marked as "correct". Teacher needs to check if there are teams who select "HELP!!" or couldn't answer in-time, and offer guidance when necessary. Follow-up questions (5, 7, 9, 13) are designed to check if they can actually find the specific information needed in those scenarios.
Caveats and alternatives
Internet connectivity issues in the classroom may cause disappointment when completing this activity. Playing this Kahoot game in "Team mode" can minimize the risk of running into this issue since it only requires half (or even less) of the students to use the WiFi in the classroom. Having students play it in groups can also lower their anxiety of getting the correct answers without losing the incentive to win.
If the internet is consistently unreliable in your classroom, you can assign the Kahoot set as a challenge to your students before the class. Choose "Assign" to play this Kahoot, and set up the timing for completion. When the challenge is set up, you can email your students the PDF reference guide (attached above), this challenge link, and your customized instructions for this activity.
You can manage the challenge and check students' progress before your class, and review the difficult questions in class if necessary.