Interviews with 50 Thai university EFL teachers identified perceived benefits of gamification for motivation, engagement, critical thinking and collaboration, alongside retention, frustration, technology, time, cultural-relevance and integration challenges. These are teacher perceptions, not measured student outcomes.
Key findings
- Teachers perceived gains in engagement, motivation, critical thinking and collaboration, but reported declining novelty, frustration, technology constraints, time demands, cultural relevance and difficulty integrating games with core instruction.
Why this matters globally
The findings inform educational-technology design across EFL settings by foregrounding cultural fit, teacher workload and integration rather than technology alone.
Thai researcher contribution
Assumption University researchers synthesized a substantial set of Thai teacher perspectives, including both opportunities and implementation constraints.
Limitations to consider
Purposive sampling and teacher self-report limit transferability. There were no classroom observations, student voices, achievement measures or comparison groups, so effectiveness cannot be inferred.