Examining the effects of game-based learning activities on turkish language achievement and attitudes toward the subject

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of game-based learning activities on students' academic achievement and attitudes towards the Turkish language course. The research was carried out within the framework of the "idioms and proverbs" topic at the sixth-grade level, using a longitudinal quasi-experimental design with a control group. The participants included 82 sixth-grade students from a public school. The study involved three groups: after teaching the topics, the first experimental group engaged in digital game activities, the second in physical game activities in the classroom, and the third, acting as the control group, participated in reinforcement activities using traditional methods (such as multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, true-false questions). The intervention lasted for a total of 12 class hours over six weeks. All groups completed achievement tests before, during, and after the intervention, as well as an attitude scale before and after. Results indicated that both digital and physical game-based activities significantly improved students' academic achievement in Turkish, with the effect being more pronounced in the physical game group. No significant change was observed in students' attitudes towards the Turkish subject. In conclusion, game-based teaching methods proved to be more effective than traditional approaches in enhancing students' learning, although their influence on attitudes remained limited.