Languagenut expands its language learning portfolio with the acquisition of Gaming Grammar
Languagenut expands its language learning portfolio with the acquisition of Gaming Grammar
We are thrilled to announce the successful acquisition of Gaming Grammar. This strategic move strengthens Languagenut’s commitment to delivering high-quality, innovative and engaging language learning experiences.
The acquisition, which was finalised on 21 June 2023, combines Gaming Grammar’s research-based teaching approach and content, which is in line with the MFL Pedagogy Review recommendations, with Languagenut’s comprehensive language resources and global reach.
Gaming Grammar is a series of digital games to improve the way children learn French, Spanish and German grammar. It was developed by the University of York, in collaboration with the University of Reading and the National Centre for Excellence for Language Pedagogy/Language-Driven Pedagogy and was funded in part by the EPSRC (for Digital Creativity Labs), DfE, HEIF, and iCURE.
Languagenut CEO, Paul Fairbank, expressed enthusiasm about the acquisition, saying, “Grammar is often seen as the boring and difficult part of learning a language for children, and yet it forms an important foundation for language acquisition. We’ve been following the brilliant work of Professor Emma Marsden, Dr Rowena Kasprowicz and Dr Rachel Hawkes and their teams for some time now. By leveraging the power of gamification, grammar learning can be more enjoyable and accessible. We are thrilled to be able to offer Gaming Grammar alongside our existing Languagenut offerings.”
Professor Emma Marsden added, “Gaming Grammar has been many years in development, and is informed by the expertise of academics and gaming professionals, passionate about inspiring the next generation of language learners. By teaming up with Languagenut we can supersize our offering and make the games available to a much wider audience!”
Gaming Grammar’s existing users will have uniterrupated access to all of the current games, and will be supported by Languagenut’s Customer Success Team. The acquisition of Gaming Grammar marks an exciting milestone in Languagenut’s growth, strengthening its position as a leader in the language learning sector.
The game teaches grammar through a listening and reading practice called form-meaning mapping, a research-based teaching approach that makes grammar essential for understanding meaning, in line with the MFL Pedagogy Review recommendations. Each mini-game is based on a spy mission and practises a pair of grammar features. To complete any mission successfully, the player must crack the code by learning how to understand the grammar features.
The Digital Creativity Labs was funded by the EPSRC to develop and evaluate the first set of mini-games in French. With additional funding from the DfE (for NCELP), HEIF, and the University of York, the team expanded Gaming Grammar to Spanish and German, added more mini-games to practise a wider range of grammar features, and built an intuitive interface for teachers.
