Beyond Drills: The Effects of Developmentally Aligned Vocabulary Games on EFL Speaking among Taiwanese Elementary Learners

This quasi-experimental study investigated whether English vocabulary games aligned with Piaget’s concrete operational stage could improve the EFL speaking proficiency of elementary learners in a Taiwanese after-school setting. Twenty Grade 3–4 students (ages 8–10) were assigned to an experimental group (n = 10) receiving a 16-week game-based intervention or a control group (n = 10) continuing with conventional drills. Speaking-related performance—self-efficacy, vocabulary use, and fluency—was measured via a Likert-scale questionnaire (Cronbach’s α = .85). The experimental group showed large, statistically significant gains across all subscales, t(9) = 8.72, p < .001, d = 1.45, while the control group showed no change. Between-group comparison confirmed a substantial posttest advantage, t(18) = 8.66, p < .001, d = 3.87. Qualitative responses corroborated the quantitative patterns. These findings suggest that developmentally aligned game design offers a theoretically grounded approach to supporting young EFL learners’ speaking development.