Gamification and Student Engagement in Arabic Language Learning for Students with Special Educational Needs: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective

Mirza Muttaqin; Abdul Muntaqim Al Anshory; Bisri Mustofa; M. Mansyur; Maltuful Anam

doi:10.32806/jf.v15i03.2230

Authors

Mirza Muttaqin Maulana Malik Ibrahim State Islamic University Malang, Indonesia
Abdul Muntaqim Al Anshory Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang, Indonesia
Bisri Mustofa Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang, Indonesia
M. Mansyur Institut Agama Islam Miftahul Ulum (IAIMU) Pamekasan, Indonesia
Maltuful Anam Institut Agama Islam Miftahul Ulum (IAIMU) Pamekasan, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32806/jf.v15i03.2230

Keywords:

gamification; student engagement; Arabic language learning; special educational needs; self-determination theory; inclusive education

Abstract

Gamification is widely used to raise student engagement, but its role in Arabic language learning for students with special educational needs (SEN) is rarely examined in inclusive classrooms. This qualitative case study asked how teachers enact gamified Arabic instruction for students with SEN at Pondok Pesantren Al-Bajigur, Sumenep, Indonesia, and how it shapes their behavioural, emotional, cognitive, and social engagement. Data came from eight non-participant observations, semi-structured interviews with two Arabic teachers, two students with SEN, and one member of the learning-support personnel, and a review of instructional documents; the researcher coded the material through first-cycle, second-cycle, and pattern coding following Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña. Engagement followed gamified activities but remained uneven: intensity and form shifted with each student's profile, task demand, and adult support. Behavioural participation depended on prompts, emotional engagement on manageable challenge, cognitive effort on graduated scaffolding, and social interaction on the learning-support person. Read through Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as an interpretive lens, these conditions fit competence, autonomy, and relatedness, though the study did not measure them. Gamified Arabic instruction supports SEN learners only when paired with accessible tasks and sustained human scaffolding, with the support person as a central actor.

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