A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF VOCABULARY GAMIFICATION IN QUIZLET, KAHOOT, AND WORDWALL

Abstract

This article presents a comparative experimental study evaluating the pedagogical efficacy of three prominent digital gamification platforms–Quizlet, Kahoot!, and Wordwall–in university-level second-language vocabulary instruction. Utilizing a quantitative experimental framework within a philology department setting, seventy-five university students were divided into three parallel cohorts over an eight-week instructional cycle. Weekly lexical retention was measured through immediate post-testing and delayed recall assessments to evaluate the transition of vocabulary from working memory to long-term cognitive storage. The empirical findings reveal that while Kahoot! induces high levels of real-time behavioral engagement and competitive motivation due to its synchronous mechanics, its efficacy in long-term delayed lexical retention is outmatched by Quizlet’s specialized flashcard and spaced repetition framework. Wordwall demonstrated the highest adaptability, offering a diverse array of interactive task architectures that successfully sustained student interest without causing cognitive overload or platform fatigue. The paper synthesizes these pedagogical outcomes into a strategic framework for university instructors, arguing that an optimal vocabulary curriculum must systematically map specific gamification platforms to distinct phases of the lexical acquisition cycle.