Educational escape rooms for French grammar: A technology-in-practice approach

Teaching grammar in foreign language education has long posed challenges. While technology-assisted learning tools, such as educational escape rooms (EERs), have been widely adopted—especially in English language education—their implementation in Languages Other Than English remains underexplored. As such, this technology-in-practice piece presents a classroom-based innovation: an interactive, web-based EER designed to reinforce French grammar in a Malaysian university context, with verb conjugation as an illustrative example. Drawing on learning, game-for-learning, and context elements, we embedded the EER within instruction through a four-stage process: presentation of linguistic forms, controlled practice, interactive play, and personalization through reflection. Short-term benefits included increased learner engagement, improved grammatical accuracy, and enhanced cognitive flexibility. However, challenges emerged in terms of teacher workload, role adaptation, and design literacy. This article highlights the potential of EERs to enrich grammar instruction while underscoring the pedagogical reflection and support needed for sustainable implementation.