Application of Game-Based Learning to Enhance Personal and Formal Letter Writing Skills of 7th Grade Middle School Students

Low quality in personal and formal letter writing skills remains a prevailing challenge in Indonesian language education, particularly regarding linguistic rule application, creative presentation, and student engagement. This study aims to enhance personal and formal letter writing skills through the application of a Canva-assisted Game-Based Learning model. Adopting a Classroom Action Research design based on the Kemmis and McTaggart framework across four stages, planning, action, observation, and reflection. This investigation was conducted in two cycles. The subjects comprised 28 seventh-grade students (Class VII F) at State Junior High School 19 Malang during the even semester of the 2025/2026 academic year. Data were collected via formative tests, observation sheets, product assessment rubrics, and documentation. Quantitative and qualitative descriptive analyses were employed to calculate learning averages and characterize observational findings. Results demonstrated a substantial increase in mean learning scores from 82.92 at pre-cycle to 87.80 in Cycle I and 93.40 in Cycle II. Classical learning mastery improved from 78.57% at pre-cycle to 92.86% in Cycle I, reaching 100% in Cycle II. Furthermore, student participation and product quality exhibited progressive enhancements across cycles. Consequently, the Canva-assisted Game-Based Learning model effectively improves letter writing skills among 7th-grade students.