Escape room in EAP
This project explores the use of escape room–style activities as a form of gamification to enhance student engagement in EAP classrooms. Designed to address challenges in motivating under-engaged learners, the approach draws on interactive problem-solving tasks to foster collaboration, critical thinking, and a more active learning environment. By examining this innovative pedagogy in both business in-sessional and STEM pre-sessional contexts, the project seeks to generate insights with wider significance for creative teaching practices in EAP.
Methods and Current Stage
In 2024/25, the project was piloted with York Business School students, with feedback collected from both students and tutors through surveys and classroom observations. Additional data were gathered during the University of Leeds pre-sessional programme in summer 2025, providing a comparative perspective. Findings have already been shared at conferences locally and nationally, and the project team is contributing a case study to an edited Springer volume on creative pedagogy (forthcoming 2026).
Expected Outcomes
Building on the pilots, the next stage of the project will focus on analysing comparative datasets across institutions and contexts, with the aim of publishing a research article.