New Technologies and the ‘Wow’ Factor: Investigating the Relationship Between Time of Exposure to New Media and Students’ Opinions on Game-Supported Language Learning Krzysztof Kotula Abstract The present paper focuses on the problem of video game-supported language learning. In order to examine students’ opinions on the subject, a study was conducted among 47 learners of French attending the same secondary school. The study had three major goals. Primarily, it was undertaken to indicate students’ general perception of game-supported language learning, that is to determine whether they really consider this type of tasks as interesting and profitable. The second aim was to find out whether opinions of individuals coming across this kind of technology for the first time would be divergent from those who benefit from it regularly during foreign language classes. Finally, another important goal of the research was to determine whether variables such as gender, length of foreign language instruction, as well as pupils’ general views on the nature of second language learning and the self-perception of their language abilities can have an impact on their perception of game-supported language learning. 1 Introduction In spite of the accelerating development of new technologies, the problem of video game-based (and supported) 1 language learning is still a marginal one. Literature specifically devoted to this issue is not rich (see deHaan, 2011, pp. 46–47; Li, K. Kotuła(&) Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland e-mail: christophe.kotula@gmail.com 1 Sometimes, playing video games in the language classroom is the central element of the course. Such an approach can be called game-based language learning. On the other hand, playing video games can constitute only a part of a course. Such an approach could be called, following the distinction made by Ellis between task-based language learning and task-supported language learning (Ellis, 2003, p. 28), game-supported language learning, that is language learning which combines game use with traditional pedagogy. In the present paper, this approach is also referred to as computer-enhanced ludic techniques. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 M. Pawlak (ed.), Classroom-Oriented Research, Second Language Learning and Teaching, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-30373-4_14 213