Games in Glottodidactics of the Polish Language: Theoretical Perspective and Practical Conclusions

This article, written in Polish by Paulina Kaźmierczak of the University of Łódź, examines the use of games and playful activities in teaching Polish as a foreign language. Its central argument is that ludic techniques should be treated as an integral component of language instruction rather than occasional filler, and that the most effective tools are those that combine several pedagogical functions at once. The author grounds this position in Huizinga's cultural theory of play and in the ludic strategy described by Teresa Siek-Piskozub, under which a learner pursues the satisfaction of play while the teacher pursues defined lesson objectives.

The study surveys the commercially available playful teaching materials for Polish as a foreign language, principally published workbooks and teacher's books from the past decade, along with some older precedents. These are classified first according to Roger Caillois's typology (agon, alea, mimicry, ilinx) and then according to Siek-Piskozub's scheme, which distinguishes games by their learning goal, degree of chance versus strategy, degree of simulation of reality, and rule structure. The analysis finds that most materials fit several categories at once and that none offers games corresponding to the ilinx category, leading the author to conclude that rigid classification offers limited guidance for practitioners.

As a practical contribution, the article presents two original designs created by the author: Łódzkie urodziny, a pilot role-playing and simulation game set in Łódź intended for learners at level B1 and above, which combines decision-making, communicative tasks and a map-based outdoor component, and an adapted card game based on the Voodoo mechanic for practicing furniture vocabulary at beginner levels. The author argues that such hybrid tools may enhance learning outcomes, though she notes that this hypothesis requires further empirical verification with both teachers and students.