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PANRITA Journal of Science, Technology, and Arts, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2021

The Use of H5P Interactive Content in English Language

Learning
Tuning Ridha Addhiny 1
1 UIN Mataram, Indonesia
1
tuningaddhiny@uinmataram.ac.id

Abstract
The use of Moodle as a Learning Mangement System (LMS) has been widely used
nowadays, especially since the presence of Covid-19 Pandemic. H5P, HTML5 Package, is
a plugin which could be added in Moodle, allowing teachers to create more interesting
contents such as interactive videos, quizzes, flashcards, dialog cards, and many more
interactive activities. This study describes the usage of H5P interactive content as a
media in English Language Learning. In this study, the researcher defined the term of
H5P and its various contents, reviewed previous studies on the use of H5P, and stated
certain recommendations for the better use of H5P in the teaching and learning process.
The literature review indicated that the effective use of H5P increases students’
attention and interest in English Language Learning.
Keywords/Kata Kunci: H5P, Interactive, English Language Learning

Introduction
One of the most interesting and challenging areas within Teaching English as a Foreign
Language these days is the effective use of technology. Teaching English using technology in
an effective, efficient, and appropriate manner is not easy, since teachers need to make
numerous decision regarding instructional activities design, materials used, feedback,
assessment approaches, and so on (Kessler, 2020). Moreover, teachers all around the world
are also expected to use technology in everyday teaching due to the outbreak of pandemic
Covid-19, whether they are ready or not. Teachers need to be able to teach creatively and
develop a personal teaching style in an online medium which modes of communication are
different from the more familiar face-to-face setting (Lamy & Hampel, 2007).
Nowadays, all teachers are required to be able to apply E-learning programs in their
teaching, one of which is Moodle, often referred as Learning Management System (LMS).
Moodle, which is an acronym for Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment,
is a software package intended to assist educators in creating online courses with
opportunities for dynamic interaction (Suppasetseree and Dennis, 2010). It is a learning
platform which enables educators to create personalised learning environments and
provides the most flexible tool-set in supporting both blended learning and full online
courses. In E-Learning, Moodle is widely used to give students learning materials,
assignments, exercises, quizzes, surveys, class schedules, and also grades. Chats and forums
are also available in Moodle, enabling students and educators to communicate and do
classroom discussions. However, since learning English effectively which includes four skills

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such as reading, speaking, listening, and writing is believed to be influenced by students’

motivation, it has brought a big challenge for instructors to create learning materials that
could rise students’ attention and motivation. Motivation is a kind of strong stimulus which
is based on a certain learner’s perspective of his/her own social environment and initiates
this learner to study hard and smart (e.g. using appropriate learning strategies) and finally
the learner would acquire the proficiency of the target language quickly and effectively
(Quan, 2014).
The basic features in Moodle such as file sharing, assignments, quizzes, chats and forums,
could cause less motivation in English Language Learning since the activities are
monotonous. Consequently, instructors should find out more interesting and creative ways
in teaching online in order to overcome the problem. Therefore, this study presents an
interactive content called H5P, a plugin that could be added in Moodle, which aims to help
students to learn English Language in an interesting way, leading students to learn better
and more effective.

Method
The present study is literature based in which the data and information are gathered from
books, websites, journals, etc. According to Ramdhani et al (2014), a literature review in
research is a surveys scholarly article, books and other sources relevant to a certain issue,
area of research, or theory, which then provides a description, summary, and critical
evaluation of those works. There are some points that will be discussed in this study. Firstly,
the definition of H5P is explained, followed by the explanation of various features available
in H5P. Moreover, previous researches on the use of H5P in teaching and learning are
analyzed. The main focus on the analysis was the effectiveness of using H5P interactive
content in the online teaching and learning process, specifically in English Language
Learning.

Results and Discussion

H5P (HTML5 Package)
H5P is a plugin for existing publishing systems that enables the system in creating content
like Presentations, Interactive Videos, Games, Quizzes, and more (H5P, 2022). It empowers
educators to create a rich and interactive web experience more efficiently using a web
browser and a website with an H5P plugin.
H5P provides an innovative solution to educators seeking to create active learning
opportunities for learners and can be used to create and develop any teaching material or
assessment, scaffolded to learning objectives for the subject (Sinnayah et al, 2021).
Moreover, the content of H5P is mobile friendly and accessible on any mobile device at any
given time, providing convenience for educators to create contents and learners to access
them beyond university contact hours.
Wicaksono et al (2021) classified the various features of H5P into eight content types.
They are:
1) Text-based content types
a. Fill in the blanks, to create a task with a missing words in a text

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b. Drag the word, to create text-based drag and drop tasks

c. Mark the words, to create a task where users highlight words
d. Essay, to create essay with instant feedback
2) Question-based content types
a. True-false question, to create True/False question
b. Multiple choices, to create flexible multiple-choice questions
c. Single choice set, to create questions with one correct answer
d. Quiz, to create sequence of various question types
e. Personal quiz, to create personality quizzes
f. Summary, to create tasks with a list of statements
3) Image-based content types
a. Drag & drop, to create drag and drop tasks with images
b. Find the hotspot, to create image hotspots for users to find
c. Find multiple hotspots, to create many hotspots for users to find
d. Image hotspot, to create an image with multiple image hotspots
e. Image sequencing, to place images in the correct order
f. Agamotto, to create a series of images and explanations
g. Collage, to create a collage of multiple images
h. Image slider, to create an image slider easily
i. Timeline, to create a timeline of events with multimedia
j. Image juxtaposition, to create interactive images
4) Game-based content types
a. Memory game, to create the classic image pairing game
b. Dialog cards, to create text-based turning cards
c. Flashcards, to create stylish and modern flashcards
d. Guess the answer, to create an image with question and answer
5) Audio-based content types
a. Audio recorder, to create an audio recording
b. Dictation, to create dictation with instant feedback
c. Speak the words, to answer a question using your own voice
d. Speak the words set, a series of questions answered by speech
6) Complex content types
a. Interactive video, to create videos with enriched interactions
b. Course presentations, to create a presentation with interactive slides
c. Column, a column layout for H5P content
d. Documentation tool, to create a form wizard with export
7) Presentation content types
a. Iframe embedder, to embed from a URL or a set of files
b. Accordian, to create vertically stacked expandable items
c. Chart, to generate bar and pie charts quickly
8) New content types
a. Branching scenario, to create dilemmas and self-paced learning
b. Virtual tour (360), to create 360 environments with interaction
c. Interactive book, to create courses, books or tests
Since H5P provides many tools to make creative activities, it enables educators to design
more interesting materials in English Language Learning. H5P interactive content can be
used to improve different language skills. For example, the use of crossword, drag and drop,

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memory game, and flashcards can expand students’ English vocabulary. Listening activities
can be supported by audio recorder, dictation and interactive video. Speak the words and
speak the words set can be used in speaking activities, while reading activities can be
practiced by using multiple choice and true-false questions. In practicing writing, fill in the
blanks and essay is a suitable option. Moreover, grammar practice can also be done by using
fill in the blanks and mark the words.
Previous Studies on the use of H5P
Some studies have been done on the advantages of using H5P in designing teaching
materials. Macfarlane and Ballantyne (2018) focused on designing interactive video using
H5P. They mentioned that the key of using H5P’s interactive video tool is to find an
appropriate degree of difficulty so that students would be engaged without overwhelming
them. They found that too many interruptions in the video may distract and discourage
students. Therefore, by framing interaction at the beginning of the video, followed by
questions at logical breaks during long videos or at the end of short videos, educators can
make rich experience without pushing learners into cognitive overload. To maximize the use
of interaction video tool using H5P, the researchers recommended educators to consider
carefully the purpose of using the video and articulate a clear outcome before starting to
insert interactions.
Pereira et al (2019) conducted a study to describe the development of studies of
authorship tools and the creation of educational resources, which was carried out by 12
students of the Doctoral course in “Informatics in Education” of the Federal University of Rio
Grande do Sul (UFRGS). Six of the students were from the Teleducation discipline, while the
others are from the discipline of Hyperdocuments as Teaching Material. The report shows
the importance of using authoring tools such as H5P framework in the teaching and learning
process. From the activities, it was possible to be more familiar with the resources available
in H5P and how they can be used in creating educational resource. It was noticed that the
authoring tools can be used for content creation. Hence, they end up being a great ally of
teachers in the teaching-learning process, since teachers are able to create interactive
learning contents that tend to motivate students’ interest due to the diversity of resources
presented to them. In conclusion, H5P authoring tool has great potential to collaborate in
the teaching-learning process.
Another study of H5P, which reported the use of H5P as a media to foster self-paced and
self-directed learning, is done by Sinnayah et al (2021). The study critically outlined the
development process involved in scaffolding activities towards the learning outcomes. A
survey was conducted at Victoria University, including 250 students enrolled in block mode
in 2019, aiming to perceive students’ perspective on the effectiveness of H5P activities. The
result showed that 60% of the students who attempted the H5P activities completed them
consistently, which indicated that the students were engaged in self-directed study. Eighty
percent of students felt that completing H5P activities were time consuming and needed
greater effort than completing online multiple choice questions. Despite that, 90% of the
participants agreed that by the repeated practice with H5P activities, their knowledge in
anatomy and physiology was enhanced.
The researcher found that the studies of the use of H5P are still limited, especially on the
area of English Language Learning. A recent study focusing on this area is conducted by
Wicaksono et al (2021), which examined the use of H5P in English Language Teaching. The

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study investigated the relation among the use of H5P in the teaching-learning process, the
student’s motivation, and the development of their English skills. It was a case study which
was done in a university context, including 19 students taking a Basic English course in the
second semester. This study used observation, interviews, and document analysis. The
observation sheets were used to record activities during the teaching and learning process,
the interviews were adressed to all students to collect other data, while documents were
used to support the data from the observation and interviews. The result of the study
showed that the use of H5P in teaching English within 6 months had a positive impact on
students’ motivation that can influence the effectiveness of the development of their English
skills. Therefore, in the online and virtual English language teaching, H5P activities offer
exciting opportunities for students to learn English in an interesting, interactive, and
engaging way.

Conclusion
H5P is an interactive content plugin tool that can be integrated to Moodle LMS enabling
educators to create a more interesting, attractive, and interactive materials in the teaching
and learning process, especially in online classes. The variety of features available in H5P
makes the teaching and learning process less monotonous and encourages course creators
to be more creative and motivated in enhancing their skills in material designing.
There are many advantages of using H5P in teaching and learning. One of them is making
rich experience in the learning process without pushing learners into cognitive overload.
Furthermore, it becomes a great assistant for teachers in the teaching-learning process,
since they are able to create interactive learning contents that could motivate students’
interest due to the diversity of resources presented. The use of H5P also encourages self-
directed study. Even though it is more time consuming than completing multiple choices
questions, learners agreed that their knowledge was enhanced by the repeated practice with
H5P activities. Moreover, the advantage of using H5P activities in English Language Learning
is that they offer exciting opportunities for students to learn English in an interesting,
interactive, and engaging way.
Overall, the use of H5P is an excellent option to make online classes be more attractive,
interesting, engaging, and interactive. Not only in English Language Learning, but also other
subjects as well. Since there is still little evidence of studies on H5P, this study can give a
great insight for future researchers to conduct their future studies.

References
H5P (2022). Getting Started. Retrieved from https://h5p.org/getting-started
Kessler, G. (2020). Professionalizing Your Use of Technology in English Language Teaching.
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Lamy, M.N., & Hampel, R. (2007). Online Communication in LanguageLearning and Teaching.
Palgrave Macmillan.
MacFarlane, L. & Ballantyne, E. (2018). Bringing Videos to Life with H5P: Expanding
Experential Learning Online. Proceedings of the 2018 Atlantic Universities’ Teaching
Showcase, 22, 28-33.

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Pereira, D. S., Valdeni, J., Tarouco, L. M. R., Jardim, R.R., Rocha, P.S., & Euder, F. (2019).
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