Łodej, Monika2026-02-022026-02-022025"LingBaW. Linguistics Beyond and Within", 2025, Vol. 11, pp. 103-118.2450-5188https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12153/9201This study investigates the workload experienced by English Department students in a gamified academic writing task. The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) serves as the primary instrument for analyzing workload distribution across six dimensions: mental demand, physical demand, temporal demand, performance, effort, and frustration. Additionally, the study examines its correlation with self-reported perceived learning and learning outcomes. Data collected from 23 Master’s students in Poland indicate a moderate overall workload, with effort and frustration emerging as the primary contributors. While students reported improvements in citation mastery, perceived workload did not exhibit a significant correlation with final grades. The findings suggest that gamification can enhance student engagement without imposing excessive cognitive strain.enAttribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/academic writingworkloadhigher educationEnglish Medium Instruction (EMI)gamificationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article10.31743/lingbaw.18307