Gamification

Describe gamification and the two distinct ways it has been used in the classroom.

Gamification is the process of using a gaming-type environment to deliver a specific lesson or message to the players.  Players/students can learn specific content, in the realm of playing and competing in games.

"Gamification is the process of using game mechanics and game thinking in non-gaming contexts to engage users and to solve problems. Gamification leverages game design, loyalty program design and behavioral economics to create the optimal context for behavior change and successful outcomes." (Gamification When it comes to Education)

In the classroom, gamification has been used to teach students new material.  By creating a gaming environment around a lesson, teachers can develop engaging, competitive environments for students to explore and learn content.

Additionally, gamification can also be used to test students knowledge.  By moving the testing elements to a gaming environment, teachers can reduce the "fear of testing" syndrome, by creating a game-like environment where students can demonstrate knowledge, while teachers can identify areas for improvement.

Explain at least two advantages and two drawbacks of gamification in education settings

Gamefication brings many advantages to the educational setting.   First, it creates an environment that is more engaging and exciting for students, especially with kids that are already familiar and participating with digital/mobile games.  Additionally, gamification creates an on-going path for teachers to continuously guage students knowledge and skills, and allows for customization of education, within the gaming environment. 

One challenge with gamification is that students may approach the lessons as entertainment, versus education.  Id students "fell" they are playing, they may not be engaged with the same level of seriousness versus a formal learning plan.

Additionally, gamification is very technology sensitive.  As in the real gaming environment, students with better equipment would likely experience a better lesson plan.  In some cases, students may not even have cell phones to participate, and can possibly not have the same level of gaming skills as more affluent students, that are already well trained on navigating within a gaming environment.

Describe two best practices of gamification

First, there is the Cognitive use of gamification.  Games can provide complex systems of rule, that require repetive, cognitive "playing" to become proficient.  Examples of these cognitive lessons include digital flash cards for math problems, where students can compete against each other on time.  The more you play, the better you become!

Gamification also has a role in Emotional development.  Games can invoke a powerful range of emotions, that can stimulate learning and desire wround specific topics.

Describe the three elements of gamification and give an example of each

Mechanical Elements: Such as incremental progression, on-boarding, and instant feedback.  An example of this would include a gaming system that requires the student to complete a level to move up to the next level.  This manages incremental progress, through knowledge demonstration.

Personal Elements:  such as status and visibility.  This elements allows students to :shine" or demonstrate knowledge to the whole class.  The use of leader boards or announcement banners, can reward students for progress and demonstrated knowledge.

Emotional Elements:  Such as psychological state of flow.  An example of this would allow students to over come emotional boundries in lesons that may be normally uncomfortable.  For example, classes on sexuality or abuse can use gamification to carefully navigate the emotions that can potentially make this a difficult topic to teach and learn.

Describe two factors that hinder gamification

Misaligned Objectives:   Since gamification is an educational technique, it does not include any set objectives.  Learning can be very different when comparing math and science versus reading or essay writing.  The ability to gamify a lesson plan always works better with Math and Science, and can prove to be be more challenging around qualitative skills, such as writing.

Student Interest:  Although gaming is very popular, there are still large groups of students that do not participate in gaming for entertainment.  These students would be at a disadvantage, and may never be as enthusiastic as gaming students for a gamified lesson.

Describe one gamification platform and its different features used to gamify a classroom (Note: create a link on the name of the platform)

Classcraft:   Classcraft provides technology that helps teachers solve logistical problems in education, while including engagement in the fundamental human challenges, such as self-actualization, engagement, and collaboration.  In this environment. each lesson plan is a "Quest", where teachers can overlay their course content into an interactive map.  This allows students to "Choose their own adventure".  When interacting with the map, each map point consists if a specific learning activity, created by the teacher.

Doctoral students only: add an additional paragraph and describe the relationship between motivation, engagement and gamification

Motivation and engagement are the key benefits of gamification, when designed correctly.  By increasing the level of student engagement, teachers can more effectively teach targetted lesson plans through gamification.  Games today have progressed significantly, versus games from 20 years ago.  Today, computer games are far more immersive and engaging than ever before, and the ability to bring this high level of emotional connection to a game (or a lesson plan, in the case of gamification), will increase students motivation and engagement.

However, design is critical to maximize engagement and motivation.  Also, as students get older, educational gamification will be competing with highly immersive entertainment games, making it increasingly more difficult to maintain motivation and engagement in the educational series.