Gamification is, in essence, applying gaming principles to a non-gaming context. It uses these aspects to help users achieve external goals, differing from actual games which are mainly designed to entertain (Denton, 2019). There are many overlapping features that can be applied to learning; the core being that players complete a mission, accumulate points and develop skills to ‘level up’ their desired behaviours (Lee and Hammer, 2011). There is added depth to the experience by competing against others, or by working cooperatively. This social interaction is a key element of what makes games fun and keeps players coming back for more. 

How can it benefit education?

This passion for gaming can be harnessed to benefit education in the classroom; creating a narrative, facilitating connection with peers and adding some fun (David, 2016). Gamification can help learners take ownership of their learning, while creating a more relaxed environment that is likely to encourage participation and build confidence (David, 2016). This is particularly important where sustained engagement is the goal, especially in lengthy lectures when a lot of content is to be covered. 

The benefits are potentially double-edged, where the student is able to receive immediate feedback while the lead can assess performance indicators much sooner than other assessment types (David, 2016). Additionally, engagement with puzzle-based challenges encourages comprehension rather than memorisation, as the knowledge is applied to the game scenario (Arshavskiy, 2015). Gamification is easily aligned with education as a lot of the concepts are already there, for example, if you do well you’ll receive a better grade (Lee and Hammer, 2011). Though, for many, the value of gained knowledge just isn’t understood until much later on in their learning (final year of an undergraduate degree) (Venables, 2012)

How can it be implicated?

Simple ways to incorporate a gaming element to learning include the use of flash cards, team quizzes, role play, badges and trophies (Arshavskiy, 2015; David, 2016). Take Khan Academy who successfully use badges for student engagement. Khan Academy’s Dr Rishi Desai says: “Look, if you want badges and points, go learn something, and it really does work and people actually do learn this stuff and use it to kind of motivate them to keep wanting to go back”. Grading can also be gamified by implementing a points system, for example students accumulate experience points for their successes or attendance (Holloway, 2018). Despite initial engagement through badges in some cases, feedback is essential to improve a program in the long term in others (Denton, 2019). Feedback given to users at different checkpoints helps them understand their progress and may be a greater motivator to improve further. Missions, unlocks and narrative storytelling may be more effective methods of gamification (Denton, 2019). Together, the points aspects and missions aspects make for a balanced gamified program with potential for more long-term benefits to users (Denton, 2019). 

Why is Resimion good for it?

With Resimion, a lead can upload a learning challenge into the Resimion app and challenge students in classes of all sizes in real time. Participants will be able to see their own scores for a number of parameters, and also see how they size up against the group as a whole on the presentation screen. In groups, learners could receive rewards such as coffee vouchers for doing well in challenges. In doing so, the learning becomes more visible, which in turn is likely to improve engagement overall. Immediate feedback in class using Resimion can also highlight to both parties (student and lead) where reinforcement is needed, which can be implicated much sooner than current methods.

Arshavskiy, M. (2015) Simulations And Games: Making Learning Fun! Available from: https://elearningindustry.com/simulations-and-games-making-learning-fun [Accessed 29 November 2019].

David, L. (2016) Gamification in Education. Available from: https://www.learning-theories.com/gamification-in-education.html [Accessed 15 December 2019].

Denton, M. (2019) Gamification: Expectation vs Reality. Available from: https://www.gamify.com/gamification-blog/gamification-expectation-vs-reality [Accessed 15 December 2019].

Holloway, S. (2018) Gamification in Education: 4 Ways To Bring Games To Your Classroom. Available from: https://tophat.com/blog/gamification-education-class/ [Accessed 11 December 2019].

Lee, J. and Hammer, J. (2011) Gamification in Education: What, How, Why Bother? Academic Exchange Quarterly. 15  (2), pp. 1–5.

Venables, M. (2012) Ben Bertoli’s ClassRealm Is Gamifying the Classroom. Available from: https://www.wired.com/2012/05/ben-bertolis-classrealm/ [Accessed 11 December 2019].