Learning requires one to be fully concentrated and immersed in the experience. But how can a kid be interested in remembering the dates and names of History, complicated formulas of math, or precisely detailed grammar rules?
The traditional learning methods are boring and not intriguing to today’s kids. When everything around us is becoming fun and smart, why can’t the education system become fun?
According to a study by Cognition Today – Inside your mind – “Having fun and being excited about learning increases brain-activity of neurons that use Oxytocin (pleasure hormone), Dopamine (reward, motivation, learning, senses, thinking hormone), and Norepinephrine (energizing, attention hormone) which improve learning and memory.”
We can make gamifying education more enjoyable, fun, and productive for children.
What is Gamification in Education?
Gamification in education refers to the process of incorporating game-like elements into educational activities to enhance learning and motivation among students. It is a technique that aims to improve attentiveness, increase interest in learning, and create a competitive yet rewarding experience that helps students progress.
Gamification helps students comprehend and grasp new information by integrating game-based features such as points, peer competitions, teamwork, score tables, and other interactive elements into educational activities. The technique is designed to motivate students to do their best, help them grow step by step, and encourage them to take an interest in their learning.
Gamification features like badges, leaderboards, point systems, and levels can also encourage students to be more self-motivated and incentivized in their learning. By incorporating game-like features into education, gamification aims to create a feel-good, addictive, and motivating learning experience for children.
The addictive nature of video games is linked to the production of dopamine. By leveraging the same qualities that make video games engaging, gamification can create a similarly immersive and rewarding experience that inspires students to learn and grow.
6 Examples of Gamification in Education
Here are some examples of gamification in education that show different ways to incorporate gaming elements.
1. Minecraft – Education Edition
In an immersive digital environment, Minecraft: Education Edition promotes learning and creativity. K-12 and higher education students of all learning styles can use Minecraft: Education Edition remotely, hybridizable, and in person. The game is especially good for teaching coding, but it is as effective for other topics. The game also supports collaborating and problem-solving.
The tutorials help educators to get started. The app offers hundreds of standards-aligned lessons and STEM curricula, crafted by experts to offer a fruitful learning experience.
2. Google Read Along
Google Read Along is a personal reading tutor for your children. The app offers a fun learning experience and helps children read. An in-app reading buddy listens to the children reading loud and offers assistance wherever they struggle.
The reading buddy will award the children stars and badges when they do well. The app is filled with hundreds of stories and word games. It helps the children progress at their own pace, and the AI recommends stories based on their progress. It is the perfect reading partner for children that are learning to read.
3. Kahoot!
With Kahoot!, you can create quizzes in the cloud and access them via the web and mobile app. It is a free-to-use app for students and teachers. The platform allows users to create quizzes from scratch. You can also add videos, audio, or info to the quizzes.
Kahoot! offers a creative and bespoke learning experience to students. The platform has more than 40 million games that can be quickly accessed. The teachers ask the students to take individual tests for the quizzes, or they can even live host quiz sessions using Zoom or Google Meet.
4. Elucidat
Elucidat is a cloud-based e-learning authoring tool that helps users create high-quality, responsive e-learning courses. These courses can be used to train employees and also to teach kids new concepts.
The platform offers an easy-to-use interface that requires little to no training. It also offers a built-in image library, collaborative authority, analytics, multiple interactive models, and responsive sliders. The tool is widely used for employee training.
5. Duolingo
With more than 500 million users, Duolingo is one of the most downloaded language-learning app. Education is made free, fun, and accessible to all through the company. The app is designed with gamification properties and is scientifically proven to be effective.
Levels, streaks, badges, and leaderboards are among the gamification techniques Duolingo uses to engage users. As a result of these features, the user experience is very game-like and users are always eager to progress. In contrast to many gamified apps, DuoLingo manages to use each of these strategies to motivate users.
6. Brainscape
An adaptive flashcard learning platform, Brainscape enables students to study on the web and on their smartphones. Users can create or upload electronic flashcards, as well as search for flashcards created by other users. Cloud-based flashcards are accessible to groups of learners and are stored in the cloud.
The app uses AI, and based on your progress, you will be shown flashcards of topics that you are weak in, and your strong topics will be avoided so that you can learn as much as possible.
Science Behind the Education Gamification
To study the effect of gamification in various fields, a study is conducted known as Gamification Psychology. It focuses on understanding the influence of gamification on people’s behavior and understanding. In these studies, there is evidence that gamification triggers the release of dopamine in the brain and that the brain works in harmony with gamification. This feel-good substance brings the feeling of enjoyment and motivation while playing video games.
But how does this exactly works? Let’s have a look.
1. Gamification Connects People on an Emotional Level
We remember every detail of our favorite series, sports, or person because we are connected with them on an emotional level. Information is stored and reviewed more efficiently when it is connected emotionally. Student engagement is enhanced by gamification. When the students enjoy the process, they get emotionally attached to it, and thus it enhances their understanding and grasping speed. Their attentiveness increases and they tend to focus more on their studies.
2. The Hippocampus Controls Memory
Our ability to recall information is controlled by the hippocampus in the brain. Students retain more knowledge when they use gamification. In addition to stimulating the hippocampal memory, gamification helps promote the long-term storage of new information. Furthermore, the hippocampus also releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter linked to learning and memory, which assists in maintaining focus.
3. Stories are Easier For The Brain to Process Than Facts
Stories are interesting and fun, and they come with a lot of background and build-up and thus are easier to remember in contrast to facts. Storytelling is an amazing way to deliver new information to the students and to ensure that they understand and remember it.
Gamification vastly uses storytelling elements like characters, backgrounds, plots, and much more, and so benefits from the advantages of storytelling.
4. Game Playing Improves Endorphin Release
When we play games or perform other engaging tasks, a chemical known as Endorphin is released in our bodies. It is a natural painkiller that improves relaxation, makes us feel calm, and improves our focus.
As gamification adds game-like features, it activates the secretion of Endorphins, helping increase focus and calmness while studying.
5. Games Promote Brain Health
The ability of the brain to develop new connections when it is exposed to different stimuli is known as neuroplasticity. Playing games encourages it while providing the required training to increase cognitive skills such as problem-solving skills, remembrance, attentiveness, and creativity.
If you still doubt the science behind gamification and think it is just a hyped technology, here are some facts that will change your mind:
- Challenge-based gamification in education leads to an increase of 34.75% in student performance.
- Furthermore, students who were educated with challenge-based gamification raised their performance by up to 89.45% compared to those who only received lectures.
- 80% of learners feel they would have better results if the learning process included game-like features.
- 67% of students found gamified learning more engaging & motivating than traditional courses.
- Almost 75% of K-8 teachers in the United States employ digital games to simplify learning.
- 70% of teachers saw increased student engagement when using educational video games.
- More than 60% of learners said leaderboards and friendly competition would motivate them.
What kind of learning activities are targeted in Gamification?
The best Gamification strategy fosters sustained engagement, considers the learners’ needs, and motivates them. Gamification systems that are most effective include narrative and connections with fellow learners/players to engage learners.
Gamification can be implemented to target a number of learning activities. Some of the learning activities that Gamification targets are:
1. Competitive Learning
Creating competition and providing rewards for the winners is an infallible plan.
For example, competition can be arranged between different sections of the same class for better scores or for following certain rules. Using the point-based system, points can be given for the good score of each child and a minus score for bad grades. The reward can be one extra PE class, or longer lunch break, etc.
These group activities will also encourage the classmates to help each other to win the reward.
2. Reflecting Personalized Performance
The data gathered by Gamification provides several insights about the individuals. Achievements and Points can be reviewed to see the strengths and weaknesses of the children.
Gamification systems come with different Data Tools that can help the teachers review the children’s individual progress and know which areas they lack. This information can be really beneficial to the children if the right steps are taken using the data.
3. Progressive Learning
Daily Tasks, Points, and Badges help the children set their goals. Gamification converts the whole learning system into bit pieces that are achievable daily, weekly, or monthly. The students can browse their next task or milestone and work accordingly.
The points and rewards work as incentives, so children are motivated to complete all their assigned tasks. This way, the children progress at a steady pace by performing daily activities.
Education Gamification Benefits
Gamification is preferred worldwide because of how significantly it makes the learning process easy and fun. Applying game-like features in the education system comes with many benefits.
We have compiled a list of the seven most compelling benefits of Gamification in Education.
1. Increase Student Engagement
Gamification makes the learning model more fun and exciting for the students, and thus the best benefit of gamification is that it increases student engagement. In gamified e-learning modules, challenges are created and users’ progress is tracked as they work through the course.
Gamification uses storytelling and quizzes to create a productive and unmatched learning experience. As a result, students start enjoying their studies, and they become more engaged. Together, these techniques captivate the student’s interest and help them focus more on their studies.
2. Create Enthusiasm
Gamification in education transforms the learning experience into an additive one (just like video games), and thus it creates enthusiasm among the students. The friendly competition, the leaderboards, and the rewards trigger dopamine release and make learning more enjoyable.
Their enthusiasm pushes them to learn more, and this helps the students in mastering new chapters, topics, and skills.
3. Instant Feedback
Unlike normal tests where students receive the marks, and many do not know what they did wrong or what the right answer was, Gamification provides instant feedback and helps the students learn from their mistakes.
This way, students know what they have done wrong. The system will also provide the correct answer so the students can improve on the spot. Wrong answers will be corrected, and students will receive rewards for all the right answers.
4. Make Connections
The application of gamification in education makes learning fun and helps connect lessons to real-world issues. Gamified learning provides students with a risk-free environment where they can apply the knowledge they have gained. This connection helps the students better understand how to apply them in real life.
5. Improves Productivity
Students’ interest in the subject matter is also raised by gamified learning. Creating interactive, engaging gamified content using game design principles is the best way to achieve this.
Students get a dopamine release when they earn a reward or point through gamified learning. As a result of Gamification, students will also have a clear, well-defined goal, motivating them to succeed and making them more productive.
6. Regular Updates
With Gamification, teachers can get regular updates on how the student is progressing or which topics they are struggling with. Gamification creates a personalized profile of each student so the teacher can access them anytime.
Parents can also access these updates and help the students with the topics or subjects they could be better at. These updates are extremely detailed, and they also recognize the patterns in the wrong answers, if there are any.
7. Game-based Learning
The game-based learning experience makes learning enjoyable, and the students get addicted to this fun-filled learning experience.
Game mechanics such as rewards and competition make learning far more enjoyable than traditional and boring learning methods. Therefore, students can learn and master new skills without getting bored.
Education Gamification Functionalities
Specific rules, goals divided into short and long-term, competition, story-telling, excitement, puzzle problems, etc are some of the most common features of games. Integrating many of these features into the learning activity can result in a better and more engaging learning experience.
Here are the game features that we provide in our Gamified Education Apps.
1. Discussion Board
Gamified education uses discussions that allow students to interact with one another, the topic, and the teacher. A discussion board is a communication tool for dialogue in gamified education. The messages on the Discussion board can be triggered by creating a new post, and they can also be categorized based on the topic and subject.
They can be used to discuss various study-related topics, and the students can be incentivized with points for successfully replying to these posts.
2. Quiz
Quizzes have a “testing effect” as each time the children take the quiz, they recall the facts and knowledge they have consumed. With gamified quizzes, they will be immediately notified if they answer anything wrong, so they can instantly learn from their mistakes.
Gamified quizzes can improve learning because they push the students to recall what they have learned thus improving their knowledge about the same. Moreover, quizzes also give a sense of competition where the kids can compete with other children, and this friendly competition will help them feel more motivated.
3. Response System
Student Response System (SRS) can gather student responses to questions. Teachers can use the SRS in their lectures. In addition to checking if students understand or pay attention to what they are being taught, instructors can also use the response system to test their understanding.
The response system can be used with points to motivate the students. While the lecture is going on, the instructor can use the response system to ask any question, and if the students give the right answer, they can get points. This way, the students will be motivated to pay more attention to all the lectures.
4. Point-based Rewards
Points in gamified education can be compared to the score of a game. Points will be rewarded to the students for completing various tasks or assignments. The better the children perform, the more points they can earn. They are used to track the students’ progress and increase their engagement.
These points will help the students in the leaderboard and will also help them gain badges. These will be the accomplishments of the students. At the end of the month, students can use these points to exchange for a befitting reward.
5. Badges
Using badges is a gamified way to recognize students’ work. A badge might be given if a student achieves certain levels of success on an assignment or does additional work, such as contributing to the Discussion Board or helping the other students.
Badges are very motivating and can help the students work harder to get them. They make the students feel recognized and praised. They drive more enthusiasm among the children and create a friendly competition.
6. Users Performance Chart
The User Performance Chart enables students to improve their performance by providing immediate feedback on student performance. These charts will record the student’s performance in each subject, and the monthly charts can be compared to see how the students have grown.
Looking at these insightful charts, instructors can know which student requires attention to which subject. Using this information, the teachers can help the students by helping them work on their weak topics and subjects.
7. Daily Task
Daily tasks include taking a quiz, learning a topic, doing homework, etc. These tasks, however, will come with the benefit of points. Students will gain points if they complete their daily tasks. Even badges can be provided to the best-performing student in the tasks or to the one who regularly does the daily task.
This way, the students will be motivated to complete their daily homework or to learn the given topic.
8. Reflect Individual Personality
In the profile section of the gamified system, children can enter their interests, specialization, goals, favorite subjects/activities, etc. Moreover, Gamified system comes with data tools that use all the points and achievements of the children to create a personalized report.
These reports reflect the children’s individual personalities, and the teachers can use this report to help the students improve further.
Launch a Game-Based Smart Education Learning Platform
In the ever-expanding educational industry, Game-Based Learning is becoming increasingly important and popular. In addition to addressing different learning styles, it is an effective way of meeting educational goals. Learners benefit from game-based smart education learning platforms, which allow them to gain knowledge in an engaging and focused environment.
The App Store is filled with hundreds of brain-building and educational learning platforms that are busting the myth that games are detrimental to children.
At Capermint, we are a professional company who are engaged in the development of interesting Game-Based Smart Education Learning Platforms. To enhance the learning process while making it fun, we offer advanced educational game development services.
Our Game-Based Smart Education Learning Platform Development Includes:
- Physics Games
- Math Games
- Quiz Games
- Map Games
- Mind Games
- History Games
- Trivia Games
- Word Games
- Sorting Games
- Brain Training Games
- Puzzle Games, etc.
Final Thoughts
Gamification is a great strategy to make the learning experience fun and to motivate the users. It makes studies more interesting and provides a better platform for the teachers to learn and understand the students’ growth and needs at an individual level. With the power to change the education system and how students study, Gamification is an amazing opportunity for the Education System.
Gamification works because it triggers human emotions such as happiness, curiosity, enthusiasm, and achievement. As the world of education becomes more digital, we can expect to see an increase in gamification methods.
At Capermint, our developers have vast experience in delivering education apps that are blended with the most unique gamified features to promote a better learning experience. Our team of expert developers will perfectly create a tailored gamified app based on your unique learning and development needs.
