Abstract
Although there is ample evidence that gamification can engage students in learning, it is less used than one would expect. This raises the question of the difficulties teachers face in planning and implementing gamification in their classes. What enables teachers’ implementation of gamification? These questions were addressed through a case study, and data were collected along the four phases of a teachers’ training course. The first phase approached the gamification concept, the Octalysis Framework, the types of gamification, and digital tools. The second phase focused on planning the gamification activity, the third one on implementing it with their students in school, and the fourth phase on sharing and reflecting on their experience. It was possible to identify enablers and difficulties that influenced the planning, such as personal background, time available, and technical conditions in the classroom. Most teachers opted for a platform with digital tools that allowed them to apply all the desired features to their gamified activities. The most complex gamified activities were related to the teacher’s gaming experience, use of digital tools, and risk-taking.
Highlights
Implementation of Gamification: AGamification has proved to be a valuable strategy for teaching, with a positive impact on learning [1,2], but it has revealed itself as a complex research theme
A training course for teachers, named “Strategies and digital tools to motivate students to learn through gamification” [18], was outlined with four phases, and it ran for five months
Edmodo is a social platform developed for education, where it is possible to create groups of students and deliver tasks (CD3) that can be evaluated by teachers
Summary
Gamification has proved to be a valuable strategy for teaching, with a positive impact on learning [1,2], but it has revealed itself as a complex research theme. Research has addressed aspects such as the reasons and the elements that make games so motivating and how they can be implemented in different contexts [4,5], including education [6]. 12), for the education context, as a methodology of “using game-based mechanics, aesthetics, and game thinking to engage people, motivate action, promote learning, and solve problems”. Hamari [14] pointed out that most of the studies in gamification give evidence for improving engagement and motivation. In these studies, some concerns associated with competition among students, difficulties with the design, and problems in updating the activity log were identified. It should be noted that the studies mentioned above mainly focus on the impact of game mechanisms on achievement and progression [1,2]. Studying the enablers and difficulties that teachers may have during the planning and implementation of gamified activities is the focus of our study
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