Week 6 – What research can support or refute Michael Matera’s claims?

It can be hard to find Matera’s claims in his book since he uses the pirate theme for his prose throughout his book.  Once you slice through the pirate lingo and puns, here are the claims that Matera makes in his book Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners (2015):

1. Games are filled with a motivational complexity that can be used to shed light on topics and increase content acquisition
2. Combining the many elements of game mechanics helps create memorable experiences that push students well beyond the bounds of the traditional classroom
3. Gamification works for all grade levels
4. Finding meaning in content unlocks student motivation
5. Girls not only have game, they dominate the game world
6. Positive competition can inspire collaboration and motivate students to do their very best
7. Games make kids want to learn
8. The power of play brings back the natural yearning that exists inside all of us to learn
9. Gamification is more immersive and creates more motivation when there is a story behind it

The question is what research is there to support these claims.  In my search there doesn’t seem to be a ton of research on gamification, but what research there is supports some of his claims.  Michael Sailor in his article, Does Gamification of Learning Work, states in his metaanalysis that it does in three areas: cognitive, motivational and behavioral learning.

When Sailor talks about cognitive learning, he means that students in some cases do learn better with gamification than other learning scenarios.  This would lean towards supporting claim number one, or increased content acquisition. Increased motivation would support claims 6, 7 & 8 above, that competition motivates student to do their best, makes kids want to learn, and playing brings out the natural yearning to learn.  Behavior learning deals with skills or competencies. While behavior learning doesn’t neatly fit with the claims listed above, it does fit with increased learning.

Sailor goes on to state that bringing a narrative or story into gamification seems to be effective.  This would support claim number 9.

So there is some research that supports gamification, but this research is not extensive and much of it has design flaws. Sailor and other authors state in their article, “How gamification motivates: An experimental study of the effects of specific game design elements on psychological need satisfaction” that there isn’t a lot of good research on gamification and it is “still lacking due to limitations of study design and analysis strategies (Sailor, 2017).

Resources

Caponetto, Ilaria & Earp, Jeffrey & Ott, Michela. (2014). Gamification and Education: a Literature Review. Proceedings of the 8th European Conference on Games-Based Learning – ECGBL 2014. 1. 50-57

Heinz , Sailer, Ulrich & How.  (2017, April). Gamification motivates: An experimental study of the effects of specific game design elements on psychological need satisfaction. Computers in Human Behavior. Volume 69. Pages 371-380. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074756321630855X#!

Matera, M. (2015). Explore Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners. Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc..

Sailor, S. (2019, August, 28) Does Gamification of Learning work? Gamification Research Network http://gamification-research.org/2019/08/does-gamification-of-learning-work/

Vaughan, H. Explore Like a Pirate by Michael Matera REVIEW. High School ELA. Found on June 6, 2020 at:  https://spark.adobe.com/page/kaHSniFTgRdbk/

Wood, Lincoln & Reiners, Torsten. (2015). Gamification. 10.4018/978-1-4666-5888-2.ch297.

WEEK 5 – What are the arguments for using gamification to improve learning?

What are the arguments for using gamification to improve learning?

When I first saw this question, the number one thing that went through my head was motivating students.  When I did a quick Google search I found three different articles with a different takes on the arguments for using gamification and it is much more than just motivation.  The thing that was most fascinating was how each author had a little different twist on the benefits of gamification.

The three article I reviewed are “Gamification Can Help Education — Here’s How” by Matthew Glotzbach, “4 Pros and Cons to Gamified Learning” by Tiffany Ford and “6 Reasons Why Gamification Enhances the Learning Experience” by Emily McLaughlin.

Emily McLaughlin believes there 6 reasons that gamification works in education.  They are:

1.       Recognition motivates

2.       Friendly competition

3.       Intrinsic motivations

4.       Extrinsic motivations

5.       Create a positive learning environment

6.       Milestones, instead of one big goal

Tiffany Ford gives 4 pros to gamification in her article “4 Pros and Cons to Gamified Learning.”  They include:

1.       Increases student engagement

2.       Creates enthusiasm

3.       Provides instant feedback

4.       Makes social connections

Matthew Glotzbach’s argument for gamification is a lot different from the first two articles.  His arguments for gamification in his article “Gamification Can Help Education — Here’s How” include:

1.       Learning before entertainment

2.       Help your teachers

3.       Education is sharing

4.       Gamification for confidence-building

5.       Gamification for real-world problem-solving

6.       The net-net

Glotzbach’s reasons are not all self explanatory and “help your teachers” is not an argument for using gamification to improve learning.

All three articles have similar elements. The first argument that all three articles have in common is that gamification helps with engagement, enthusiasm and motivation.  Second, everyone likes to play games, in which earning recognition and getting immediate feedback helps motivation.  The third argument for gamification is that breaking large projects and goals into smaller attainable sections keeps students interested in the game.  The fourth argument from all three articles is that playing games is a way for students to practice real-world problem solving.  The last argument that all three article have, even if worded a little differently is that gamification is a form of social learning which can also create a positive learning environment.  There is a book that I need to read that is called, “All Learning is Social & Emotional.”  I believe that is true and the point these authors were trying to get across. If you have a positive social environment, students will learn better.

Resources

Ford, T. (2015, September 7). 4 Pros and Cons to Gamified Learning. Top Hat https://tophat.com/blog/gamified-learning/

Glotzbach, M. (2018, September 6). Gamification can help education — here’s how. VentureBeat. https://venturebeat.com/2018/09/06/gamification-can-help-education-heres-how/

Matera, M. (2015). Explore Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners. Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.

McLaughlin, E. (2017, September 7). 6 Reasons Why Gamification Enhances the Learning Experience. E-Learning Industry.  https://elearningindustry.com/gamification-enhances-the-learning-experience-6-reasons-why

WEEK 4 – 679 What classroom strategies can contribute to or detract from “flow”?

What classroom strategies can contribute to or detract from “flow”?

This is an interesting question and not always overtly taught in teacher education programs.  The teacher is kind of like a conductor for an orchestra. They get everyone on the same page, makes sure many different sounding instruments come together to create a wonderful end result.  To me, flow also means that a student can continue to learn, no matter the pace and where they are in the curriculum.  Once they have gained a skill, can they move on or do they have to wait for the teacher to present the next step?

Part of keeping this “flow” going is the same for most educational settings.  The first step is to teach and help students become comfortable with the gamification system and how things work.  Where do they go to get materials, do they have a group, how do the turn things in and what they do when they have completed a task?  Just like in any type of educational setting, if these management steps are not in place, things will not go well and there will be chaos.

In fact, Matera, in his book “Explore Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners” states that he introduces gamification to parents at the beginning of the schoolyear to get them on board.  Later in his book he talks about making sure you have four elements in your games:

1. Immersion
2. Cooperation
3. Achievement
4. Competition

You don’t need all of them all the time, but Matera says you should ask yourself, “Have my students experienced any of these lately?”

Jill Suttie, in her article, “Eight Tips for Fostering Flow in the Classroom” lists eight tips to help with flow that would work in any classroom or with gamification.  They are:

1. Challenge students
2. Make thing relevant
3. Offer choice
4. Set clear objectives and give feedback
5. Build positive relationships
6. Finds ways that they can think deeply
7. Make things hands on
8. Use humor and make it fun

All of these tips, fit well with gamification.  If you can do these things consistently in your gamification, you should have good “flow”.

 

Resources

Ollero, C.  The Power of Engaging Games.  Ennomotive.   https://www.ennomotive.com/the-power-of-engaging-games/

Matera, M. (2015). Explore Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners. Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.

Gamification of Learning. (2020, May 30).  Wikapedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamification_of_learning

Suttie, J. (2012, April, 17) Eight Tips for Fostering Flow in the Classroom. Greater Good Magazine.  https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/eight_tips_for_fostering_flow_in_the_classroom

WEEK 3 679 – What is the difference between Gaming and Gamification and why does it matter?

Without doing any research I would think that gaming is playing games that are designed for fun and to make money for the game designers or corporations.  Gamification is taking curriculum and presenting it to students as a game.  When I hear the work gaming, it is usually in context with X-box or online games like Fortnight.

Wikipedia states that gaming is “the act of playing games,” such a gambling or video games, while gamification of learning is to “motivate students to learn by using video game design and game elements in learning environments.”

In Jennifer Charrette’s article “Gaming vs. Gamification – Is There a Difference?” she is trying to sell the concept of gamification to businesses for training purposes.  The premise is that your employees can learn more, faster and better by playing games.  She quotes a study from the University of Colorado Denver that states that students that learn via gamification do better at their jobs, learn better and retain the information longer.  This article appears to be an advertisement for a webinar, so it is uncertain whether the study is cited accurately, but it is an intriguing thought.

She goes on to define the difference between gaming and gamification.  She defines gaming as learning a skill.  The game is designed for you to learn a skill.  Gamification is a system of learning a curriculum where you make something that is not a game, into a game.  These concepts seem to be opposite of each other.  One the game is designed for the player to learn a skill.   The other is making a game out of a particular content.

This brings me to the essential question of this week’s post.  Why does knowing the difference of gaming and gamification matter?  I think it is because gamification is a larger concept.  Gamification takes larger ideas and expanded concepts and brings it to its users or students.  Gaming presents one or simpler ideas and you play it to learn a skill.  It is useful, but not as useful for education as a whole.

Resources

Charrette, J. (2017, May 12). Gaming Vs Gamification – Is There A Difference? TTCinovations. https://www.ttcinnovations.com/gaming-vs-gamification-is-there-a-difference/

Gamification of Learning. (2020, May 30).  Wikapedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamification_of_learning

Gaming. (2018, December 14). Wikapedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaming

Ollero, C.  The Power of Engaging Games.  Ennomotive.   https://www.ennomotive.com/the-power-of-engaging-games/

Matera, M. (2015). Explore Like a PIRATE: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich and Elevate Your Learners. Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.