Jeremy Friedberg: "creative thinking + critical thinking + taking a chance = innovation"

In an online article I found through Science Direct, I reae about a study on gamificaiton and it's effectiveness.  It was written in 2017, but I think most of it's findings still hold true in my experience with gamification with 9 and 10 year olds. 

Here is an excerpt from the abstract, "We deliberately varied different configurations of game design elements, and analysed them in regard to their effect on the fulfilment of basic psychological needs. Our results show that badges, leaderboards, and performance graphs positively affect competence need satisfaction, as well as perceived task meaningfulness, while avatars, meaningful stories, and teammates affect experiences of social relatedness. Perceived decision freedom, however, could not be affected as intended. We interpret these findings as general support for our main hypothesis that gamification is not effective per se, but that specific game design elements have specific psychological effects."

In my experience, students and adults (staff meeting fun) love when learning is fun.  For example, my class BEGS for me to use gamification sites such as Blooket, Quizziz, or Kahoot.  These sites are packed full of libraries with already made quizzes on all sorts of subjects.  Anyone can make a quiz and save it to share with others, so it is important when searching for a quiz, that you play it before using it in a group setting!  

According to the study, they found that there is positive affects of the satisfaction and social relatedness.  I agree. During the games, especially in Blookit, my students LOVE picking out their Avatar and making thier name into Alliteration to be shown on a leaderboard when they score fast and correct.  I usually use Blookit (or a similar game) as a review of material, but I agree with the article, I do not see the students grasping onto the material any better than they did before. When looking at the results ( a positive of these games), the students who understood the material well before playing were mostly on the leaderboard and those who I knew struggled scored as I thought they would.  Did they have fun?  Yes!  I have never had a student complain or wish not to participate.  They all race to play the game, whether they are confident or not in the material.  

Screen Shot of Blooket.com Search Page

Screen Shot of Blooket Choice for Game

Screen Shot of Question example

In the pictures above, you can see very quickly what Blooket looks like once you pick your "deck" to practice.  There are many setting that you can change as a solo player or a host of a game (for classrooms or multiple users playing against one another).  I suggest you give it a try if you've never done it before- it is fun and engaging for users of all ages. 

Do you use gamification in your classroom or workplace?  Do you see growth or positive outcomes after using it?  

Source: 

Blooket.com

Sailer, Michael. How gamification motivates: An experimental study of the effects of specific game design elements on psychological need satisfaction. Volume 69, April 2017, Pages 371-380.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074756321630855X?via%3Dihub