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Gamification is the process of combining activities and procedures by using game elements. “Gamifying” is the activity of employing elements of game playing in an activity to keep users engaged. In the education industry, gamification is used more and more. It is very popular as gamification makes difficult subject matter far more entertaining to engage with, so motivating students. Primarily, the aim of gamification in education is to boost learning by increasing student engagement.
It is well understood that when people love doing something, they will carry on doing it. This understanding is applicable to the theory of gamification. Individuals learn best when they’re having a lot of fun. In addition, learners really work towards achieving when there are goals, targets as well as achievements that they are able to work towards just like in a game.
What is The Neuroscience of Gamification?
The field of gamification psychology studies the behaviour of users in gamified systems. Put another way, this field of psychology concentrates on how best to understand – as well as influence – people’s behaviours via gaming methodologies. Studies have demonstrated that the brain works together with gamification and that it causes the release of dopamine, which gives players a stronger sense of motivation and enjoyment. However how exactly will they work together?
Gamification Connects with People on an Emotional Level
Your emotions can be an extremely powerful tool for learning. They assist with facilitating the encoding and recovery of information more effectively. This makes the learning activity much more efficient. Gamification develops an emotional connection between the content and learners. It greatly influences the individuals’ attention, which makes them a lot receptive to learning.
Recall is Managed by The Hippocampus
The hippocampus is the section of the brain that regulates the amount of information that we recall or remember. It’s really no surprise, then, that gamification assists students with improved retention what they’ve learned during class.
Gamification is responsible for stimulating the hippocampal memory, which assists with promoting the storage of new information in long-term memory. Furthermore, dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter that is related to learning and memory, is also released from the hippocampus, which assists with maintaining focus on a particular task.
Stories are Far Easier for The Brain to Process as Opposed to Facts
The brain processes stories far more efficiently than it does a string of facts. Consequently, storytelling is a fantastic way of giving new information to students. Gamification significantly benefits from utilising this strategy because games frequently include story-telling aspects such as background, characters, and plot twists. Even the games at sites like Mandarin Palace casino do this, as they know how engaging this is.
What are The Benefits of Gamification in Education and eLearning?
Gamification in education and eLearning has become progressively popular as it offers a broad range of advantages for learners and can assist with making the holistic eLearning experience not only more enjoyable but more effective as well.
There is a rigorous science behind why gamification in eLearning is so successful. Irrespective of your audience or subject matter, gamification in eLearning can assist you with creating exciting, educational – as well as entertaining – eLearning courses.
Gamification in eLearning can assist eLearning professionals with creating experiences that completely engage their learners. Gamification grabs their attention and motivates them since they are trying to reach a goal.
A number of online learners could already be fundamentally motivated to reach their goals. However, there are others who need that additional nudge to become actively involved. When learners feel positive feelings surrounding their learning process and know that they will be rewarded in some way or another for their efforts, then they stop becoming passive observers and change into active participants. By doing so, they can effectively absorb the information and store it in their long-term memory as the knowledge itself is associated with the favourable experience you’ve provided via gamification in eLearning.
Examples of Gamification in Education
Duolingo
Duolingo is a language-learning app and uses multiple gamification techniques in order to keep users engaged using techniques such as levels, streaks, badges and leaderboards. All of these aspects make for a very game-like experience and ensure that users are kept wanting to get forward in their journey, craving progress. It’s a great example of utilise a virtual scenario to create effective learning.
Minecraft
Even though learning might not be the very first thing which you think about when you hear the term Minecraft, this game has become an extremely powerful educational tool.
The Minecraft Education Edition was created purposefully for educators and learners. The platform gives students and teachers the opportunity to work together in a synchronous environment. It is a great example of utilising methods that children are comfortable with as a method of teaching.
In the Minecraft education edition, learners are able to boost their creativity together with learning a variety of topics. The game is especially good for teaching students how to code, however, can also help in other areas of learning. They even offer game-based learning that provides indigenous and traditional knowledge.
Classcraft
Classcraft is an incredibly unique learning platform that is centred entirely around gamification education to drive motivation. It gives students the opportunity to design their own in-game customisable avatar that is imbued with a number of different powers.
Collaboration is very important with this platform. Students are encouraged to work together in order to reach their goals. The game has its own currency so awards can be allocated to students for positive behaviour.
Points can be spent on accessing new outfits for avatars, or even to access trainable pets. Classcraft makes learning exciting and brings a very real video game experience to the classroom. As if this platform couldn’t really get any better, it can be accessed both in the comfort of your home as well as in the classroom, which makes it ideal for blended learning.
Gamification is a very powerful strategy, and a fantastic way to motivate learners. As the world of education becomes far more digital, we may expect an increase in gamification methods.