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Chris Powell
Ms. Lee
New Technologies 325
March 10, 2015
GAME ON! THE POTENTIAL for GAMIFICATION in EDUCATION
Educators across the country, from graduate schools to middle schools, are increasingly
focusing on gaming methodology to turn learning into an interactive experience.
Gamification uses game design elements in nongame contexts, but it should not be confused
with a traditional game of any kind. More than other disruptive technologies, gamification has
the potential to change content delivery systems in the classroom and create truly meaningful
experiences for students.
Nearly every school is challenged to motivate students and strengthen student engagement.
Successful student engagement is the foundation for learning and includes the learning process,
the subject matter, the purpose of study, and additional social and cultural factors.
Gamification attempts to harness the motivational power of games and apply it to real-world
problems. Game players regularly exhibit persistence, risk-taking, attention to detail, and
problem-solving, all behaviors that ideally would be regularly demonstrated in school (Lee 7).
Game-like components that track activities such as custom avatars, badges, and other
rewards keep students motivated and task-oriented. Presentation can change behavior in many
settings. Researchers at Thefuntheory.com studied whether more people would choose
climbing stairs over taking an escalator if taking the stairs were more fun. When stairs were

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covered to look and sound like piano keys, 66% more people than normal took the stairs,
proving that fun can positively impact behavior (The Fun Theory 1).
Several studies on instructional games revealed that the greatest benefits were obtained
when users could target specific content and knew the objectives. Instructional games can
provide measureable learning for many different types of learners. Making sure that students
knew how to play the game was often more important to students than how realistic the game
appeared (Franklin 46-52).
Adequately measuring the games effectiveness both during and after the activity is crucial
to determining whether learning is actually taking place and evaluating the return on
investment. There are four components to measurement:
1. Reaction Did the student enjoy the experience, and if so, how?
2. Learning How much did the student increase his or her knowledge about the subject?
3. Behavior Did the students new knowledge translate in a real way?
4. Results Were the original goals met?
With adequate investment, training, and instructor guidance, gamification can reach the
same goals as quizzes and tests. Whether the market can sustain the investment remains an
open question.

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Works Cited
Franklin, Anne. Rewarding Play: The Role of Games in the Classroom. New York: Roberts
Educational Publishing, Inc., 2012. Print.
Lee, Joey J. "Gamification in Education: What, How, Why Bother." Academic Exchange Quarterly
1 June 2015.
The Fun Theory. 2015. Web. 4 June 2015.

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