What is Gamification?

Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines gamification as “the process of adding games or gamelike elements to something (as a task) so as to encourage participation." Gamification of education, therefore, is the process of adding games or gamelike elements to the instruction of students to create a more enjoyable learning environment.

Note the inclusion of gamelike elements in the definition of gamification. You don't have to have your students play games in class for your class to be gamified, although educational games, when utilized correctly, can be a great gamification element. If you're shying away from the use of actual games in the classroom, think instead about what makes something a game. Concrete indications of progress, goals to strive toward, the opportunity for success after a failed attempt, the ability to take on a different identity– any gamer will tell you a good game usually has all of these elements. They make the game interesting, fun, and engaging, and they encourage players to keep progressing.

If we add those elements to the world of education, we get a system of learning that students are interested in and engaged by because the human brain is hardwired for games. We love competing against others, getting things done and receiving feedback. We love getting more than one chance to accomplish a task, to prove we can do better. Most of all, we love that feeling of doing something well and being recognized for it. Think of how much more students would get out of school if they thought of it as an educational game instead of some mandatory chore they were forced to go through to prepare for adult life. This may sound idealistic, but gamification has been proven to increase motivation and engagement in an educational environment simply by providing more concrete representations of progress. Gamification has been successfully used in work environments; companies such as DIRECTV and Hewlitt-Packard (HP) have reported great results using gamification to encourage employees and product distributors. Even the U.S. Army has used gamification to improve public opinion of the military and attract potential recruits.

Why not try out gamification in the classroom, then? You might suddenly find that your students are a lot less sullen and silent, or chatty in a good way.