Implementing Gamification into the Classroom
Digital games and simulations are a popular form of technology that encompasses many characteristics that can be used to enhance and strengthen math and science classroom learning environments. Digital games are technological tools that allow people to play a wide assortment of games on their computers, game consoles, and hand-held devices. Advancements in digital gaming technology over the last 30 years have been truly astounding. Digital games evolved from what were once cognitively simple, low-resolution, highly repetitive games with minimal social interaction, like “Pong” and “Pac-Man,” to intricately complex, meaning-making, goal-oriented, highly-interactive, reality-simulating games, like “Civilizations.” Digital games have expanded to include numerous platforms and designs to try to appeal to the interests of a wide range of users. The rise in different genres of games, such as strategy and role-playing games, and the ability for games to be played online in massive multiplayer formats, are two important factors that have contributed to the success of the global digital game industry (Shaffer et al., 2005). The ability for players to communicate and work together simultaneously in a virtual environment makes the playing of digital games a social, interactive and enjoyable experience.
Over the last several years many have begun to apply this technology to the field of education. Squire, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin, believes that this type of technology can have a communal relationship with teaching (2008). As such, there has been a rise in the development of educational digital games from several universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Vanderbilt University, and Florida State University, and private corporations, such as GlassLab and EDGE (Butrymowicz, 2013). These institutions, along with several others, have developed digital games to include virtual environments that simulate authentic, real life settings that demand players to interact with other player online and in real time.
Below is video of Jonathon Best's TED EX talk, Press Play, which describes how he has made use of this fashionable technology to drive motivation and performance within his classroom, and to help bridge the gaps between his generation and those of his students.
Over the last several years many have begun to apply this technology to the field of education. Squire, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin, believes that this type of technology can have a communal relationship with teaching (2008). As such, there has been a rise in the development of educational digital games from several universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Vanderbilt University, and Florida State University, and private corporations, such as GlassLab and EDGE (Butrymowicz, 2013). These institutions, along with several others, have developed digital games to include virtual environments that simulate authentic, real life settings that demand players to interact with other player online and in real time.
Below is video of Jonathon Best's TED EX talk, Press Play, which describes how he has made use of this fashionable technology to drive motivation and performance within his classroom, and to help bridge the gaps between his generation and those of his students.
(TEDxTalks, 2013. Press Play - Gaming, Simulation & Achievement in the Classroom.)