Asmita Sharma, Team TeacherTribe
Let’s face it, studying can be a monotonous affair. Going through the motions each day can make it challenging to effectively grasp and retain information disseminated throughout a school day. Hence, there is a need for a routine classroom shakeup!
As a student entering high school, I remember having a science teacher who took the new daunting scientific concepts and broke them down with activities for us to learn. The elements on the periodic table became a song and the laws of motion became experiments. These changes in textbook-based coursework kept us engaged and helped us retain what we learned throughout the year.
In recent years, the concept of ‘gamification’ has piqued the interest and garnered the attention of many across sectors- education, corporate and otherwise. Sprinkling in the concept of gamification throughout the year’s coursework can give a necessary boost of engagement and refresh the classroom atmosphere.
What is Gamification?
Essentially, gamification is the process of incorporating elements of game mechanics in a non-game setting to ultimately enhance learning. This method can be utilised to increase the motivation levels of students in the classroom and increase knowledge retention which ultimately discourages rote learning.
Gamification can also help students develop lifelong skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, cooperation, team building, and social awareness while enhancing their cognitive abilities.
Now this raises the question-
How to ‘gamify’ the classroom?
Several strategies can be applied to create a gamified classroom. Teachers can start by understanding and mapping out their goals before incorporating the learning method. It is important to create an overview of the areas students struggle in before beginning the process. This will help you design projects that will match the learning objectives.
Make a gamification guide that will keep a tab on rules and point systems to gauge student performance. This can include visual cues such as progress bars and leadership boards to bring engagement in the classroom.
Creating badges, and small rewards at the end of the activity can promote a sense of accomplishment and keep the students interested in the subjects covered.
Examples of Gamification:
Creating challenges in the coursework for subjects such as mathematics or languages can build and promote team building and critical thinking as well as analytical thinking in the students. They would also engage in the concepts better and gain a better understanding of the topic on hand.
Building storylines can help students dive deep into the curriculum as they learn to build narratives and navigate various scenarios.
Gamifying quizzes- Adding in small quizzes during class hours and modifying them to have points, rewards and levels can boost the student's attention levels in the classroom.
Scavenger Hunts can be created by turning lessons into treasure hunts. This can be applied by breaking down the topic such that students find information to crack the code and problem at hand.
Activity and gamifying coursework into bite-sized concepts can promote collaboration and engagement.
How would you create a ‘gamified’ classroom? Write to me at asharma@greycaps.com and share your thoughts!
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