Gamification in the K-6 Classroom?

When it comes to gamification, I’m not going to act like I’m an expert. In fact, I’d identify myself as somewhat of a newb, or a rookie, and I'm definitely open to questions and others' thoughts. It’s certainly nice to have a topic of study such as this in EdTech Trends and Issues since I don’t recall having done extreme research on it before. Gamification will now be a focus on my mind after checking out various modes of resources that discuss it in detail. Initially, the thought of its place in the K-6 classroom was mixed. I could see the pros, but I could simultaneously see the cons.

Thankfully, there is not one right way to educate a child. Some of the joys of being a teacher include discovering more about and knowing your context (Cameron-Rogers & Carr, as cited in Barkastas & Bertram, 2016)*, content, and most importantly, your students.

While processing some information from those who seem to be experts (as well as some amateurs) on the issue, I have gathered that there are various ways a teacher could organize one’s classroom or teaching in a gamified fashion. It’s not about playing games all day or centering your class entirely on being run like a game. There are differing definitions of gamification. Karl Kapp (2014) provides a simple one in that it “uses the elements of games to motivate and engage the learner” (see below for more).

Upon listening to Kapp had me wonder, how much related to gaming would a student or class need in order to improve or reignite their motivation or engagement? Would it be more for the teacher’s sake to simply help manage a class? Every teacher’s situation is different. That much is true. Therefore, it’s better to first know the whole situation. In a recent blog, Kapp mentioned the resurgence of board and card games. Needless to say, video games are not to be the sole definition or method of gaming in education. Yet again, another assumption I had made that was broken by the act of becoming more informed.

What I personally am still having a hard time separating (if indeed they are to be separated) are games, competition, and extrinsic rewards. If the learners and their culture have a foundation as well as a continual reiteration of the competition aspect, I would not see gamification as a positive in the learning process. In my opinion as an amateur gamer and professional educator, this is a bigger deal than the possibility of a student formulating an addiction, or over-engagement, though knowing the warning signs or symptoms would be vital to any person (Young, 2009)**. Part of that slight concern would be of students also creating this expectation of extrinsic rewards. At the same time, I know students will inevitably experience rewards in life, but I wouldn’t want extrinsic ones to be their prime motivation or engagement for going into a career or helping others.

All that to say, I wouldn’t say that gamification is wrong or right. That’d be too black and white without considering a teacher’s particular scenario or possible setup. It certainly could have a place in learning if it were to be implemented correctly and in a way that does not compromise with negative effects on students, learning, and their overall health in the long-term.

Even if gamification wouldn’t be utilized in the classroom, I’d highly recommend somehow incorporating games for social interaction and collaborative reasons as well as guiding students in how they could self-identify stages of flow theory when it happens in their lives. In fact, gaming would be one of at least a few ways I’d recommend when directing students in their metacognition.

What do you think? Why or why not? What are some resources you'd recommend?

Some resources I've found so far include Gamification in Learning and Education (Burton, Kim, Lockee, & Song, 2018) and Gamify (Burke, 2014). There's more out there by Kapp too.

*Barkastas, T. & Bertram, A.R. (2016). Global learning in the 21st century (Global education in the 21st century series: Volume 1). Rotterdam, Netherlands: Sense Publishers.
**Young, K. (2009). Understanding online gaming addiction and treatment issues for adolescents. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 37(5), 355–372. doi: 10.1080/01926180902942191