Do not panic. I will break down the most practical way for educators to successfully integrate elements of video games into their classrooms as painlessly as possible. And hopefully, I will even inspire you to level up from “noob” to gamer in the process!

Video games in the classroom First things first: Before thinking about what elements of gaming you might bring into your classroom, you should talk to your learners about gaming and learn the lingo.

Gamer Culture

It is important to recognize that not all gamers game alike. For instance, what is the difference between a console game and a tabletop game? Gamers play console games on popular gaming consoles like Playstation, Xbox or Wii. In contrast, tabletop games are more traditional, board game-style gaming. When using the reference gamer, you’re talking about players who engage with digital games in one form or another (console, PC, tablet, etc.). Still, it’s important to keep in mind that there are nuances to this community. You can easily use “gamer” for a board gamer and an Xbox gamer.

Learn Gamer Language

Language is also important. Many online games have specific language or short-form words to relate information easily. It is usually to help strategize how to win your object, but not always. “Noob,” for instance, is someone who lacks experience in a specific area, digital skills in particular. It signifies that an individual may not be as strong of a player as the rest of their teammates or opponents. You’ve probably heard learners use it in an everyday context with each other.

The key to learning more about gaming culture and language is to engage in conversations about gaming with your learners. What do they play? How do they play? What’s Clash of Clans? What about these particular games draws them? Is this something you could play to learn more about it? Your learners are dying to talk to you about their games. You don’t need to know much. You need an attentive ear and a willingness to think through how those games could impact your teaching.

Gamification

A great way to ease yourself into gaming in your classroom would be to take elements of what makes gaming so fun and exciting and incorporate them into your teaching. Gamification is a popular buzzword right now. While it borrows elements of games, like levelling, goal-oriented tasks, and almost always the presence of a digital avatar, it is not, in fact, gaming. Gamification could be as simple as reward-based classroom activities and management. Learners who can level up and go on learning quests in class are engaged in activities similar to those they play in games. Create a map on a bulletin board or wall representing a challenge, quest, or journey, with each learner’s name or an image representing them. As learners complete their quest, they can move their identifier along the map towards the end of the level.

Serious Games

Here we’ve encountered another language lesson. Serious games are types of games in which a learning objective is the main purpose of the game. While enveloped in a game world, games like Math Blaster and Bookworm teach a concept, like spelling, grammar, or multiplication. There are thousands of serious games you can play online on educational websites. Even TV networks like the Disney Channel and Nickelodeon have serious games online as part of their game libraries.

These games can serve a few purposes in your classroom. They could be a reward system for learners who have finished assigned work and must be kept busy. They could also be an alternative way to approach some concepts learners struggle with in traditional formats. Suppose a learner is struggling with fractions. A serious game based in a kitchen, with plenty of need for fraction concepts, could be the key to unlocking the next step in their learning. Educational sites like Common Sense Media have put together some excellent resources for educators to evaluate games they use in their classrooms.

Entertainment Games

Stay with me. It will be a scarier concept for an educator just starting to tackle the idea of gaming in the classroom. Still, I promise it will be worth your while. Now, your learners spend a significant amount of time engaging with this category of games. These are games of all types, styles, and budgets but whose main objective is to entertain. These games, I would suggest, could be used in multiple ways.

Curricular Objects

Let’s start with an example game like SimCity. It’s a popular simulation whose main objective is to learn to develop, govern and expand a city successfully. With all the municipal responsibilities, like garbage pick up and keeping citizens happy by maintaining parks and schools, a player has a lot to negotiate and learn. I think this makes for an excellent learning tool for any classroom.

The first step would be playing the game yourself. If that seems too daunting, you could watch tutorials of a particular game online. There are even videos of other players engaging in the game (try www.twitch.com, a popular site to watch gamers negotiate games and a hit with most learners). After you’ve determined what game areas you might use to create learning opportunities, design a WebQuest-like activity, but for your chosen game. Learners can screen capture, blog, write or even keep video gameplay records. You can challenge them to use those resources to explain concepts they’ve learned in class.

Several game titles include great content for learning, such as the Total War series. I have used Empire Total War to discuss and dissect the strategies and events that impacted Napoleon’s decision-making. I used the game to introduce topics learners would be learning.

Critical Object

For this approach, you as an educator need to be open to learning about different popular games with your learners and what big issues those games are tackling that could relate to your classroom lessons. Video games are cultural objects, reflections of what our society does at its best and worse. Using them to critically discuss major global issues, like racism, terrorism, bullying, or war, is another path towards building understanding.

For example, most history educators have no problem using a Hollywood film to tackle a tough topic like concentration camps or WWII warfare. I would argue that using a game like Medal of Honor, which borrows heavily from soldiers’ first-hand experiences, does a similar job of connecting the issues for learners. That’s not to say you need learners to play Grand Theft Auto V in the classroom to discuss issues like race and segregation. Instead, use the game’s storyline to hook learners into the discussion. That respects games for what they are: cultural objects like film or media that impart valuable insight into our society, historically and presently.

Gaming for a “noob” might seem a bit daunting. Still, when you explore the number of ways one can approach it and build towards the comfort level of bringing more games into the classroom, you’ll realize you won’t be a noob for long.

Gaming Can Change the World

You may be hearing a new word in education and technology a lot these days: Gamification. Gamification applies elements associated with video games (game mechanics and dynamics) in non-game activities. In a nutshell, gamification is a means of increasing learner engagement and promoting good classroom behaviour. In 2011, Deterding defined gamification as using game design elements and characteristics in non-game contexts. Think of the key elements of a game: achievement, goals, rewards, quests, and the ability to level up your character. Generally, each of these drives a player’s promotion or levelling up within a game. Gamification takes that reward and levelling structure and applies it to participants, that is, your learners.

Tweet, “Gamification is a means of increasing learner engagement and promoting good classroom behaviour.”

As a classroom management tool and motivator, gamification has great potential in pushing learner achievement and making school more attractive (Lee & Hammer, 2011). The idea here is that using a gamified tool can introduce what really matters from the world of video games – increasing learner engagement – without using a specific game. The levelling and reward system borrows what makes good games fun to play. Learning can be fun if learners learn as if they were playing a game.

The Good

The gamification framework will help guide the educator.

Create challenges tailored to the learner’s level of knowledge, and increase the difficulty of these challenges as the learner acquires new skills.
Set up multiple ways to successfully achieve an objective, allowing learners to overcome roadblocks in learning.
Consider failures part of the learning process. A learning objective can be met successfully after several failed attempts without penalizing learners.
Enable learners to assume different identities and roles, allowing them to explore the interaction with other parts of who they are.
Enable peers and parents to recognize a learner’s progress.
Maintain a standard of behaviour and expectation in the classroom while rewarding learners who meet the challenges set before them.

Here are some examples of systems that show gamification at its best and examine gamification research.

The Education Arcade

The Education Arcade is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology initiative and has material for educators to produce more effective teaching methods. The site also has news and commentary on contemporary education developments. Content on the site is designed for grade 5-12 educators.

GameSalad

GameSalad is a game design education program that is simple enough to master quickly but complex enough to create highly customizable materials and games. Once educators use it, it’s easy to teach learners to create their own games. They’re on Twitter @gamesalad

Games and Learning Alliance

GALA, the Games and Learning Alliance, blogs on serious developments in gamification and the intersection of games and education. They invite many people to submit papers commenting on gamification’s impact on behaviour. They’re on Twitter @gameandlearning

Educators can turn to several games and tools when looking to implement gamification in their classrooms. These are two of the most effective curriculum and classroom management tools we recommend.

ClassDojo

GoalBook

The Bad

As is the case with most trends, some teachers and administrators want to use gamification just for the sake of using it. The name is catchy, it sounds fun, and many educators and researchers in technology have praised its results in other fields. But maybe gamification isn’t right for your classroom, certain learners, or the demographic of learners. Before implementing a gamified system, think about why gamification can work for your classroom. Think of the end pedagogical goals of teaching using gamification.

1) How will you teach using it?

2) What parts of your classroom will be gamified?

3) What could go wrong?

If it’s difficult to come up with solid answers to why you would use it in the classroom, it may be best to go in a different direction.

The Ugly

Knowing what can go wrong in your classroom with gamification is important. As with any changes to your pedagogy, you need to consider how learners could be negatively affected.

Choices

Offering too many quests or goals in a small timeframe could overwhelm learners. They might log in, see 25 quests, and not know where to begin. Limit the expectations in your use of quests or assignments.

Leaderboards

Instead of motivating learners, reaching the top of an “academic” leaderboard might be considered “uncool.” Worse, this might alienate learners who are already struggling. Consider making this optional for learners or highlight winners of various tasks and quests beyond academics.

Neglecting Player Types

Gamers play games for many reasons. Some play to win, others play for the fun of it, and many of your learners play to make friends or engage with their friends outside of school. This makes for many types of players/learners. Most gamified systems cater heavily to the competitive type. If your game/quests/goals ignore players’ cooperative or explorative types, your learners could disengage. Diversify your quests to consider all types of learners or players.

Not Celebrating Failure

Games celebrate success, but they also celebrate failure. Navigating a game always involves several “redos” or failures as you progress. If you are not celebrating failure in your gamification model in the classroom, you are not celebrating learning. By only celebrating success, you place value on winning rather than growth and persistence. Do you have badges for “Sticking With It,” “Big Improvement,” or “Asking for Help”? You should!

Gamification can be a helpful process for engaging and motivating your learners. However, doing it right requires thoughtfulness and an awareness of how your learners learn best.

classroom organization games gamification

Bringing Games into the Classroom: A Practical Guide