Using Gamification to Enhance Self-directed, Open Learning in Higher Education

This paper reviews the literature on games based learning in the fields of psychology, education and video games, with a focus on the disparity of opinion regarding intrinsic motivation. Work in the field of education has shown that a state of optimal learning (flow) can be encouraged and sustained using a variety of reward based techniques. In contrast, psychological studies have shown that intrinsic motivation is inhibited by external reward techniques. The author’s experience as a professional game developer is that there are large commercial benefits and efficacy in a range of reward-based game mechanics. By identifying game design features that could cross over into education this paper will outline a range of techniques that could be implemented using a mobile device platform for use in the classroom within a higher education setting. An experiment is proposed to investigate the impact of this approach to games based learning and a software design is presented to support the experiment’s aims. A meta-game is described that links into normal student activities, gamifying them to enhance the student experience. Keywords: Game-Based Learning, motivation, mobile, gamification, software desig

A formative evaluation of a gamification app containing asynchronous multiplayer game elements

This paper evaluates the development of a videogame-like mobile app designed to enhance student experience using gamification principles. An approach is taken that attempts to avoid any reduction in intrinsic motivation and minimises subject specific content, while increasing the range of video game design principles beyond that normally found in educational gamification projects. Gamification that relies on points and leader boards to motivate can miss the essence of engaging video game design. The most popular video games use a wide range of game design principles to create a fun and motivating experience, something that is often missed in gamification. A non-educational 3D video game is used to motivate students to engage with the app, without being subject specific. However, making progress within the video game requires students to earn virtual credits by attending classes, engaging with class activities and handing in assessments. The game uses virtual avatars, currency and upgrades which motivate students to engage with the application while avoiding the need for real-world rewards. Asynchronous multiplayer allows students to work together within the game and share the experience as a group within class. This enables a form of competition that is less likely to demonstrate negative side effects, yet is still compulsive. An innovative game design was used that is based on recent ‘one-button’ mobile games. The design allows the app to attract and hold the student’s interest without taking excessive amounts of time away from their studies, as it can be played in an interactive or non-interactive mode. In-app metrics, surveys and interviews were used to develop case studies of three of the students in the study. This gives an insight into the different motivations and styles of interaction that students exhibited with the app. By removing access to the embedded game part way through the experiment it was shown that the game provided a significant motivational element of the overall gamification app. Although the students did not report any negative impact on their intrinsic motivation or enjoyment of the class, cheating was detected as students attempted to maximise their progress within the embedded game

Designing gamification for constructive competition

This paper examines the need for constructive positive extrinsic motivational competition within gamification projects. Gamification takes common game design principles such as points, leaderboards and competition, then applies them to non-gaming activities. Participants often require extrinsic motivators to engage with gamification, such as financial reward, compulsory participation or prizes. This approach can reduce intrinsic motivation, creativity and sense of agency. One powerful extrinsic motivator is competition, which can be effective even without any real world prize. Competition can be divided into constructive and destructive types. Destructive competition can cause anxiety and lower self-esteem in participants. Constructive competition is motivating without these negative side-effects. It isn't possible to guarantee that a competition will be constructive, but there are broad principles that can be applied to design for constructive competition. These principles were investigated using a purpose built mobile application called UniCraft. This app was used in a cross-over study with university students in an attempt to increase their satisfaction with one of their subjects and it featured a 3D video game-like competitive battle mode. Online analytics recorded a statistically significant increase in app usage when this competitive game mode was enabled

UniCraft: Exploring the impact of asynchronous multiplayer game elements in gamification

This paper describes the development and evaluation of UniCraft: a gamified mobile app designed to increase the engagement of undergraduate students with the content and delivery of their course. Gamification projects rely on extrinsic motivators to encourage participants to engage, such as compulsory participation or real-world rewards. UniCraft incorporates an asynchronous multiplayer battle game that uses constructive competition to motivate students, without using motivational levers that may reduce intrinsic motivation. The novel battle game employed by UniCraft employs Player vs Environment (Shafer, 2012) and Player Matching (Jennings, 2014) to ensure students work together in similarly ranked small groups as a team against a shared enemy. A study was undertaken which examined students' long-term engagement with UniCraft within the context of a 12-week long undergraduate programming course. The app was initially provided with the battle feature disabled, so that the effect on motivation and engagement could be studied when it was introduced during the intervention. Detailed interaction data recorded by the app was augmented by semi-structured interviews in order to provide a richer perspective on its effect at an individual and group level. The interaction data revealed convincing evidence for the increased motivational power of the battle feature, and this was supported by the interview data. Although no direct negative effects of competition were observed, interviews revealed that cheating was prevalent and this could in turn have unintended negative side-effects on motivation. Full results are presented and case studies are described for three of the participants, giving an insight into the different styles of interaction and motivation experienced by students in this study

Optimising gamification using constructive competition and videogames

This thesis is concerned with the use of gamification to make studying more fun. Games are designed to be compulsive and enjoyable, so if we can apply game design principles to studying then it might increase student engagement. Gamification is the name given to this concept and describes how some game design principles (like points, leaderboards, competition, rewards, etc.) can be applied generically to non-gaming, real-world activities, like studying. Many commonly used game design principles, like those mentioned, are extrinsic motivators. For example, scoring points has nothing to do with learning times tables, but points can be used to motivate someone to learn maths. Extrinsic motivation like this can have negative side effects as people may feel pressure or stress, which can then reduce the inherent enjoyment of the activity. The joy of learning, the pleasure of practicing some skill, is known as intrinsic motivation. Some activities do not rely on intrinsic motivation; consider a worker performing a task that requires no creativity or imagination, something that can be learnt by rote. However, many activities require inquisitiveness and creativity, a key feature of intrinsic motivation; consider a student learning a new subject in a school. In these situations, great care must be taken when using extrinsic motivation (a key part of gamification) such that it does not reduce someone’s intrinsic motivation. Historically, this was not well understood and gamification was used inappropriately in environments such as schools where reductions in intrinsic motivation could not be tolerated (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 2001). In an education setting, where there are concerns around intrinsic motivation, anda gamification approach could feel ‘tacked on’; custom designed educational games are often preferred as they can capture the essence of the activity directly. Therefore they are usually seen as more beneficial and less prone to reducing intrinsic motivation, but are often expensive and inflexible (Egenfeldt-Nielsen, 2005). Gamification can be cheaper, more flexible and easier to embed within existing learning activities (Sebastian Deterding, Dixon, Khaled, & Nacke, 2011).In these studies, gamification with constructive competition was used to engagestudents, without using extrinsic motivational levers (e.g. real-world reward and compulsory participation) that may reduce intrinsic motivation. This thesis provides a theoretical and empirical exploration of “constructive competition”: design techniques that seek to minimise gamification’s negative effect on intrinsic motivation. Two studies are described which detail the development of a new approach to gamification design based on constructive competition and its use in classes with computing students. A mobile gamification application called 'Unicraft' was developed to investigate these ideas, and the results of the studies suggest that it is possible to design for constructive competition and create positive gamification experiences. Full results and implications are presented, providing guidelines on gamification design best practice, development methodology and an example technical implementation using mobile devices

Trials and tribulations: understanding motivations for clinical research participation amongst adults with cystic fibrosis

In the context of understanding motivations for clinical research participation, many authors consider issues such as informed consent and how patients perceive the research method and process. However, many investigations focus only on one method of research, most commonly the randomised controlled trial. Understanding how chronically ill members of one specific patient group respond to all requests for research participation are rare. Cystic fibrosis (CF), a genetic condition whereby those affected are used to taking a wide array of treatments and attending a specialist care centre over many years, and are generally knowledgeable about their condition, represents an ideal case for investigating how staff requests for clinical research participation are accepted or declined. Using Bloor's systems of relevance framework for risk behaviour and risk reduction, specialist CF centre patients' motivations for participation or non-participation in clinical research can be understood. The framework takes into account two sets of conceptual oppositions: habituation and calculation, constraint and volition. These oppositions represent a range along a continuum of risk behaviour rather than being absolute distinctions. Decisions to participate are influenced mainly by the patient's state of health at the time of request, the nature of the trial and the social context within which sufferers are placed. Understanding why chronically ill patients refuse some requests and yet accept others may assist researchers in designing protocols that take these factors into account and achieve the desired numbers of participants whilst protecting those in vulnerable positions. © 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Velocity Amplitudes in Global Convection Simulations: The Role of the Prandtl Number and Near-Surface Driving

Several lines of evidence suggest that the velocity amplitude in global simulations of solar convection, U, may be systematically over-estimated. Motivated by these recent results, we explore the factors that determine U and we consider how these might scale to solar parameter regimes. To this end, we decrease the thermal diffusivity $\kappa$ along two paths in parameter space. If the kinematic viscosity $\nu$ is decreased proportionally with $\kappa$ (fixing the Prandtl number $P_r = \nu/\kappa$), we find that U increases but asymptotes toward a constant value, as found by Featherstone & Hindman (2016). However, if $\nu$ is held fixed while decreasing $\kappa$ (increasing $P_r$), we find that U systematically decreases. We attribute this to an enhancement of the thermal content of downflow plumes, which allows them to carry the solar luminosity with slower flow speeds. We contrast this with the case of Rayleigh-Benard convection which is not subject to this luminosity constraint. This dramatic difference in behavior for the two paths in parameter space (fixed $P_r$ or fixed $\nu$) persists whether the heat transport by unresolved, near-surface convection is modeled as a thermal conduction or as a fixed flux. The results suggest that if solar convection can operate in a high-$P_r$ regime, then this might effectively limit the velocity amplitude. Small-scale magnetism is a possible source of enhanced viscosity that may serve to achieve this high-$P_r$ regime.Comment: 34 Pages, 8 Figures, submitted to a special issue of "Advances in Space Research" on "Solar Dynamo Frontiers