Unlocking Minds: Game-Based Learning andGamification in Education

Did you know that play is considered a crucial component of cognitive development from birth through adulthood? Think about your favorite games: isn’t it true that you never get tired playing them? Being it hide and seek, puzzles, construction games, board games, there are invisible threads linking our memories, experiences and feelings in connection to playing games and they are all linked to the intrinsic motivation and engagement they trigger in our mind!

The new edition of the course “Discover the power of Game Based Learning and Gamification in education​” took place in Bologna from 19/11/2023 to 25/11/2023. The participants came from all across Europe, with Mădălina and Georgeta from LiceulTeoretic Nicolae Bălcescu in Romania, Katri from Christianshavns Gymnasium in Denmark, and Maria Isabel from IES MAR MENOR in Spain.

Their training week started with the participants sharing their expectation,contributions and fears, as well as sharing some of the games and ideas from their language, latin and chemistry teaching practices. In addition, some game-based ice breaking activities were incorporated in order for the participants to get to know each other and bond. We eased into the course material with iconic games and toys, understanding their change over time, and playing some traditional board games for better engagement in the learning process.

During the first level we discussed the pedagogical value of playing and how games stimulate learning. We reflected and acknowledged that teachers are most of the time “digital immigrants” in an educational cosmos that is nowadays populated by digital natives. Through a challenge on the differences between gamification and game-based learning, our “players” could better clarify that gamification applies game elements into a non-game environment while game-based learning is a teaching approach whereby learning happens through playing the game itself.
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As the main outcome of the second level, participants defined the most common gamification framework as the process through which 8 major internal and external motivators influence human engagement. We then delved into exploring game-based tools and apps. We listed and actively explored several traditional games and we reframed them all together into more engaging learning tools. After all the challenges and battles, participants had an opportunity to browse through the online platforms proposed to create something for their own classes.

In the penultimate level, participants lived the most active and engaging experience. We went outside to enjoy a scavenger hunt game in the city center and later we were locked in a digital escape room trying to solve riddles and puzzles to escape. Participants finally tried to find the best way to gamify their own classrooms taking into account their students’ needs and characteristics.

Having overcome all the levels of our game, participants had the opportunity to learn new ways of making the most of the most traditional games to transform the learning process. They also got acquainted with modern online tools able to produce a significant improvement of students’ engagement and bring a spark in the classroom!

Discover more about this course here.

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