We know you’re likely sick of hearing about gamification and education in the same sentence but stick with us because Pro Barry Dwolatzky has some interesting ideas about how to take cues from games and implement them into education.
It goes without saying that the ongoing pandemic has turned the traditional idea of education on its head. Classrooms have moved online, teachers have had to become tech wizards and the future of the sector is going unfold in interesting ways. At least we hope it does.
Ignoring this changing tide could prove detrimental but too much change without solid guidance could do the same.
Which is why Dwolatzky, Emeritus Professor at Wits University and board member of the computer science advisory board of the University of the People, says educators should take cues from video games.
While this includes things like point scoring, teamwork and peer competition, what we found interesting were his points about how games bring folks together.
“There is a lot to be learnt from gaming. There is no penalty for failure – if you lose you start again, taking the lessons learnt with you into the next game. There is no stigma attached to failure – it is seen as part of progressing. People play in virtual multinational groups and learn to collaborate and communicate with players from different cultures in order to jointly solve problems,” says Dwolatzky.
That point about failure is important. Right now education is akin to Dark Souls in that if you fail, you have to start the journey you were on, again. Sure, you have a checkpoint but investing 12 months into your education only to fail by a percentage point at the end and having to start over, sucks, especially when you factor in the cost of education.
What is the alternative? Well Outcomes Based Education (OBE) appeared to be that alternative with a model where students were constantly assessed as they studied. Anybody who has battled through that educational model, however, can attest to the fact that it isn’t great and you can still be forced to start over again if you fail, and it’s not great for tertiary education. There are a number of issues with OBE and since we no longer use it in SA following a failure to see an improvement, something else is needed.
What Dwolatzky is proposing is a gamification that takes more inspiration from team-based games than a single player game. This means that students work together (and alone because every team is made up of individuals) in order to solve problems and complete goals. This means that the age and failure rate of an individual isn’t all that important.
Consider team based games such as Dota 2 or League of Legends for a moment. The game tasks players with taking up specific roles based on what they are comfortable with. Some players are the playmakers that launch fights and help secure points while others are there to support those playmakers with specific skills whether that be healing the playmakers or crafting a quick escape.
A similar concept could be applied to education whereby a team can help each other complete tasks and reach the goals that have been set. We’re onboard with this idea especially if it helps highlight individual skills that, when combined, are greater than the sum of the parts.
Make no mistake however, much of this is theoretical at the moment but the old way of doing things just doesn’t make sense anymore, especially when it comes to education.
“When implemented correctly, online education is the solution to the crisis in higher education. It is not just putting lectures on Zoom; rather, there is an entire pedagogy involved. You need to build in meaningful interactions and create virtual resources for students to make a positive change in student behaviour,” says University of the People president, Shai Reshef.
As we mentioned, this is an interesting approach to the gamification of education and perhaps it will inform the evolution of the sector over the next decade.
[Image – CC 0 Pixabay]