Gamification

The Setting

Participants had to register beforehand since the workshop was limited to a maximum of 30 people. They were invited to join a team of their choice (identified by a different colour), with up to 5 people per team.

At the beginning of the workshop, the instructor gave very specific instructions as to what each team was expected to achieve in 90 minutes – each stage of the activity was also timed.

The goal of the activity was introduced as a “Mission Impossible”- type of a challenge. Five roles needed to be assigned within each team: the captain, the strategist, the hacker, the analyst the specialist and the field worker. We had to work together as a team and each of us was responsible for one specific task.

Gamification

The whole activity heavily relied on gamifying aspects:

Finding a solution to an existing problem or challenge;
Increasing participants’ engagement and motivation;
Timing activities, adding an extra level of stress;
Assigning roles;
Mapping out a theme-based mission to complete.

Authenticity

For me, the activity was eye opening in terms of authentic responses: it allowed me to reflect on the concept of teamwork.

We started well: each of the team members quickly described what he or she was good at, what role(s) he or she was willing to take and we discussed the scenario that we would like to set up. Done. Easy.

Then, things got a bit fuzzier: another team member and I could not find common ground on a practical detail that would affect the rest of the blended scenario development. The teacher in me was very much concerned about the physical (and human) aspect of the activity; my peer, who happened to be a tech expert, was thinking in terms of connectivity and technological considerations. While we were discussing, the three other members were busy doing what they had to do, not paying much attention to the conversation that was going on.

In the end, we did manage to find a compromise but we had lost the rest of the team. Although we wasted some precious time trying to agree on a commonly chosen alternative, at least communication was taking place. At the end of the activity, we came to the same conclusion: the exchange led to some sort of a bond, something that the others had completely missed out since each one was isolated in their individual tasks. The end scenario was therefore incomplete and fragmented.

Learning Theory

What I learn is that gamifying content can be extremely complex and hard to manage even if done well. Team management is one of the most unpredictable social constructivist aspects. Teams either gel or not (at least partly).

Hall, M. (2014, May 13). What is Gamification and Why Use It in Teaching? [blog post]. Retrieved from https://ii.library.jhu.edu/2014/05/13/what-is-gamification-and-why-use-it-in-teaching/

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