Spaced Repetition Software (SRS) has a long history of use in English language teaching. Current smart phone adoption, online app stores, and the general decrease in the price of tablets have created a new platform and market for commercial SRS services. Such services are often marketed as being fun and game like. The critical question is how faithfully gamification is being applied in the commercial, education market and what elements of gamification are lacking in the available options. This presentation will take an objective look at the commercial service iKnow!, identifying elements of gamification and ascertaining which James Gee’s 36 Learning Principles are in use. Suggestions on how to support the identified lacking elements with a Moodle installation will be presented.

1. iKnow! is a popular spaced repetition software (SRS) for
studying Japanese, Chinese, and English. Although iKnow! is
not marketed as a game, it includes numerous game-like
elements among the iKnow! suite of three applications; iKnow,
BrainSpeed, and Dictation.
McGonigal, J. (2011). Reality is broken: Why games make us better and how they
can change the world. Penguin
Schell, J. (2008). The Art of Game Design: A book of lenses. CRC Press.
by Dubhgan Hinchey
McGonigal (2011) outlines all games as,” sharing four
defined traits: a goal, rules, a feedback system, and
voluntary participation” (p. 21).
Schell (2008) "A game is a problem solving activity
approached with a playful attitude“ (p. 37).
What’s the score?
iKnow!, Moodle, and Gamification
All apps are games as stated by McGonigal (2011) and
Schell (2008), though rules and goals vary by app. Meta
data is collected from all 3 apps to calculate study time.
All the 5 Principles apply depending on language environment
Prin. 1) Active, Critical
Prin. 2) Design
Prin. 3) Semiotic
Prin. 4) Semiotic Domains
Prin. 5) Meta-level thinking about Semiotic Domain
Application of Input
Multimodal & Subset Insider & Multiple Routes
Future Moodle integration
If students are placed in an English speaking lab or have a need to present or
publish in English, then there is more of a case for the 5 principles being applicable.
Such students, as Gee (2007) states, would experience the world in new ways, form
new affiliations, and prepare for their future learning (p. 24).
Gee, J. P. (2007). What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy.: Revised and Updated Edition.
Macmillan.
10 of the 36 Learning Principles
Prin. 6) “Psychosocial Moratorium”
Prin. 10) Amplification of Input
Prin. 12) Practice
Prin. 14) “Regime of Competence”
Prin. 16) Multiple Routes
Prin. 20) Multimodal
Prin. 23) Subset
Prin. 27) Explicit Information On-Demand
and Just-in-Time
Prin. 33) Distributed
Prin. 36) Insider
“Regime of Competence”
“Psychosocial Moratorium”
Practice & Explicit Info.
Distributed