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20+ Ways to Add Game-like Elementsto Your Learning Designs Brett Bixler Lead Instructional Designer Penn State University This presentation by Brett Bixler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

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Today • Who am I? • Intro to the Educational Gaming Commons • What is Gamification? • Types of Gamification • Elements of Gamification • Examples • Additional Resources and Communities • Exercise • Open Discussion

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Who am I?• Lead Instructional Designer• At PSU since 1984• Working on bringing best practices/uses of educational technology to Penn State • Founded the Educational Gaming Commons

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The EducationalGaming Commons • Goal • Foster research, teaching, and learning around educational games, virtual worlds, and simulations. • Staff • Brett Bixler – Founder and Evangelist • Chris Stubbs – Manager • Elizabeth Pyatt – Instructional Designer • Web – http://gaming.psu.edu • Facebook - http://tinyurl.com/FBPSUEGC

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The EGC (contd) • Projects • Engagement Initiatives • One-on-one consultations • Virtual Worlds Research and Development • Sponsoring presentations, guest speakers, etc. • EGC Lab • Innovative space at PSU containing PCs, game consoles, and a variety of games, virtual worlds, and simulations

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What can I do to make instruction more compelling?

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What is your favorite game? Why? What is it about this game that appeals to you?

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Gamification??!?Gamification <> Games!

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What in the world is gamification and game-like elements?

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What’s Going On Here?

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Gamification Elements • Gamification • The use of one or more "gamelike elements" or dynamics in a non-game context to improve engagement or change behavior. • Gamelike Elements • Pieces or mechanics that make up games.

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Gamification – Surface-level & DeepSurface-level Changes • Change overt parts of course/instruction • Grades = Levels • Quiz = Minion • Test = Boss • Final = Big Boss • Assignments = Crafting • Teams = GuildsDeep Changes • Change your activities to include gamelike elements. • Examples: Team challenges, restructuring content to optimal challenge.

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Gamification ElementsOver 25 Elements ExistAchievements Infinite GameplayAppointments LevelsBehavioral Momentum Loss AversionBlissful Productivity LotteryBonuses OwnershipCascading Info. Theory PointsCombos ProgressionCommunity Collaboration QuestsCountdown Reward SchedulesDiscovery StatusEpic Meaning Urgent OptimismFree Lunch Virality From http://gamification.org/wiki/Game_Mechanics

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“Big” Gamification Elements • Scaffolding (cascading information theory & progressive implementation) • Feedback • Levels • Achievements & rewards • reward success • points & progress bars • status/ ranks/badges • Uncertainty and Expectation • Flow

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Cascading Information Theory • Match the level of task difficulty to the current ability of the student.Scaffolding • Provide just enough support so the student can accomplish the task. Remove this “scaffolding” over time.

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Progressive Implementation A series of tasks, from simple to complex, that lead towards the ultimate goal.

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Levels • Levels are a system by which players are rewarded for accumulating points. • Often features or abilities are unlocked as players progress to higher levels. • Levelling is one of the highest components of motivation for gamers.Examples • Real world – Job promotions. • In a game – Earn enough points. • A good use – Use levels to show competencies.

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Feedback • Timely informing the student of their accomplishments/failures. • Games do this all the time! • The following all provide feedback.

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Achievements • A virtual or physical representation of having accomplished something. • Achievements can be easy, difficult, surprising, funny, accomplished alone or as a group. • Achievements are a way to give players a way to brag.

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Badges • An overt reward of achievement. • Meant to be displayed for others to see.Examples  Real world – Scouts.  In a game – Complete a task, earn a badge.  A good use – Mozilla Badges.

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Countdown • The element in which players are only given a certain amount of time to do something. • This will create an activity that increases frenetically until time runs out or the goal is met.Examples  Real world – Limited-time sales.  In a game – Race to a goal.  A good use – Mastery quizzes that can taken as often as needed.

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Points • Points are a running numerical value given for any single action or combination of actions.

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Progression Where success is granularly displayed and measured through the process of completing itemized tasks. Progress bars!Examples • Real world – Coffee cards. Buy 6, get one free. • In a game - Progress bars and subtasks. As you level up, you receive power and better equipment, etc. Progression is powerful. • A good use - Drive traffic to local businesses via challenges that unlock rewards.

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Switching Gears? - Motivation? • Defining it is an elusive process, as difficult to do as grasping a slippery fish in a dark cave. • Here’s the one I like: • “The term motivation in psychology is a global concept for a variety of processes and effects whose common core is the realization that an organism selects a particular behavior because of expected consequences, and then implements it with some measure of energy, along a particular path.” (Heckhausen, 1991, p. 9).

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Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation Extrinsic - From outside you. Intrinsic - From inside you. • There is a controversy over gamification and extrinsic motivation - some say it weakens intrinsic motivation. • The fact is there just arent enough facts to know this for sure.

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Uncertainty • When we cant quite predict something, we get really excited about it. • Like driving down a winding vs. straight road.

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Flow • The ultimate motivational state, where hours go by in minutes. • Achieved by balancing the learner’s current ability with the difficulty of the current challenge.

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So How is GamificationHappening in Higher Ed? right now?

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Surface-level GamificationLee Sheldon’s Multiplayer Game Design Class• Class time is divided between • fighting monsters (Quizzes, Exams etc.), • completing quests (Presentations of Games, Research etc.) • crafting (Personal Game Premises, Game Analysis Papers, Video Game Concept Document etc.).• You gain XP by defeating monsters, completing quests and crafting.

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XP for a GradeGrading Procedure• Start as a Level One avatar. Level Twelve is the max. Level XP* Letter Grade Level Twelve 1860 A Level Eleven 1800 A- Level Ten 1740 B+ Level Nine 1660 B Level Eight 1600 B- Level Seven 1540 C+ Level Six 1460 C Level Five 1400 C- Level Two-Four 1340 D Level One 0 F

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What Do YOU Think About This? Is this good, bad, ugly?

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What Did Students Think? • Leveling should be evenly spaced out. • Knowing point values per assignment is gold. • Avatars are cool, but hard to integrate. • Guilds make you feel you are part of something? http://gamingtheclassroom.wordpress.com/t366- multiplayer-game-design-post-mortem/

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What Did Students Think?• Forcing attention to reading via in-class guild quizzes was a plus. One question determined at random via die roll.• Guild competition during open book midterm was valued.• Quests (individual presentations) seem to suffer the same drawbacks as traditional presentations. http://gamingtheclassroom.wordpress.com/t366- multiplayer-game-design-post-mortem/

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What Did Students Think?• Overall - students were uniformly enthusiastic about the class as game approach. Many wished that other of their courses could be taught the same way; and thought the techniques could be used with just about any subject matter.• Keep in mind this is a game design class! http://gamingtheclassroom.wordpress.com/t366- multiplayer-game-design-post-mortem/

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Marriage – The Game?

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An Example of Deep Gamification… • Course on intro. to new social technologies. • Do you just present the technologies, or do you add game-like elements to it? • Instructor makes teams. Five rounds of play. The team with the most points wins. • Google Docs & Forms • Second Life • NMC Horizon Report • Gaming • Emerging Technologies

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An Example 2…• Google Forms • 1-point level - Individuals can only take the survey once –You MUST add your CODE to the last question and answer all the questions to earn all points. URL to the form. • 5-point level – each individual can earn 5 points for their team by creating a Google form (survey) with at least 3 different question types and sending me the link to survey to complete it instructorEmail. Put your name CODE in the title of the survey.

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An Example 3…• Emerging Technologies • 25 points for each team member posting Watch the video at URL . The speaker asks at one point in his talk, “If not now, when… if not me, then who???” Your posting should answer three questions to earn the points: • What does the speaker mean by this quote? • What does it make you think about in light of what you are learning in this class? • What does it make you think about outside of this class and why? • Post your comment to the blog at URL Use your name CODE to earn points!!!

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Some Gamification Providers

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Some Gamification Info. Sites • Kapp Notes • http://www.uleduneering.com/kappnotes/ • Gamify • http://gamify.org • http://gamification.org/wiki/ • Gamifying Education (new) • http://www.gamifyingeducation.org/ • The Gamification Summit • http://www.gsummit.com/ • June 19-21, 2012

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Gamification Time!

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Gamification Time! • Form groups of 2-3 people. • Pick a subject and a lesson, or use one of the provide examples. • Brainstorm on three ways you would gamify this lesson. • Don’t sweat the details!

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Questions?Thoughts? gaming@psu.edu bxb11@psu.edu