The notion that games are more than trivial toys that waste time is a radical one and has been confronted with a lot of controversy. The efforts of teams of talented individuals are being recognized. These innovative approaches to game playing are now being followed by the actions of powerful companies in the game industry.
We’re reading more and more about online education portals incorporating sophisticated game mechanics into its applications. There’s no doubt that education is a space ripe for gamification and in classrooms—both virtual and walled—educators are shifting their approach to offer a more personalized, yet interactive and adaptive curriculum. Course Hero, an online education start-up, has been engaging college students in its online learning community by using game mechanics from Bunchball for more than a year to great success. Harnessing the motivational power of games and applying it to real-world problems, Course Hero’s gamification elements motivate students to learn in a more interactive manner and urge them to care more about what they’re learning.
In this GSummit SF 2013 talk, Course Hero CEO Andrew Grauer will share details on how participation on the site has increased by 25% since implementing gamified elements, as well as how the site has seen a 51% growth in badges awarded since February 2012. Watch the full video below.
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Playing games has always been a part of my experience growing up. From playing physical board games to virtual games on consoles and PC, each has its own unique sense of achievement and marvel. Yet, after playing all sorts of games over the years, there was a constant thought that ran through my mind. Somehow, the actions and experiences we undergo in the process of playing games conceals a deeper purpose.
Moreover, as a college student who has spent a considerable amount of leisure time playing video games, the nagging thought that games could possibly have some impact on my learning experience became even more apparent. Aside from the standard way of learning through formal education, could games mechanics observed in games and thinking through the lens of games actually help us in unforeseeable ways? Surely there is something more to video games than just playing it for fun?
ClassDojo, founded by Sam Chaudhary and Liam Don, has recently announced that they have received $1.6M in seed funding for their education startup. The founders set out to solve the most common problem teachers face in the classroom. After asking hundreds of teachers about their issues in the classroom, feedback suggested that teachers felt like…
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