Gamification in Higher Education: Students and Academics Interest in Gaming

Gamification is defined as the use of game design elements in non-game contexts and aims to change the behaviour of a user by enhancing motivation and hence participation in an activity. In a higher education (HE) context, the literature indicates that gamification can enhance student engagement and learning. This work used a survey to determine technology use and gauge opinions of gamification among academics (n=80) and students (n=73) within a London university. The results indicate a majority of both students and academics showed a positive interest in gamification but this was more pronounced in students. A majority of academics and students showed an interest in the use of online learning communities, virtual rewards, competitions and challenges and unlocking learning levels. While most academic staff were interested in gamification only a minority thought it would lead to improved learning and student grades while a majority of students thought this. There was no significant difference in interest in gamification based on age or gender but some ethnicity specific differences were observed. These findings indicate there is an interest in gamification in academics and students but for it to be adopted we need to address the disconnect between students and academics, to take cultural differences into account when designing gamified activities and provide an adaptable learning environment that suits the preferences of students