Has Gamification Jumped the Shark?

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesBadges, Points, and Leader-boards, oh my! I’m working on a book – a series, actually – about gamifying learning, only lately, I’ve really been struggling with the term itself. GAMIFICATION Hmmmm. It just doesn’t seem to fit anymore. Is that … Continue reading

Worth Sharing: Why Playfulness Is the Key to Success in the 21st-Century

Approximate Reading Time: 2 minutesTHIS is why my version of “gamification” is so important. The Most Important Skill of Today? Source: Why Playfulness Is the Key to Success in the 21st-Century   Not making room for play in modern adult life is a strategic … Continue reading

IS it What Straight-A Students Get Wrong, or is it what WE get wrong?

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteIt’s not the students’ fault. Not making marks random, and reducing the risks of failure are what gives students more room to really think. We owe them that. We need to get rid of compartmentalized grading entirely, and quit blaming … Continue reading

Evolution of the “Good” vs “Bad” Gamification Chart, PART 2.

Approximate Reading Time: 10 minutes  This is the response to Ian Schreiber’s comments from the original draft post. (THANK YOU for the help!) Points Point values for quests is unclear – everything in the 1000s doesn’t seem arbitrary, sounds like it’s a system like … Continue reading

Evolution of the “Good” vs “Bad” Gamification Chart, PART 1.

Approximate Reading Time: 4 minutesI’m working on the 1st volume of a set of books devoted to gamification in learning. There seems to be quite a bit of confusion about what gamification is and isn’t, and an LOT of marketing sales-speak that mostly describes … Continue reading

Please don’t let “Gamblification” become a thing in learning!

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteI often hear people talking about adding elements of chance to an experience to make it more interesting. For instance, adding a random reward for doing a certain task in a system…. Source: Gamblification – don’t gamble with your people … Continue reading

What?! No Deadlines on Assignments?!

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesA common kind of complaint among many HE faculty: My student comes with a long story about why they need an extension on an assignment. I have already gone to some lengths to make sure my students have plenty of … Continue reading

Is Contemporaneous Grading More Consistent than Grading over a Long Period?

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteI have an education question for anyone with expertise in assessment: Are there any studies examining the notion that marking all of one assignment/paper contemporaneously leads to more consistency?   It strikes me as intuitively true, but I’d love to … Continue reading