Games allow us to make education more fun. Games allow students to make choices, to learn through trial and error. Most importantly, games give students instant feedback. Here are my thoughts on how to make learning more like a game…..

One of the easiest ways to make learning more like a game is to add the element of choice. Choice exists in many types of projects within the school curriculum and some of the basic ways in which choices can be introduced include:

1. Choose which activities to complete in a spelling contract. (Middle to Upper Primary)
2. Choose which book you want to practise reading again and then choose a new activity related to the book (Early Childhood)
3. Choose which point of view you will take in the response to the development of a particular environmental project. (Upper Primary)
4. Choose the role you will undertake in a short group cooperative project e.g. map maker, model designer, publisher, graphic artist etc. (Middle and Upper Primary)
5. Choose the way in which you develop a product for the outcome of research. (All ages)

Prof. John Hattie has examined and explained the many factors which have an impact on student learning and he would agree that probably one of the most important factors is the quality and timeliness of feedback that teachers give students during the learning process. This table was the only one I could fnd that really explained it well. I can see that having an online curriculum would probably increase the instances of feedback received in the case of students who are able to engage with such a curriculum.

I would consider that probably the most important factor enhancing the gamification of learning would be the introduction of points for trying – trial and error is one of the best ways in which we learn. When individuals are learning to problem solve it is probably the most common method of working out how to achieve a goal. Over time there are more complex equations we can call on but when one is a beginner in a particular field, trial and error, along with the motivation to be persistent until reaching the elusive goal, is the major factor contributing to success. Trying to include this in an overcrowded curriculum where everyone is expected to achieve the same standard at the same time is unrealistic. The whole system would have to change in order for students to learn at their own pace and ability level – this is not a new argument when one considers the plight of Gifted and Talented and also Special Needs students who work in classrooms organised by chronological age. Differentiation will be the keystone for changing how the curriculum is viewed, presented and digested.