Leveling Up Your LMS-Based Course Through Gamification!
Session Type
Interactive Presentation
Session Location
University Hall, ADP Center 1145
Start Date
30-5-2019 11:00 AM
End Date
30-5-2019 11:45 AM
Key Terms
Badges and Micro credentialing; Course Design; Gamification; Pedagogy; Game-based learning; Game-based practices; Instructional Design; Gamified Learning
Brief Abstract
This conference presentation will be based upon my personal experience gamifying a hybrid course offered during the Spring 2019 semester. I will share how I went through the gamification process for my Canvas LMS course shell and the resources I used along the way, including helpful tips and tricks from the online Canvas Community, blog posts from educational technology experts, journal articles, and gamification guide books, in combination with my personal research background in quest-based learning, gamification, and game-based learning techniques.
NOTE: While I am currently utilizing the Canvas LMS platform for my teaching, the techniques I am introducing in this interactive presentation can be adapted for other LMSes as well!
Proposal
Canvas has recently been selected as the official LMS of Rutgers University. Given this recent development, in concert with my personal experience assisting instructors in both a training and instructional design capacity, I have created this presentation in the spirit of moving beyond the basic Canvas course shell in favor of a more interactive, game-based learning experience for students.
According to The Entertainment Software Association (ESA), 64% of US households own a gaming device; there are an average of 2 gamers in every household; the average age of female gamers is 36, while the average age for males is 32. 45% of gamers are women. Nevertheless, despite these statistics, there are no guarantees that students who are gamers will be interested in gamified course content. Moreover, it is a mistake to think that one can simply re-label traditional grading mechanisms and assignments with more gamer-friendly terms and expect the students’ motivation and engagement levels to increase.
Gamification of any course needs to be done deliberately, involving a significant amount of preparation on behalf of the instructor prior to the start of the course. The more front-loading that is done to explain the course structure and progression, the less likely it is that students will be confused about the change from a more traditional Canvas course format.
This conference presentation will be based upon my personal experience gamifying a hybrid course offered during the Spring 2019 semester. I will share how I went through the gamification process for my Canvas LMS course shell and the resources I used along the way, including helpful tips and tricks from the online Canvas Community, blog posts from educational technology experts, journal articles, and gamification guide books, in combination with my personal research background in quest-based learning, gamification, and game-based learning techniques. It is important to note here that while I am currently utilizing the Canvas LMS platform for my teaching, the techniques I am introducing in this interactive presentation can be adapted for other LMSes as well!
A tentative outline of my presentation is as follows:
- Inspiration for gamifying my course
- Getting started & Doing my research
- Testing the waters, Getting started in my Canvas shell
a. Technical set up of in-course buttons; quest access; etc. - Creating quests and side quests
- Determining XP schema (a.k.a. grades/points)
- Student reactions
- Making changes for future iterations of the course
a. GoFundMe; Amazon Wish List; Grant opportunities
i. Attempting to gain additional materials to analyze in relation to the
content I'm covering in this course (and future courses) - Questions/Discussion
Presenter Website
http://ericaeducator.com AND http://teachersatplay.com (The latter is somewhat under construction as the template format has changed ;)
Leveling Up Your LMS-Based Course Through Gamification!
University Hall, ADP Center 1145
Canvas has recently been selected as the official LMS of Rutgers University. Given this recent development, in concert with my personal experience assisting instructors in both a training and instructional design capacity, I have created this presentation in the spirit of moving beyond the basic Canvas course shell in favor of a more interactive, game-based learning experience for students.
According to The Entertainment Software Association (ESA), 64% of US households own a gaming device; there are an average of 2 gamers in every household; the average age of female gamers is 36, while the average age for males is 32. 45% of gamers are women. Nevertheless, despite these statistics, there are no guarantees that students who are gamers will be interested in gamified course content. Moreover, it is a mistake to think that one can simply re-label traditional grading mechanisms and assignments with more gamer-friendly terms and expect the students’ motivation and engagement levels to increase.
Gamification of any course needs to be done deliberately, involving a significant amount of preparation on behalf of the instructor prior to the start of the course. The more front-loading that is done to explain the course structure and progression, the less likely it is that students will be confused about the change from a more traditional Canvas course format.
This conference presentation will be based upon my personal experience gamifying a hybrid course offered during the Spring 2019 semester. I will share how I went through the gamification process for my Canvas LMS course shell and the resources I used along the way, including helpful tips and tricks from the online Canvas Community, blog posts from educational technology experts, journal articles, and gamification guide books, in combination with my personal research background in quest-based learning, gamification, and game-based learning techniques. It is important to note here that while I am currently utilizing the Canvas LMS platform for my teaching, the techniques I am introducing in this interactive presentation can be adapted for other LMSes as well!
A tentative outline of my presentation is as follows:
- Inspiration for gamifying my course
- Getting started & Doing my research
- Testing the waters, Getting started in my Canvas shell
a. Technical set up of in-course buttons; quest access; etc. - Creating quests and side quests
- Determining XP schema (a.k.a. grades/points)
- Student reactions
- Making changes for future iterations of the course
a. GoFundMe; Amazon Wish List; Grant opportunities
i. Attempting to gain additional materials to analyze in relation to the
content I'm covering in this course (and future courses) - Questions/Discussion
https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/eldc/2019/Thursday/6
