How can you gamify adult learning to make it more engaging?

Gamification is not a universal answer to engagement but it can be useful in many contexts. Often, a simple competition can gamify an otherwise monotonic subject. Adult learners are generally there to learn so motivation may not be an issue. By making the experience enjoyable, adult learners can relax while learning and often absorb concepts at a faster rate and a deeper level.

I'll be contrarian and ask the question, "why bother?" For examples, one could bolt on a lot of aftermarket "performance" parts to a typical Import coupe, but that doesn't mean it will fundamentally change how you get your groceries every week, or, that you're suddenly capable of competing in the World Rally Championships. A well-founded instructional design, built on relevant activity and meaningful practice, can accomplish more than leaderboards, point schemes, and other "gamified" add-ons. Where game mechanics are relevant to addressing a learning or performance gap, use Game-based Design.

Adult learners are different from young students. They have unique characteristics and requirements. They are self-motivated, and always look to immediately apply the knowledge they have gained. If gamifying adult learning can answer the needs of adult learners like practical solutions to problems, collaboration, consideration of prior knowledge and recognition then it is a wonderful tool to create an engaging and learner-centric learning solution. It is crucial to gamify educational experiences by understanding the needs of adult learners first. One can easily do so with the help of leaderboards, narratives, simulations, progression and levels, challenges and quests etc.

Gamification can offer great opportunities to generate engagement when applied strategically to specific aspects of different learning opportunities, especially if the required material is complex and otherwise boring. Introducing a win-or-lose perspective can encourage the feeling of their being skin in the game, which is great for engagement. However, it must be noted that, where teams are already emotionally over-burdened (especially if the team dynamic has turned toxic) introducing elements of competition can simply add to the problem. The best solutions are tailored to the teams they serve, and the smartest applications create the most effective interactions. Gamified or otherwise.

Adults, being self-directed, benefit from the autonomy that games provide, allowing them to explore and learn at their own pace, which respects their time constraints and competing life priorities. The use of game mechanics provides immediate feedback, catering to their need for practicality and the application of new knowledge, which aligns with their desire for mastery.

Gamifying adult learning can significantly enhance engagement and retention. Here are 3 things I find particularly useful: 1️⃣ Competition - challenges or quizzes with a competitive element. Leaderboards or point systems can add a sense of achievement and motivate learners. 2️⃣ Real-world scenarios - ones that mimic real-world situations relevant to the adult learners. This adds practicality and relevance to the learning experience. 3️⃣ Storytelling - Adults often relate better to content that has a narrative, making the learning experience more engaging. The key is to strike a balance between the gamified elements and the educational content to ensure that the learning objectives are still met effectively.

Gamifying Adult Learning pulls the pax interest and enhances the learning commitment. Gone are the days when traditional learning approaches would drive a learning culture. The new era demands a gamified approach for better acceptance and a ripple effect. Few ways in which learning can be gamified 1) Leaderboard/ Scorecard - Gamifying the learning via scorecard drives healthy competition and fosters a learning spirit. 2) Launch Learning Badges - One of the effective ways to gamify learning is to launch the badges on achieving learning milestones. This may lead to a consistent learner's interest in the entire learning journey. 3) Gamifying Concept & Knowledge Transfer via interactive learning - It will improve the learning retention.

An activity or challenge does not engage the user mainly due to the following reason - purpose not clear (the biggest deflater or dampener). So gamification is not tough if you are good at identifiying and communication the purpose. For e.g. covid maks. Initially the purpose was not clear & it was communicated that it would make you safe, whereas the main purpose was to make others safe by restricting the spread. Of course a normal gamification expert (guess I am not normal) would add fun to it by adding awards/ incentives, creating leaderboards, badges etc. Don't you think this clearly shows that humans need to first clearly show purpose as the no 1 gamification tool. I speak at Serious Play Conference. Often this aspect goes amiss.

Gamification is a strong tool to kickstart the analytical mind, the one seat of curiosity leading to creativity then innovation, the new nutrition of business. In the learning phase, it can be used to exploit the varied skills-experience of people playing the game moreso for design thinking and prototype constructions particularly of completed projects. The outcomes can then be compared with the actual roll-outs in projects and obtain a lessons-learnt to improve the quality of design-consulting.

Curiosity is the primary driver in optimal learning. Gamification is the easiest way to bring that element into adult learning. There is a great deal of difference between exploring new knowledge and sitting down to learn what is necessary. Both methods can be successful, but only one provides the best ROI. When gamification incorporates the ability to bypass prior knowledge, to focus on new material, the results can be exceptional.

To gamify, we can rely on its 9 levers which will allow us to offer strong gamification: 1. Loss aversion: Humans are naturally motivated to avoid losses; In gamification, losing points, levels, or rewards can create a powerful engagement driver. 2. Curiosity & Randomness: Gamification exploits our innate curiosity by introducing random elements that make each gaming experience unique and unpredictable. 3. Creativity & Autonomy: By offering users the possibility of personalizing their experience, gamification nourishes creativity while strengthening their autonomy. 4. Immersion: An immersive gamified experience transports the user into a world where engagement becomes natural thanks to a captivating story and coherent visuals.

Gamification is not about designing quizzes with « space invaders like » activities inbetween. The activities should align with your learning objectives. What will your learners actually learn by playing space invaders? Is it actually part of your learning objectives? Chances are, it’s not. You must first think about what you want your learners to be able to do: - negociation? Build a scenario - follow a process? Walk them through the different steps, ask them to put them back in the right order… - recognize different ypes of cells? See how many they can guess in a limited time frame Points, badges, leaderboards, collections, missions, power-ups… It all comes after.

Not just about points or badges—otherwise, it's 'Pointification' not gamification. The key is understanding your audience: What motivates/demotivates them? If they enjoy competition, leaderboards can be useful. If they prefer collaboration,you can use other game elements. The other thing is the optimum level of difficulty. If it is too simple,users may become bored;if it is too challenging,they might give up in the process. Lastly,context matters. Game elements should seamlessly align with learning objectives, be it quizzes, simulations, or narratives. Tailor the approach to the specific context, whether corporate or educational. Evaluation is vital. Metrics tracking participant progress and engagement create a feedback loop for refinement

5. Social Influence: Leaderboards, shareable badges, and group challenges use social influence to motivate users through recognition and friendly competition. 6. Skills and Mastery: Leveling and quest systems in gamification illustrate skill progression, providing tangible satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment. 7. Meaning: When gamified activities are aligned with personal values or goals, they take on deeper meaning, encouraging more meaningful participation. gamification can transform a task into an inspiring mission. 8. Possession: The feeling of owning in-game items, such as territories or virtual items, can increase personal investment and engagement.

The outcome of gamification should be a skill or application of a concept. This will enable quantification and measurement of learning.

Adult learning differs from children learning in the fact that adults come with previous experience. So,more often than not,they have formed certain attitudes towards learning. From that point,gamification is a way of making learning more engaging,without doubt. Role-playing is to my way of thinking the most efficacious learning method. Apart from it,you could use a combination of methods,depending on your learners' interests so as to make your lesson more interesting.

To design gamified learning experiences, first define clear objectives. Know your audience to tailor game mechanics like points and levels to their interests. Embed storytelling for immersion, ensuring relevance to the material. Include instant feedback and rewards for motivation. Facilitate social interactions for collaborative learning. Test, gather feedback, and iterate. Balance the difficulty to match learner skills for an engaging, effective educational journey.

I've found that people love finding out things about themselves. You can design a great learning game with a quiz or decision making system that scores different attributes, and gives users some info about those attributes at the end. It's an interesting challenge designing and validating a set of attributes to be sort of accurate, although this is not strictly essential. One example game might ask users to decide how they would react to a given situation. Each option might align with a personality characteristic - these are easy to find with some basic research. At the end, the user finds out their most chosen personality type and gets some info about how this might affect their approach to a situation relevant to the learning objective.

Determine why and how to gamify your eLearning course. Find out what motivates your learners. Make sure the game mechanics you use are aligned with your learning objectives. Keep your gamified learning experience simple and easy to understand.

Again there is no need to use every game elements we know every time. You might lose your learners if there are too many elements to keep track of. Every element should serve your objectives. For example, to introduce a new process, you may encourage your learners to collect post-its with words that are relevant to the new process. You would get a definition of each word on it and it would help build a common vocabulary for everyone inside the company. Or you might want to reward specific actions that are not mandatory for the module but that proves that your learners embrace the same values as your company.

Games have always provided a safe environment for learners to make mistakes and learn from them. In my opinion, the best gamified learning experiences are role-playing or scenario-based, where learners can act out and make decisions that can lead to either positive or negative outcomes. That feeling of success when they get the scenario right is exactly what gamification is all about. By incorporating game elements into the learning process, learners can feel more engaged and invested in the process, which can lead to better outcomes.

In gamified learning, utilize points for progress tracking, badges for achievements, and leaderboards for friendly competition. Challenges and levels increase engagement, while quests and avatars personalize the experience. Instant feedback mechanisms, like progress bars, encourage momentum, and unlockable content rewards achievements. Team play fosters collaboration, and storylines add context and depth.

The design and elements used must always serve the outcome that's desired. Do you want your learners to have fantastic conversations? Then you might want to construct an interactive conversation, and have the challenge be selecting the "right" answers to arrive at a solution. Need people to know how to use a system? Design a facsimile and have the learners complete challenging tasks with minimal instruction. The core element of gamification is putting a challenge in the way of the learner and saying "there it is, here's what you need to do, now solve it." They need to rely on their own guts and guile and have faith enough in themselves that they can overcome that challenge. If they succeed then they'll never forget the lesson.

Dans mes formations e-learning, je m'amuse à intégrer une variété d'éléments de gamification pour stimuler la curiosité et faciliter l'apprentissage. Les exemples concrets injectent du concret dans l'abstrait, les quizz interactifs deviennent des défis excitants, et pour ajouter une touche de fun, les gifs entrent en scène pour donner vie aux concepts. Cette approche crée une expérience d'apprentissage dynamique et divertissante et rend les sujets les plus sérieux (comme la réglementation) beaucoup plus attrayants.

Keep it simple but with critical thinking. It may sound contradictory but unless you allow the user to think critically with simple game elements it may not intrigue them to stay put. A regular progress chart with their strenghts and weaknesses will also help them improve.

Ideally, challenge and fun are one and the same. We are wired to enjoy solving challenges that are easy enough to attain, but hard enough to require focus. If a gamified training program primarily provides well-balanced challenges to the learner, it creates relevant fun and does not require any extra mechanics purely for the sake of added engagement. Relevant challenges are not only effective at reaching learning objectives, but can be extremely engaging.

Challenge and fun need to be used carefully when building confidence and helping learners acquire knowledge or skills. Too much challenge and the learners get demotivated and start struggling to continue. Too much fun and they lose focus on the objectives of the learning experience.

Don’t forget that all your learners might not have the same level of mastery. Allow some of them to skip some part of your module if they’ve proven that they know about it but make it mandatory for others who still struggle. Add hints or boosters to help people in need if they get stuck.

To balance challenge and fun in gamified learning, tailor difficulty to match the learners' skill levels. Start with easier tasks to build confidence, then gradually increase complexity. Use varied game mechanics to cater to different learning styles and preferences. Incorporate elements of surprise and novelty to maintain interest. Ensure challenges are relevant and achievable, providing a sense of accomplishment without causing frustration. Regular feedback and rewards help maintain engagement and motivation. Keep the narrative and visuals engaging to enhance the overall fun aspect.

Although occasional references can be amusing, having to plow through meme-filled training can be a serious chore. Keep in mind that the memes may or may not resonate with any particular individual, depending on age and stage.

Challenge and fun are to be focused in any gamified learning experience. A little higher difficulty level with no fun will ruin the game and the learning experience will go for a toss. Immersive and engaging learning is what everyone looks at and it plays a very big role in the pshychology of an individual. Also to be noted that every individual is different and hence an adaptive learning to customize the difficulty levels is also to be focused and this is possible in the AI era.

I believe we will see *collaborative learning* becoming increasingly important in e-learning 👥 After all, this is how we learn best -- from and with each other 🤝 I mean, take this *collaborative article* for example: I presume you are looking to consume and/or contribute to it. Right? 360Learning has been centering this aspect as part of their learning platform and has been hugely successful 🚀 Their platform makes it easy to author lessons and rewards them for doing so -- as well those who contribute comments on lessons. @LMSproviders: Please add more features like this, cultivating active engagement around learning 🙏 Note: I do not work for 360Learning, nor are they paying me to write here. I simply appreciate their approach :)

To foster social and collaborative learning, create group challenges that require teamwork and collective problem-solving. Implement a platform for learners to share insights, ask questions, and discuss topics. Encourage peer feedback and recognition through systems where learners can praise or reward each other's contributions. Use leaderboards for team rankings, promoting a healthy competitive spirit. Incorporate role-playing elements where learners assume different roles within a team, enhancing understanding of diverse perspectives. Offer collaborative tools for joint projects, and create scenarios where cooperation is essential to success. This approach nurtures a community of learners who support and learn from each other.

To avoid common pitfalls of gamification, ensure the game elements align with learning objectives rather than distracting from them. Avoid overcomplicating the system; keep it simple and intuitive. Be mindful not to overemphasize competition, which can demotivate some learners. Ensure rewards are meaningful and related to learning goals. Regularly update and refresh game content to maintain interest. Be inclusive in game design, considering different learning styles and abilities. Avoid making the game too easy or too hard, as both extremes can lead to disengagement. Monitor and adapt the gamified system based on learner feedback and performance data to ensure its effectiveness.

Positive reinforcement! 👍👍 It’s a tried and tested method for all types of animals, including dogs and humans 🦮🚶 BEAT81, a fitness class provider in Germany, has been very successsful with their data-driven circuit training, including a leaderboard at the end of the class📊 Rather than showing the whole leaderboard, you only see the TOP half (“eyes on the prize”) 🏆 the gamified approach works: people keep coming back. The same goes for learning 🤓 Think about yourself: Would you prefer seeing more confetti for correct response or completed lesson 🎉 or error messages if something is wrong? ❌ A deficit mindset kills all motivation: instead, ensure your learners can continue riding that wave of success 🏄♂️🤙

Gamification is an overused term, but if we consider the science behind it, it genuinely aids learning by shaping user behavior. This is beneficial not only for adults but also for children in their learning experiences. Moreover, many prominent organizations employ these techniques for their business strategies. Grasping the deeper significance and integrating it into the user journey is always beneficial. My only advice is to keep it relevant to the audience and avoid unnecessary complexity.