Thursday, May 15, 2014

Core Curriculum Needs a Principal

Courtesy sxc.hu
In our last post we looked at Gamification in a business setting, but where we see an even bigger opportunity for leveraging games is in the education space. We're not talking here about the general concept of simply increasing engagement through rewards, but rather about aiming to create games that help drive learning and bring our kids levels up to and beyond those of the core curriculum.

This is not to say there's any shortage of educational games out there. There are thousands… and new ones are added every day – but to what end? What seems to be missing is a standard of knowledge to aim the learning at. The core curriculum is not ideal, but it is a standard and perhaps it's the one that could help our kids to compete effectively with their contemporaries in adult life – especially the ones whose parents take extreme measures to ensure their kids' education is up to par, or those who are lucky enough to grow up in Estonia.

While the recommended maximum is 1-2 hours per day, most kids spend 7 hours, and often more, playing games of one sort or another. For most of that time their natural curiosity isn't satisfied, they don't learn any useful skills and they don't do anything to make the world a better place (yes, even kids are capable of that in the right environment). Most of that valuable time is wasted. Without recognized standards for educational games, we as parents have no way of judging the quality of the learning experience and its application in a wider context.

We strongly believe that the education system will undergo some revolutionary changes over the coming decade. Classroom learning is likely to end up playing a very different and possibly less significant role. In contrast, gamified e-learning will gradually become more impactful, particularly in the non-college educational space.

As such, there needs to be a central authority, represented by one or more entities, responsible for making sure that learning apps meet particular criteria. Apart from reassuring parents that certain apps are suitable their children's learning needs, it will also encourage developers to bring their products up to the recognized level. Moreover, it will encourage greater competitiveness between developers, and drive diversification and innovation in the e-learning sector. And then it will really become a game!! Encouraging strides are being made in that direction, but as far as brilliant ideas go, this one seems to be up for grabs at the moment.

Would you like to share your insights on the developments in this space or recommend any great resources?


Rachel, Dan & Dmitry

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Playing the Game

Courtesy sxc.hu
Gamification is still firmly on the agendas for many organizations – whether for boosting customer engagement, improving the efficiency of customer support teams, making training more fun, or driving some serious innovation. What’s changed, however, is that nowadays companies are taking a far more measured approach to its implementation. They understand that by closely aligning business objectives with the player’s individual needs, play styles and incentives they will unlock Gamification’s real potential for driving results.

At the peak of the hype, many organizations jumped on the badges bandwagon. "Complete this training and win an awesome badge to pin on your desktop!" Unsurprisingly, not everyone was overawed by such exciting schemes. Better to provide a range of incentive options and allow employee or client to pick what works for them. It could be social recognition by likes, or access to more interesting projects or groups of employees who’ve had similar training.

Employee health and fitness inside companies is one of the most successful examples of Gamification at play. A number of firms offer employees health bands to encourage them to stay fit. The business objective is to lower medical insurance costs and reduce sickness related absence by improving the overall health of the employee base. Employee benefits ranged from reduced insurance premiums and better health, to recognition, fun and the opportunity of competing with other employees.

Some of the most tantalizing moments in a life of a game are the final ones. Unfortunately, continuity is sometimes an afterthought. For example, how and when to end a Gamification-assisted activity should be decided as part of a conscious planning process that is completed, if possible, before the initiative starts. If a company chooses to expand the scope, it makes sense to evaluate whether additional investment will deliver the expected results. By the same token, stopping a game that has just started to generate team- or client interest could make it more difficult re-engage participants next time around.

Gamification can bring excitement to even the most boring of work activities. It can stir up the competitive spirit and drive innovation inside and outside the company. According to Gartner, by 2015 as many as 50% of companies will have started using Gamification as the innovation driver, and by 2020, most of them will have adopted Gamification in marking and sales as well. However, to achieve the best results it is important to plan ahead and stay focused on the goals. Scores of resources are available if you’re thinking of playing the Gamification card.

Rachel, Dan, & Dmitry