I would design a gamification system based on encouraging children to read more fiction. It would be based on the type of reading competitions I used to do at school, although I would go further than just offering rewards based on who read the most books as that could get dull very easily and gamification must be interesting for people to continue to participate.
I would maintain interest through the use of badges. For example awarding badges for reaching a certain number of books read on a given topic; a student could win the "Space Cadet" badge for reading a number of science fiction stories or a "Historian" badge for reading history books. This would maintain interest as instead of competing for a number of books read in a given week there is a tangible and lasting reward. By maintaining a collection, a student can feel more satisfaction from what they have achieved. This also promotes self satisfaction for a child as they are working towards a goal that does not revolve around competing with other children that may just be faster readers than them. I personally think that working towards personal goals promotes self esteem more than competition.
Overall I think by steering the game away from mere competition to something individual you are allowing a student to feel satisfaction by what they have achieved at their own pace. There will obviously be children that will compete on number of badges, but if that is not the point of the game, then instances of this should be minimised.
Hi Nathan,
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of the badges. I like how you are aiming to encourage the kids to focus on personal satisfaction as opposed to competing, but I know that if I was given the challenge, I'd aim to collect all the badges!
Thanks for the interesting read,
Susan
I agree that intrinsic rather than extrinsic reward strategies are needed for sustainability. short bursts of winning books or lollies are fun but eventually, the grizzling starts about the arbiters and then the problems begin. I like the idea of focussing on local history and local culture. It is a theme that crosses the boundaries of age.
ReplyDeleteSo the badges kind of work like Xbox achievements? Cool idea. You're right about tangible rewards getting old; I've seen it happen in schools. The kids decide that the cheap plastic car is not worth doing a bunch of work.
ReplyDeleteHave you considered offering responsibilities or jobs as prizes? Like Assistant Librarian or Book Sorter for a day. You'd be surprised how many kids love having greater responsibilities than their peers. I think it gives them a sense of superiority. Provided the job doesn't get boring or repetitive :p