One of the many concepts that define education is gamification. It is a fact that over the past few years, more and more education professionals, on various levels, are trying to add the gamification factor that will help them improve and enhance their processes.
The concept of gamification of course might be a bit different than what the general idea is. When talking about gamification in the workplace we are not suggesting regular games. On the contrary, we are talking about what is known as Serious Games.
What are serious games?
Serious games are a sub-genre designed with a primary purpose that is other than just entertainment. In particular, serious games are primarily aiming at educating, exploring, and managing to enhance the skills and competencies of the learners.
Since it is a game the entertainment element still exists. The most well built serious games can hide the “serious” partly by offering hours of fun. Especially for young learners. According to studies conducted learners of every age were particularly responsive in serious games.
In the world of business, the skill level of employees was observed as being improved after applying some Serious Gaming techniques in the work-based learning processes of the business. The response has indeed been great.
How do these games work exactly?
To understand a serious game, one must first identify the way people are intrigued by education and knowledge. With some exceptions, of course, people are most likely to receive knowledge, no matter how complicated, by having fun.
A well-known example is the video game Assassin’s Creed. The game uses real-life historical facts that are not being affected by the course of the player in the game. At the same time, the game environment has been designed to truly portrait the time and place where the heroes are.
A lot of young adults have reported learning historical facts or understanding them better because they played the game and got to somewhat experience them. The same facts that were in their history book but at the time not so fun to study!
Serious games use the same method. The tasks one has to perform in the game are linked to the evolution of skills, the imparting of knowledge, and many more. It is given to the learners through a series of fun and exciting games that are very entertaining. As a result, learners are accepting the knowledge without feeling like they are being pressed into doing something they, in general, might not like.
Conclusion
From schools to universities to the business environments and the biggest industries, serious games are making their way in as a solid educational technique that appears to be changing the way learners accept knowledge now.
As an education professional, you will want to apply these methods to your techniques as well. Take some time to learn everything you can about serious games and how they can help you take your practice to the next level!
