Gamification and games-based learning (GBL) are hot topicsamong learning and development practitioners. The ability to motivate andengage learners through use of game mechanics, such as points, leaderboards,and awards, seems to have enormous promise for improving the results oftraining and education. Not only that, but the total market for learning gamesis now $3.9 billion, and analysts at market research firm Ambient Insight expectthat to grow to 8.9 billion by 2017.
At Capterra, our recent LMS research report, based on asurvey of LMS users, found that gamification was the fourth-most desiredfeature by respondents, after live or video conferencing, integrated talentmanagement, and mobile technology. It was more desired as a feature than sociallearning, one of the other hot topics for 2015. However, in the same survey,gamification was also one of the three relatively recent features that LMSusers were most confused about, along with the Experience API (xAPI, formerly TinCan), compliance, and extended enterprise portals.
I feel that the questions people ask about gamificationreflects this uncertainty. They ask, “Is it gamification, or game-basedlearning? Is it more than just badges and points?” It is also significant, inmy opinion, that survey results showed that buyers who are on their second LMSare more likely to use gamification features than those buying their first LMS.
So, given the results of that first study, we, along withour partner TalentLMS, decided to take a closer look into the use ofgamification among LMS users. We conducted a second survey of over 400 generalLMS users. Of the respondents, 65 percent were LMS admins, and 35 percent wereinstructional designers. We wanted to know whether they felt gamification wasworth it, and this turned out to be a good group to answer that question: 85percent already used gamification elements in their offerings, and 90 percentactually already used learning games of some kind. Electronic learning gamesaccounted for 63 percent of the games, while 37 percent of the games wereanalog in nature—they were board games or they used cards, for example.
We have now published the results of this new research as LMS Gamification Research: New Study in Partnership with TalentLMS. Thisarticle summarizes the key findings. You should also take the time to read thethree related articles published in 2014 in LearningSolutions Magazine; these are listed in the right-hand margin at the end ofthis article. While this article addresses the learning outcomes ofgamification associated with LMSs that have gamification features, the threerelated articles will give you an insight into both how to use gamificationeffectively and when to use it.
How did the survey distinguish between games and gamification?
This distinction is not always clear to practitioners. We identifieda subtle, but important, difference between gamification and learning games.While gamification applies game-like elements to traditional learning methods,learning games replace those methods with games designed to teach specificinformation or skills. We wanted to understand both sides of this coin, and howthat impacted learning outcomes.
Are learning games effective?
Respondents who said they use learning games reportedincreased learner satisfaction (85 percent), higher test scores (81 percent),higher course completion rates (81 percent), and increased learner retention ofcourse material (73 percent).
Analog games and digital games, according to respondents,have almost equally positive impact. Off-the-shelf games were as effective ascustom-built games. The only downside users of learning games reported was thecost; 38 percent of the respondents said that games increased the price oftraining. Depending on your objectives, this may be a small price to pay forthe improved results. My conclusion overall is that simply purchasing anexisting game makes more sense than expending time and energy on designing andbuilding your own.
Is gamification effective?
Gamification features are widely offered and widely used bythe respondents to our survey, although they did want more from their LMSs. While56 percent of gamified LMSs include gamification features in the system, 25percent only offer such features as optional add-on modules (costing extra) andanother 19 percent require integration of a dedicated third-party gamificationsystem. These differences do affect results, as you will see.
Respondents reported that gamification had a massivepositive impact on almost every metric. Eighty-four percent said it increasedstudent satisfaction, 83 percent said that learners retained course contentbetter, 80 percent said their course completion rate improved, and 71 percentnoted better student scores on tests and assignments.
The only area where respondents were even slightlyambivalent had to do with cost. Forty-two percent said gamification increasedthe cost of training or education, although another 42 percent said it had noimpact either way on costs.
With respect to the impact of the way gamification featuresare offered, we found that although respondents reported mostly positivelearner outcomes across all three delivery methods, one method clearlyperformed better than the other two. When gamification was part-and-parcel ofthe LMS, respondents reported higher overall positive impacts on almost everymetric, and lower overall cost increases.
Conclusion
Based on the results of our survey, not only is the positiveacceptance of gamification and games-based learning (hype, even) justified, theresults that LMS users report indicate even greater success than generallyreported. While educators and trainers often use gamified elements or learninggames, their success and desire for additional gamification functionality showsthat further investment in this space will be a defining element of futureeLearning tools.
Despite the perceived increase in cost, LMSusers have plenty of enthusiasm for gamification features in their software.LMS vendors who can bring down the price (or total cost as experienced by theuser) of gamification will win over customers and have a chance to capture manyof the 17 percent of LMS users whose LMSs do not yet use gamified learningmanagement systems.
