Gamification Begins... and new fish...

The past few weeks have been spent working almost every spare moment to get my Social Studies gamification work up and running. You can see the (current) final product here at dodeslis.wix.com/gdachievements.

I've been really inspired over the break to come up with a really fun, engaging year for Social Studies - that said, I had to be realistic about what could be achieved in such a short time before the year began. So, the goal has been to create a ranking/achievement system which includes these key tools of gamification:

* Mastery - each achievement reflects mastery of a specific skill

* Progression - a ranking system with levels (from 0 - Homeless and Destitute to 10 - Otto Von Bismarck... 11 - Godlike does exist for those who achieve level 10 easily and early).

With these elements in mind the ranking system I think is a great way to start. The issue has been how to set it up - the points system (based on XP), different achievements, the value of different achievements, how to enter scores and results.

I started with the ranks - this was quite simple and each rank is related to some topic we discuss during the year. The points system however has been harder to sort out for the ranks - at the moment we're not exactly sure how many achievement we'll have and how many points will be available throughout the year. We've had to explain to our students that this year is going to be somewhat flexible. They might be level 8 by the middle of the year (which, considering we want them to be level 10 by last trimester is a little bit of a problem) and we may explain that the points system had to be modified to be more reflective of current standings. These issues will require a good year to iron out. Everything has been created using Google Sheets which makes sharing and publishing (somewhat) easier... the formulas, particularly the top 20 and linking ranks to students has been challenging but kind of nerdy fun!

The achievements have started out well. The great thing about achievements is that they reflect everything required in the subject from technical skills such as creating an ePortfolio for your work, to content knowledge and reading/writing skills. The hard part now is keeping track of all the points for achieving them - with over 70 students it's going to take a while and constant vigilence. The other issue we have is the lack of "badges". What makes achievements that extra bit fun is to have some unlockable image, with accompanying feedback describing what has been achieved. This is common in almost all games these days and gives that extra "need" to complete the task just to have the unlocked goodies. I'm working with other teachers at school on this - it does look possible, however with our Moodle system it looks quite cumbersome. Again, this year might have to be one where I slug it out, do the dirty work (meaning little or no free time of course - fish tank? What fish tank?) to reap the benefits in years to come.

The last remaining piece of the puzzle is to create what Gabe Zichermann calls the 3 "F"s - Fun, Feedback and Friends meaning the activities are engaging, give good feedback on mastery or other elements of the task, and I think most importantly - are Social. I think the communication between students in vital to the success of each task and we're working really hard to provide simulations for our year that include technologies as simple as SMS to Voicemessages / Video messages. This I think will also bring up the fun element. Even as I type i'm picturing students on skype in class (with headphones) communicating from one side of the room to the other...

I'll keep things posted on updates. As to the fish tank, alas I lost one of the Neon Dwarf Gouramis as well as an Electric Blue Ram, but picked up 2 new juvenile rainbows, a couple of nice Sterba's Cory Catfish and 2 beautifal Celestial Pearl Danios. The tank has finally come alive - it's amazing to watch the activity. I need to do something about my floating plants as they seem to be hogging a lot of light, but it's Saturday which means maintenance day... *sigh* Free time? What Free Time?