Is learning more fun when presented as a game? Anastasia Salter Assistant Professor at the University of Baltimore in the school of Information Arts and Technologies added extensive use of a gamified Web site to her social media and games course. She reports about her experiences here.
I looked at some of the examples she provides and found them interesting. However, much of that material seems to be simply a re-labeling of standard educational activities. For example her mid-term project is called a "Midterm Raid" to make it sound like an adventure game.
I'm not sure that students won't quickly get wise to such techniques, and I guess I have to ask, What's wrong with learning for its own sake? Why are students not excited about finding facts and analyzing new ideas?
If you are interested in the trend toward gamification, check out Ian Bogost's blog on the topic.
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