Maybe you've heard of the term "gamification," and perhaps you're wondering what it is and how it can be applied to eLearning. In short, gamification is the use of gameplay mechanics for non-game applications. Almost as important, as a definition of what it is, is a definition of what it's not. Gamification is not the inclusion of stand-alone games in eLearning (or, whatever gamification is being applied to). It also has very little to do with art-styles, themes, or the application of narrative. Rather, game mechanics are the construct of rules that encourage users to explore and learn the properties of their possibility space through the use of feedback mechanisms. With gamification, these "possibility spaces" have been expanded beyond just games into other areas like marketing, education, the workplace, social media, philanthropy, and the Web, just to name a few. As a game designer now making eLearning software, I've found that much of what is used to build engagement in games can also be applied to other interactive material such as eLearning.

What is Engagement?

First though, let's talk about engagement in a general sense. For our purposes, I am defining engagement as simply "occupying the attention or efforts of a person." This seems pretty straightforward, but I think a more pertinent question is, when does engagement occur? I first heard this specific question addressed in Tom Chatfield's TED talk on "7 Ways Games Reward the Brain," where he states that engagement occurs when the brain is rewarded, and that for something to be perceived as rewarding, it must evoke positive emotions in a person. Essentially, there are two components to the perception of something being rewarding: wanting and liking. Without both wanting and liking, people won't find something rewarding. For instance, if somebody wants a job, but doesn't like it, they won't find it rewarding. Conversely, when somebody gets to a point where they are willing to admit that their addictive behaviors are problematic, they are at a point where they like the effect of the addictive substance or behavior, but they no longer want it. An addict will always like whatever they are addicted to, but when they can acknowledge it as an addiction, they will often struggle with wanting it, and therefore, no longer find the addictive substance or behavior to be rewarding. Dr. Kent Berridge, a University of Michigan neuroscientist, has studied this concept of wanting and liking being necessary components of a rewarding perception. In fact, he has found that wanting and liking occur in two separate parts of the brain, and he is looking for ways to utilize this in the treatment of addictions. So, for the purposes of developing engaging eLearning, we need to look at how we are rewarding our learner's brains by giving them compelling reasons to want the material, and to work on developing systems that they will like.

If we are going to focus on developing software that our users want and like, it's essential that we know and understand our audience, not just the subject matter. I would suggest that you research the brands, hobbies, and media (television, films, games, websites, etc.) that your target audience enjoys. This should give you a better idea of the aesthetics and interactions that your learners like and want. In addition, if you are designing material that is branded, make sure that you don't stray from the brand's identity and that you also become familiar with the brand's target audience if it's different than the demographic of the end user. These brands have spent a lot of time and money tailoring an image, and you should respect it.

Let's get to some specific game mechanics that can help to make your eLearning more engaging.

Setting Goals and Objectives

This topic covers the overall structure of an interactive product, rather than individual achievements that learners can earn (rewards are discussed later in this article). Games are generally structured so that players have various "layers" of goals. That is, they have the long-term goal of completing the game, the medium-term goal of completing the levels in the game, and the short-term goal of completing the missions in the levels. (Sometimes these missions are even broken up further into additional tasks.) Generally, the requirements of each goal "layer" in a game get increasingly harder as you move from short-term to long-term goals. That is, the final challenge in a game (sometimes called the "boss battles") will always be harder than the short-term missions. This allows players in games to learn and practice skills, prior to having to demonstrate mastery of those skills in the most challenging parts of the game.

Similarly, when designing eLearning material to minimize cognitive fatigue, instructional designers should break up their products into short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. For instance, before completing a course learners must complete several modules. To complete a module, several topics must be completed. In order to complete a topic, several objectives must be finished. And finally, each objective requires several goals to be completed. Structuring your eLearning this way, allows users to learn new skills incrementally, and then practice those skills before demonstrating mastery of those skills in assessment exercises. This increases the likelihood that learners will remain in the "flow" state Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes in his book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.

By Rick Raymer from eLearning Magazine, an ACM publication