Gamification Pedagogy & Children's Reading

Article Source: Li, X., & Chu, S. K. W. (2021). Exploring the effects of gamification pedagogy on children’s reading: A mixed‐method study on academic performance, reading‐related mentality and behaviors, and sustainability. British Journal of Educational Technology, 52(1), 160–178. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13057

I chose this article by Li & Chu (2021) based on the reading and writing flood I'm working on for project # 6. My chapter is on the gamification of reading. I approached it with the belief that I would map out a way for young readers to approach reading and writing in the same manner that they do videogames. As both an avid reader and gamer, this was a topic that was of great interest to me. Was there a way to turn the world of gaming into a pattern that could be used for young readers? 

Li & Chu (2021) stated "Results suggests that deep engagement in the gamified e-learning platform helped improve students’ reading interest, motivation, habits and abilities, especially in second language reading. Students read more frequently and widely" (p. 174). They pulled from three studies that measured the affects of applying a gaming system to the reading and writing assignments for young students. Their methodology outlined three studies that I will highlight below. 

In the first study reading, "was implemented in a real learning context where students’ use of RB was not controlled by the research team but occurred naturally based on their own will" (Li & Chu, 2021, p. 166). Students were given the rules of how points would be awarded for reading and writing, but they weren't pigeonholed to a certain route. This study found that when given the freedom, young readers gravitated towards the carrot of reading, but the added freedom of choosing how to do it themselves allowed them the breathing room to not feel forced. The group results were positive for this reading group. 

In the second study, "Participants in Study 2 attended semi-structured interviews to report their experience and perceptions of participating in RB" (Li & Chu, 2021, p. 166). They were interviewed following their assignments and it was a more structured experience than study 2. There were positive results for this study too, but it didn't have the positive feedback that the first study had. 

In the final study, readers were asked to fill out a questionnaire during three different sessions while completing the assignment. This study had the least favorable results of the three studies (Li & Chu, 2021). 

What I took away from this study is that young readers benefitted from a gamified reading environment, but once structures of measuring were implemented than the results were less favorable. If I were to set up a system similar to the three studies, I would set it up exactly like a videogame complete with side quests. Anyone familiar with videogames would understand that side quests can sometimes be more entertaining than the final game. With these avenues worked into the reading and writing assignment, I would hope to capture the attention of the young readers that fall to the wayside when theyre unable to complete the main reading. If you present a student with a book like "Where the Red Fern Grows", they're handed an assignment that is similar to what has been asked about that book for decades. I would change it up by making side quests within the reading. If a young reader was drawn more towards the dogs and cared nothing for the main protagonist, that wouldn't be an issue. If they concentrated on the descriptions of the environment and didn't care much for the dialogue, that would be passing as well. I believe that the concentration of having reading summarized into what graduate students take away from the text is what alienates a lot of young readers. You don't have to be Hemingway to enjoy reading and writing, sometimes you're memes and short stories and that shouldn't discourage a young reader from being a part of the community. 

The research that is going into the gamification of reading and writing and that you will find in Dr. L's work is growing and with the progress being made with AI, the sky will be the limit in the ways that lessons can be manipulated to make it more accommodating for everyone.