Gamification for Teaching and Learning Computer Security in Higher Education

In many cases students in higher education are driven by assessments and achievements rather than the " learn­ ing journey " that can be achieved through full engage­ ment with provided material. Novel approaches are needed to improve engagement in and out of class time, and to achieve a greater depth of learning. Gamification, " the use of game design elements in non­game con­ texts " , has been applied to higher education to improve engagement, and research also suggests that serious games can be used for games­based learning, providing simulated learning environments and increasing motiva­ tion. This paper presents the design and evaluation of a gami­ fied computer security module, with a unique approach to assessed learning activities. Learning activities (many developed as open educational resources (OER)) and an assessment structure were developed. A new free and open source software (FOSS) virtual learning environ­ ment (VLE) was implemented, which enables the use of three types of experience points (XP), and a semi­auto­ mated marking scheme for timely, clear, transparent, and feedback­oriented marking. The course and VLE were updated and evaluated over two years. Qualitative and descriptive results were posi­ tive and encouraging. However, ultimately the increased satisfaction was not found to have statistical signifi­ cance on quantitative measurements of motivation, and the teaching workload of the gamified module was note­ worthy.