A Method for the Design of Gamified Trainings

The use of game elements in non-game contexts (gamification) -has previously been widely explored in contexts such as healthcare and marketing but less extensively in education and training. In this paper we explore the use of gamification in education and training. Traditional training methods often fail to engage or motivate students, especially Digital Natives raised from a young age with apps and games. This paper explores how classor computer-based trainings can be (re)designed using gamification to increase student engagement and motivation. The paper first develops a taxonomy of game elements, based on a literature review. It then provides an Educational Game Element Database (EGEDB) that includes the taxonomy and that represents the effect of each game element on learning. Following a Design Science Research approach, the paper proposes a method for the design of ‘’gamified’’ training. The method extends the instructional design model ADDIE (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate) and uses the EGEDB to select game elements. We evaluate the method using a case study of gamified training design for a customer service contact team at Dutch Railways. The resulting gamified training design is evaluated by trainers from the same company.