Bug-fixing Game-like Syllabi: Evaluating Common Issues and Iterating New Pedagogical Mechanics

This article examines attempts at game-based courses over the course of several semesters from the spring of 2014 to the spring of 2015 to discover how the fissure between gameful course plans and/or syllabi and the day to day operations of the classroom might be overcome. It examines the creation of teaching goals for gameful courses and how pedagogical methods must be constructed to meet curricular goals while creating a playful classroom atmosphere. Previous investigations argued that syllabi patterned after role playing game reward systems failed to capture student attention due to several factors; confusion about how to use the syllabus, the lack of game mechanics in the classroom experience, and the lack of intrinsic student motivation for exploring topics. This article proposes other, more directly interactive, gameplay structures to add to courses that create gameful learning environments for implementation at a variety of