Are You Using Gaming for Learning?

Reinforcement: Games can be an engaging way to bring the learner back to the content after formal learning is over, which can increase retention and application.

Retaining knowledge from learning events can be a challenge. The Research Institute of America reports that 33 minutes after completion of a course, students retain only 58 percent of the material covered. By the second day, 33 percent is retained. Three weeks after the course, only 15 percent is retained. If the information is reinforced, knowledge gains increase. Common learning retention strategies include job aids, post-course assessments or post-course discussions, yet these strategies may not be successful if the learner doesn’t follow through. Games are designed to be engaging, to challenge the learner and to encourage the individual to try again; they have a built-in motivation advantage to support a retention strategy.

Retention also increases when the content has real-world performance contexts and learners view it as relevant to their jobs. If learners can use the knowledge conveyed, they are more likely to apply it when the situation arises. Therefore, some form of practice, feedback and repetition over time is essential. In traditional learning environments, repetition is not typically associated with engagement. A well-designed game can increase retention without sacrificing experience or engagement, with a structure mirroring real-life performance.

Gaming Improves Learning
Instructional designers often rely on an intuitive sense that gaming supports adult learning principles. The game dynamics of achievement, rewards, points and bonuses support learner motivation. The other game mechanics — progression, urgent optimism and cascading information — evoke the principle of readiness to learn. Games designed to mirror real-life problems or challenges engage the adult principle of orientation to learning. Finally, games designed as skill practice or knowledge reinforcement allow learners to use what they know and to be acknowledged for having that knowledge.