Use of Gamification in Fundamentals of Biology Course
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15359/ree.23-2.10Keywords:
Gamification, game, collaboration, significant learningAbstract
Currently, at the Instituto Parauniversitario Plerus, there are limitations on the part of students such as studying at the last minute, not using reference tools such as textbooks or articles, and studying for a grade and not for the knowledge itself. Therefore, the objective of this research was to reinforce the course contents, the continuous study, and the self-evaluation of the acquired knowledge through the development of gammification tasks to favor the learning of the students of this course. For the development of the didactic strategy, 29 students from Fundamentals of Biology course, at the Instituto Parauniversitario Plerus, took part: 24 of whom completed the course and five withdrew it. For this group, a portfolio and reinforcement activities (plasticine models, homemade experiments, word search puzzles, crossword puzzles, among others) were established. The realization of these activities provided rewards through the gift of stickers to each student. These rewards were collected and exchanged for didactic prizes, such as a percentage in a short exam. A game called Biology cr was also developed in the Reinos® mobile application. In it, each student developed unique selection questions that were reviewed by the teacher and then incorporated to be answered by other classmates. To determine the results, the grades obtained by the students enrolled in the Fundamentals of Biology course were reviewed, and a survey was carried out, which each student completed once the implementation of this strategy was concluded. To analyse the data, a sociodemographic analysis was carried out for age and sex, and a descriptive analysis with frequency distribution was carried out for the rest of the questions. From a teaching perspective, good results were obtained, with 66.7% of the student body passing. With regard to the student perspective, there were positive aspects (improvement in the understanding of subjects, obligation to constantly take up the subjects studied in class and understand them on their own, including personal research, if necessary) and negative aspects (academic load increase, preference for the use of traditional didactic strategies and lack of delimitation of the most relevant aspects of each of the subjects), which must be considered for future experiences.
References
Aberšek, B. (2016). Schola ludus. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 15(5), 556-558. Recuperado de http://www.scientiasocialis.lt/jbse/files/pdf/vol15/556-558.Abersek_JBSE_Vol.15_No.5.pdf
Barlow, T. y Fleming, B. (2016). A science classroom that´s more than a game. Teaching Science: The Journal of the Australian Science Teachers Association, 62(2), 31-37.
Chen, Y., Burton, T., Mihaela, V. y Whittinghill, D. M. (2015). Cogent: A case study of meaningful gamification in education with virtual currency. iJET: International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 10(1), 39-45. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v10i1.4247
Cheong, C., Filippou, J. y Cheong, F. (2014). Towards the gamificación of learning: Investigating student perceptions of game elements. Journal of Information Systems Education, 25(3), 233-244.
Dicheva, D., Dichev, C., Agre, G. y Angelova, G. (2015). Gamification in education: A systematic mapping study. Educational Technology and Society, 18(3), 75-88.
Emel´yanenko, V. D., Vetoshko, A. N., Malinnikov, S. G., Malashenko, I. V. y Vetoshko, L. I. (2016). Man´s values and ideologies as a basis of gamification. International Journal of Environmental & Science Education, 11(18), 12576-12592. Recuperado de http://www.ijese.net/makale/1728
Fan, K.-K., Xiao, P. y Su, C. (2015). The effects of learning styles and meaningful learning on the learning achievement of gamification health education curriculum. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 11(5), 1211-1229. doi: https://doi.org/10.12973/eurasia.2015.1413a
Fisher, D. J., Beedle, J. y Rouse S. E. (2014). Gamification: A study of business teacher educators’ knowledge of, attitudes toward, and experiences with the gamification of activities in the classroom. The Journal of Research in Business Education, 56(1), 1-16.
Fleischmann, K. y Ariel, E. (2016). Gamification in science education: Gamifying learning of microscopic processes in the laboratory. Contemporary Educational Technology, 7(2), 138-159. Recuperado de https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1106923.pdf
Hamzah, W. M. A. F. W, Ali, N. H., Saman, M. Y. M., Yusoff, M. H. y Yacob, A. (2015). Influence of gamification on students’ motivation in using E-learning applications based on the motivational design Model. iJET: International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 10(2), 30-34. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v10i1.4355
Kim, B. (2015). The popularity of gamification in the mobile and social era. American Library Association, 51(2), 5-9. Recuperado de https://journals.ala.org/index.php/ltr/article/view/5628/6944
Mora-Román, J. J. (2014). Implementación del aprendizaje colaborativo durante el Laboratorio de Cálculos Farmacéuticos Aplicados en la Facultad de Farmacia de la Universidad de Costa Rica. Revista Electrónica Educare, 18(2), 159-175. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15359/ree.18-2.8
Moreno Olivos, T. (2011). Didáctica en la educación superior: Nuevos desafíos en el siglo XXI. Revista Perspectiva Educacional, 50(2), 26-54. Recuperado de http://www.perspectivaeducacional.cl/index.php/peducacional/article/viewFile/45/24
Nelson, M. J. (2012). Soviet and American precursors to the gamification of work. En Proceedings of the 16th International Academic MindTrek Conference (pp. 23-26). Proceedings of the International Academic MindTrek Conference. doi: https://doi.org/10.1145/2393132.2393138
Olsson, M., Mozelius, P. y Collin, J. (2015). Visualisation and gamification of e-Learning and programming education. The Electronic Journal of e-Learning, 13(6), 441-454. Recuperado de https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1087309.pdf
Piñeiro-Otero, T. y Costa-Sánchez, C. (2015). ARG (alternate reality games). Contributions, limitations, and potentialities to the service of the teaching at the university level. Comunicar, 22(44), 141-148. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3916/C44-2015-15
Rodríguez Cavazos, J. (2013). Una mirada a la pedagogía tradicional y humanista. Presencia Universitaria, 3(5), 36-45. Recuperado de http://eprints.uanl.mx/3681/1/Una_mirada_a_la_pedagog%C3%ADa_tradicional__y_humanista.pdf
Turan, Z., Avinc, Z., Kara, K. y Goktas, Y. (2016). Gamification and education: Achievements cognitive loads, and views of students. iJET: International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 11(7), 64-69. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v11i07.5455
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
1. In case the submitted paper is accepted for publication, the author(s) FREELY, COSTLESS, EXCLUSIVELY AND FOR AN INDEFINITE TERM transfer copyrights and patrimonial rights to Universidad Nacional (UNA, Costa Rica). For more details check the Originality Statement and Copyright Transfer Agreement
2. REUTILIZATION RIGHTS: UNA authorizes authors to use, for any purpose (among them selfarchiving or autoarchiving) and to publish in the Internet in any electronic site, the paper´'s final version, both approved and published (post print), as long as it is done with a non commercial purpose, does not generate derivates without previous consentment and recognizes both publisher's name and authorship.
3. The submission and possible publication of the paper in the Educare Electronic Journal is ruled by the Journal’s editorial policies, the institutional rules of Universidad Nacional and the laws of the Republic of Costa Rica. Additionally, any possible difference of opinion or future dispute shall be settled in accordance with the mechanisms of Alternative Dispute Resolution and the Costa Rican Jurisdiction.
4. In all cases, it is understood that the opinions issued are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position and opinion of Educare, CIDE or Universidad Nacional, Costa Rica. It is also understood that, in the exercise of academic freedom, the authors have carried out a rogorous scientific-academic process of research, reflection and argumentation thar lays within the thematic scope of interest of the Journal.
5. The papers published by Educare Electronic Journal use a Creative Commons License:
The articles published by Educare Electronic Journal can be shared with a Creative Commons License: 
