Gamification in education is projected to experience a compound annual growth rate of 14% between now and 2025, signifying its increasing importance. It has been observed that implementing gamification can enhance student productivity by up to 50%. Additionally, a significant number of teachers, around 87%, have reported that incorporating purposeful play into their lessons results in increased student engagement. Western Europe has exhibited the highest growth rate in game-based learning, reaching 47.2%. This data demonstrates the transformative impact of gamification on the educational landscape in recent years, which has been further shaped by the rapid evolution of digitalization and technology.

In the present-day dynamic classroom, where students extensively interact with tablets, e-books, and digital boards, capturing their attention can be challenging. Nevertheless, the introduction of gamification in education offers a solution for teachers to effectively engage their students in a manner that facilitates a deeper understanding of concepts while enjoying the learning process.

Exploring the Optimal Approach to Gamifying the Classroom

Should video games be introduced in the classroom? No..!

Instead, there are various applications available that can gamify the classroom and foster student engagement. Here, we present a selection of the best gamification apps that have been tested and proven to yield promising results.

Best Apps for Gamifying the Classroom

1. Socrative

Socrative stands out as one of the top gamification apps, providing an elevated level of engagement for students. It serves as a classroom learning tool that offers instructors multiple options to enhance students’ learning experience. The app offers three highly customizable game modes, making it a versatile and adaptable platform. These modes include:

• The standard game-based mode;
• The “Space Race” mode, which challenges students to balance accuracy and speed;
• The “Exit Ticket” mode, which maximizes student engagement by assessing their understanding at the end of a lesson.

Furthermore, Socrative enriches each chapter with interactive elements, such as multiple-choice questions, true/false queries, and open-ended prompts, all of which effectively improve students’ learning abilities. Socrative emerges as a streamlined, adaptable, and comprehensive software that is available for free. Its features and capabilities rival those of more expensive EdTech systems.

2. Gimkit

Gimkit serves as a gamification app that supports both offline and online learning for students. It elevates student engagement by providing a game show-like experience. Teachers can initiate the learning process through three simple steps:

• Introduce the selected topics or chapters;
• Invite students to participate;
• Create and distribute game quizzes or “Kits.”

In this app, teachers host live games or kits that students can participate in real-time. Additionally, kits can be assigned as homework to students. Gimkit enables students to form teams or participate individually. To enhance engagement and participation, the app offers rewards in the form of virtual currency that students can earn by providing correct answers. This currency can then be used to purchase in-game rewards and power-ups.

Furthermore, Gimkit automatically evaluates students’ contributions upon completion of the kits, providing teachers with comprehensive information about the class’s overall performance and individual achievements.

3. Blooket

Blooket is a gamification app that empowers teachers to gamify their classrooms by offering instructional games to students. Through this app, teachers can assign projects or homework that students can complete at their own pace and place. Live events can be organized by teachers, where students can participate using randomly generated IDs. Additionally, teachers can create their own question banks or utilize those already prepared by other users.

To engage in gamification learning using Blooket, students are not required to register. However, students with a student account gain access to features such as monitoring their stats, global leaderboard rankings, purchasing and trading Blooks, and participating in upcoming community-wide events. Blooket features a user-friendly interface. Students can engage in real-time games hosted by teachers, using the generated game IDs displayed on their screens. Teachers can also assign learning activities as assignments, allowing students to complete tasks at their own pace.

4. Sporcle

Sporcle presents an excellent gamification app that offers a wide range of entertaining and captivating activities, including the best online quizzes. The app’s diverse questions cover various subjects such as movies, sports, history, geography, literature, science, and language.

For teachers seeking engaging quizzes, Sporcle proves to be beneficial. The platform allows teachers to create their own quizzes, which can be shared on websites or blogs with their students. Quizzes can also be kept private, with search results and profiles not providing direct access to them. Additionally, Sporcle enables the creation of playlists, providing a centralized location for all quizzes.

5. Digipuzzle

Digipuzzle serves as a gamification app that effectively transforms a regular classroom into a gamified environment. It offers a vast selection of educational games for children, covering various subjects from science and arithmetic to geography and the human body. These games contribute to skill enhancement among students.

Regardless of the subject you teach, Digipuzzle offers numerous games in each area. Whether it’s programming, science, geography, history, mathematics, typing, music, or animals, this app proves to be an ideal inclusion for gamifying your classroom. Each category features multiple gaming genres associated with the subject matter.

For example, if you teach mathematics, you can find math games specifically focused on fractions, counting, multiplication, and other skill-building exercises.

Conclusion

Thanks to technology and gamification apps, learning has become more accessible for students. These gamification apps provide valuable assistance to both students and teachers, allowing them to leverage effective learning strategies. By embracing the best practices offered by these apps, teachers can ensure an engaging and inspiring classroom experience. To keep students motivated and actively involved, it is essential to explore and utilize these apps to gamify the classroom.