Gamification in eLearning
2 effective tools
Gamification has been proven to improve learning outcomes for eLearning. This article tells you about three different gamification tools that are easy to integrate into your learning management and your existing processes. Each of the three tools uses different principles and is suitable for different scenarios.
What is gamification?
Gamification goes back to the computer game industry. A variety of other sectors—such as eLearning—have adopted gamification concepts, taking familiar features and principles and integrating them into learning.
Integration of the features and principals of gaming into other contexts
Deterding’s 2011 definition
Because the principle is so successful, gamification tools have now been developed that can be easily integrated into existing learning management systems and eLearning processes.
Why gamification is so effective
Gamification’s effectiveness derives from the natural human play instinct, imaginary competition, and—most importantly—the variety of emotions it appeals to. These features lead participants to develop a subconscious need to continue playing, and thus learning. This and the technological aspects deliver a wide range of benefits:
2 effective gamification tools for eLearning
To fully exploit all of the above benefits, gamification tools also need to meet all of the technical requirements: They must be compatible with existing learning management systems, provide fast and automated feedback to learners, be accessible any time and anywhere, and allow progress to be evaluated at any time. In addition, not every tool is suitable for every scenario. Below are three professional gamification tools that meet the technical requirements and are suitable for different scenarios.
Interactive behavioral training
Knowledgeworker Coach
Employees from sales, distribution, or call centers, for example, often find themselves facing difficult and challenging situations. Here, it is important to be fully prepared and to respond in such a way that those concerned and/or the customer are given the best possible service and are satisfied at the end of the phone call, web session, or meeting. This is where Knowledgeworker Coach comes in:
Knowledgeworker Coach is an interactive behavioral trainer that prepares your employees to handle specific situations and conversations in a business environment. They receive communications training to help them handle sales, requests for advice and emergencies, for example, and you can provide them with information and develop their empathy to enable them to react appropriately to customer complaints. Knowledgeworker Coach ensures you provide your employees with the highest quality of support in relation to those difficult situations that are crucial to your customer relationships. It allows you to portray specific conversations and situations, and changes them dynamically depending on the answer selected by learners. Learners see facial expressions or other changing images, among other things, that allow them to understand how the answer they have chosen alters the course of the conversation. Direct feedback gives the exercises a realistic feel and ensures that training has a long-lasting impact. Videos and sound can also be easily integrated into the coaching and create an authentic—and thus more effective—learning environment.
The interactive coach not only helps your employees optimize their communication skills, it also heightens their awareness of the situation in question and improves their analysis and reactions. In short, Knowledgeworker Coach promotes targeted and results-oriented communication and trains employees to behave appropriately.
The flashcard app
Knowledgeworker Cards
Knowledgeworker Cards uses a digital, interactive version of the analog flashcards you used to have at school to consolidate knowledge in small bites. This makes it ideal for learning definitions, formulas, data, vocabulary and factual knowledge, and for simple question and answer exercises. In other words, nuggets of knowledge that can be extracted from complex issues. The app looks like the flashcards we used to know: Short, pithy, and engaging. It uses artificial intelligence to take a range of learning parameters, successes, and failures into account, automatically showing learners the cards that are relevant to them personally. Knowledge with which they are confident is therefore presented less frequently than knowledge with which they are not. Learners can also decide for themselves whether they want to repeat cards. These are then shuffled back into the pile of cards to be studied. So success is guaranteed!
The bottom line.
Gamification makes it easier for your employees to learn and demonstrably improves learning outcomes. To ensure you gain all the benefits of gamification, you need to ensure that your system meets the necessary technical requirements for the tools you choose. In addition, it is worth taking a look at the details: Not every tool is suitable for every situation. Knowledgeworker has a solution to suit the type of knowledge you want to provide, and that is guaranteed to make learning fun!
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