=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-2497/paper14
|storemode=property
|title=Gamification of School Education in Russia: Case Study
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2497/paper14.pdf
|volume=Vol-2497
|authors=Alexander Vetushinskiy,Pavel Zhukov
|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/gamilearn/VetushinskiyZ19
}}
==Gamification of School Education in Russia: Case Study==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2497/paper14.pdf
Gamification of School Education in Russia: Case Study
Alexander Vetushinskiy Pavel Zhukov
Faculty of Philosophy, Lomonosov Moscow State Gamification Lab, Sberbank
University Moscow, Russia
Moscow, Russia paulbeatlov@mail.ru
a.vetushinskiy@gmail.com
ABSTRACT principles.
The article is devoted to the description of the gamification
system, which will be introduced in fifteen of Russian It should be noted that gamification can be interpreted more
schools in the fall of 2019 (schools in Moscow, the broadly. According to Hamari et al., gamification is equally
Republic of Tatarstan, and Kaluga, Lipetsk, Novgorod and applicable in both non-player and game contexts [7].
Nizhny Novgorod regions). The system was developed by Therefore, we can agree with Dichev and Dicheva, who
the Sberbank Gamification Lab within the framework of the propose considering gamification as not so much a
Sberbank Charitable Foundation “Investment to the technology as a fully-fledged methodology, in fact,
Future”, whose main mission is to support the development replacing behaviorism [2]. Indeed, like behaviorism,
of modern Russian education in front of the challenges of gamification is intended to correct and sometimes change
the digital age. The system had to be compact, fairly simple the user's behavior (which gamification does well [6]). In
to implement, and maintain the values of teamwork and contrast to behaviorism, gamification is aimed at creating a
cooperation. It also had to comply with the basic principles positive emotional environment, giving additional meaning
of the new educational model for Russian schools: (and therefore value) to the actions performed by the person
personalization, the development of soft skills and real-life [8].
relevance. As a result, the Gamification Lab decided on a It is not surprising that educational institutions look at
cyclical gamification system built on the basis of six game gamification with heightened interest. As successfully noted
elements: avatars, quests, points, levels, achievements and by Dichev et al., gamification in education is the use of
stickers. In the autumn of 2019, the system will be game elements in learning activities to increase student
introduced into Russian schools and the Gamification Lab engagement [3]. And the fact that the level of involvement
will analyze the system in real-life conditions (directly in is directly related to the level of development of the
schools), where the main 8 hypotheses underlying the material, has so far been confirmed [5].
developed gamification model will be tested (hypotheses
are given in the article). That is why Russian schools participating in a large project
to introduce innovative forms of education did not neglect
Author Keywords gamification (we are talking about fifteen schools in
Gamification; gamification in education; school Moscow, the Republic of Tatarstan, and Kaluga, Lipetsk,
gamification; gamification in Russia; gamification model; Novgorod and Nizhny Novgorod regions). One of the
gamification system. project participants is the Sberbank Gamification Lab,
whose collaborators are the authors of this article.
ACM Classification Keywords
K.3.m. Computers and Education: Miscellaneous. The central task of the Laboratory was to create a
gamification system that is embedded in the school
INTRODUCTION
Learning Management System (LMS). In this article, we
According to the prevailing definition, gamification is the
describe the key aspects of the developed gamification
use of game elements and game mechanics in a non-game
system, and also formulate a number of research
context [1]. Game elements are points, badges,
hypotheses, which we will begin testing in September 2019
leaderboards, avatars, guilds, levels, quests, skill trees, etc.
(in September, the system will begin to be piloted in
Non-game contexts – education, marketing, health, culture,
schools).
tourism [9]. That is, gamification is the use of game-based
thinking in order to transform routine, non-game GAMIFICATION OF SCHOOL EDUCATION
environments through the introduction of game-based The term “gamification” was introduced into scientific and
research terminology in 2008. And although it became
Copyright © 2019 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under
Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). widespread only after 2010 [4], already in 2009 a New York
In: J. Arnedo-Moreno, C.S. González, A. Mora (eds.): Proceedings of the City school, Quest to Learn, opened with full-fledged game
3rd International Symposium on Gamification and Games for Learning training program, which was developed by the Institute of
(GamiLearn’19), Barcelona, Spain, 22-10-2019, published at http://ceur- Play. During its existence, the School has managed to give a
ws.org
good account of itself and still remains a model for the
successful combination of educational tasks and game example, visits to the company based on the interests of
thinking. students (note that such activities are planned for the next
stages of the project).
It is worth noting that schools like Quest to Learn, which
gamify not only the form of education, but also the content
As a result, the Gamification Lab decided on a cyclical
itself, are still a rarity. Most examples of the gamification of
gamification system built on the basis of six game
education are structural gamification, that is, gamification
elements: avatars, quests, points, levels, achievements,
that does not affect educational content, but is built on top
stickers. The consistency of this model is easy to describe
of it, with the goal of making learning faster and more
by means of three cycles connecting the elements with each
efficient. It is worth noting that the spread of such
other (Figure 1).
gamification is largely due to the development of online
education and the introduction of automated LMS into
Internal cycle: avatar => quests => achievements => avatar.
schools and universities, that is, to the already existing
digital platforms that play the role of an intermediary
Middle cycle: avatar => quests => stickers => avatar.
between the student and the educational structure.
External cycle: avatar => quests => points => levels =>
In Russia, gamification educational systems are just
stickers => avatar.
beginning to be introduced. Of the most famous examples
of the game approach in education, we note a gymnasium In order to describe in more detail the systematic nature of
(high school) near Moscow named after E.M. Primakov, the gamification system, consider each element separately:
which opened in 2017. It has a command-competitive
system that can be described as a cross between Harry An avatar is a complex element. It consists of two types of
Potter and Game of Thrones: each student is attached to one images - character and background. At first, the images are
of four houses (each with its own emblem and motto), of all the same, but over time, they can be modified. These
which only one becomes the winner (the house that scores images are taken from the collection of accumulated
the most points). stickers (each sticker contains an image that can be placed
on the student's personal page). Thus, each page is
NEW APPROACH TO SCHOOL EDUCATION
customizable and personalized (the theory of self-
As part of the activities of the Sberbank Charitable
determination has long indicated the importance of such
Foundation “Investment to the Future” (whose activities are
things).
focused on supporting the development of a modern
Russian educational model), a set of principles and
Quests are also a complex element. Quests are of three
recommendations was developed for 21st century Russian
types: basic (what each student must do), side (what
schools. Three key principles were recognized:
students performs if they feel like it) and boss fights (the
personalization, the development of soft skills and real-life
most difficult and important tasks; they can also be basic
relevance. In addition, a special emphasis was placed on
and side quests). In addition, quests are individual and
cooperation and mutual support among students. That is, it
cooperative (cooperative is designated as more important).
was specifically stated that in no case should
The role of quests is to turn the educational process into an
competitiveness be encouraged.
epic, meaningful journey.
It was decided that this educational model would be
supplemented with gamification. For the Gamification Lab, Points are an element of positive feedback. For completing
this meant one thing: there should not be leaderboards in quests student receives points. The more important the task,
the system. Consequently, there could be no talk of any the more points earned. The value of points – instant
PBL gamification. It should be a new gamification system, feedback, gives meaning to even the most simple, routine
built on new values – values of mutual aid and mutual tasks.
support (as rightly noted by van Roy and Zaman, it is
around individualistic values that all Western educational Levels are an element of positive feedback that
systems are built [10]). In addition, as decided by the staff characterizes student progress. Levels are achieved by
of the Laboratory, the system should help learning, and not obtaining a certain number of points. For each received
just be an afterthought. level, the student receives a set of stickers and a status.
GAMIFICATION MODEL
Achievements – are a type of positive feedback, marking
The Laboratory had to develop a model of a gamification
the special, exceptional merit of the student. The most
system that would support cooperation, be suitable for
important badges are given for special merit in matters of
education and at the same time be compact enough that its
cooperation and mutual assistance. That is, if a student
programming would not take too long. An additional
receives a badge for helping others, it does not just set
limitation was the lack of real incentives in the form of, for
him/her apart from the rest, but also obliges him/her to
continue assisting those who need help. The remaining H1: Having a customizable and personalized avatar
(more traditional) badges are achieved for special services increases student engagement and affects the desire to
performed in completing quests, points earned, levels complete more tasks;
earned and stickers found.
H2: Exercises submitted in the form of quests increase the
The sticker is a digital card containing an image, minimal level of student involvement and positively influence
text, as well as metadata indicating when and for what his/her desire to complete them;
action it was received. Images are of three types:
personalities (real and fictional, for example: Napoleon or H3: Exercises submitted in the form of quests help students
Don Quixote), events (natural and cultural, for example: the to be more tolerant of failures and not be afraid to make
emergence of life or the beginning of the Second World mistakes;
War) and artifacts (the most important things and
accessories, such as a wheel or a camera obscura). The H4: Points have a positive effect on the students’ perception
main function of stickers is to be collectible (stickers are of the educational process, helping them to measure their
related to quests, but not directly “complete such and such progress;
quest – receive such and such sticker”, and within a certain
range: “complete such and such quest – receive one of the H5: Levels have a positive effect on the students’
possible stickers in this case”). Another function: perception of the educational process, helping them to
individualization (stickers are not only collected, but also measure their progress, and also provide a tangible goal to
set as an avatar). In addition, each sticker is associated with be achieved;
the material of the school educational program; therefore, it
is simultaneously a mnemonic device. Viewing, collecting H6: Achievements instruct students to have additional goals
and exchanging stickers seems to lead to better that go beyond the educational process, forming a clear
memorization of new, as well as a fixation on fascinating system of benchmarks and values related to support and
older material. mutual assistance;
HYPOTHESES H7: Stickers have a positive effect on the memorization and
In September 2019, the system will be launched in fifteen assimilation of the material studied;
Russian schools. The Gamification Lab will move on to the
data collection phase, focusing on the operation of the H8: The system as a whole contributes to building stronger
system, its success and how it is perceived by teachers and ties between students.
students. Both quantitative and qualitative research (for
example, interviews with teachers, activelly involved
parents and students) is envisaged. In the course of
research, we plan to test the following set of hypotheses:
Figure 1. Gamification model by Gamification Lab
CONCLUSION Future Internet, 11, 67 (March 2019), 17 pages. DOI:
In order for gamification to become an integral part of 10.3390/fi11030067
school education in Russia, it must demonstrate its
10. R. van Roy, B. Zaman, International Journal of Human-
effectiveness and suitability. We want to believe that the
Computer Studies (2018),
first step on this path has already been taken. Starting in
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2018.04.009
autumn, the Gamification Lab will proceed to active
research, during which we will try to answer how
successful the proposed gamification system as a whole has
turned out, and how well or poorly it works in its
component parts.
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