Not all of us parents are comfortable tutoring our kids. I remember the time I spent tutoring my kids. While they were away at school, I was making reviewers for them to answer as part of their daily practice. Math was one of the hardest to make reviewers for. Making Math problems took twice as long because I needed to think up different Math problems, then solve them to make sure the solutions would actually work. It was exhausting work!
Technology has introduced the concept of gamification, or the transformation of lessons and training concepts into different game forms, making it more fun and readily absorbed. It has all the ‘feels’ of playing games but you are actually learning, working, or gaining other benefits
Gamification is actually being used in training courses now in the workplace to motivate employees, increase competitive behavior, and teach certain concepts important to the business. It can also be found in online shopping sites where games attract consumers to earn reward points that can go toward discounts. And of course, games are now being used to teach academic subjects.
Times are so different now compared to then, when we did not have the internet or social media. Growing up, I remember how our parents tried to teach us Math. According to my Dad, my lolo (grandfather) used to post fractions on pieces of paper all around their house for him to memorize (he was actually very good with fractions). My dad did not do that with us but instead, we grew up with physical flash cards (if you remember these, your age is showing, haha!).
I was actually checking out this site for its wide range of calculators for business such as loans, budgeting, investment and retirement calculations when I came across their section on arcade games.
On their Math game page, for example, I came across Math for Kids, a time-based game where you need to count the objects inside each box and use the right operator to solve the equation. It’s not as easy as it looks, especially when you’re under time pressure!
I tried the Blue Story Game on their physics game page and it was actually quite fun trying to figure out which wooden blocks to remove, and at what speed, so that the blue box would not end up on the ground.
Gamification will be one teaching modality that will continue to keep the minds of easily-bored kids preoccupied while still teaching them lessons. In fact, though still in its infancy stage, I think the future will see artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality being used alongside gamification to make learning more visual and experiential for students.
My kids are way past those learning years but I cannot wait for my grandnieces and grandnephews to be part of this new wave of learning.