Introduction to Gamification & Educational Benefits of Gaming

I ran across this article during the Holiday Break and it really struck a chord with me.  It's an account of a teacher who heard the word "gamification" for the first time during a discussion with a friend about how she was applying certain techniques to her student development and lesson plans.

Image Source: Language Teaching Tips

She posted a quick diary of the main benefits she saw with her students in the classroom:

1. Competition
2. Self-expression
3. Achievement
4. Rewards

I also came across this latest study outlining how Medical Students performed better at Surgery after hours of Nintendo Wii Play each week and may also be the key to "developing cognitive skills to improve surgery performance."

Original Source: PLOS

The Fast Company Article references a report on NPR that goes into a bit more detail.  Could be a marketing stunt, but if so, it's a pretty good one, I suppose.

Sam & I got a Nintendo Wii U for Christmas this year and although we haven't played it much, it's definitely fun to play and we'll be posting some more updates on our experiences with it later.

I also stumbled across this oldie-but-a-goodie about Jane McGonigal's book Reality is Broken.  If you haven't read it yet, go buy it now and read it right away.  But check out the blog post if for nothing else the writing style - it's hilarious.  And oh yeah, there's this picture of Jane he did:

Original Source: http://gamedesignreviews.com/scrapbook/gamification-2-0/

Awesome, right?

Also check out her amazing TED Presentations and follow her on twitter - you may even convince her one day to sign a copy for you and then you'd be happy, like Sam was when she got hers:

Sam's TwitterPic of receiving a signed copy of Reality is Broken
from Jane McGonigal & The Best Mom Ever

Speaking of #Gamification, if you haven't had a chance to vote yet, you should vote for Lafayette, LA in the Bloomberg Philanthropies Mayor's Challenge.