The use of the mechanics and elements of games in non-ludic environments (Gamification) has increased in non-ludic contexts in various areas including education. This study focused on the perception that students have of the different elements of gamification. Three experiences developed, after which students were asked to answer a survey about the gamified elements of the course in which they participated. In the three experiences, Feedback, levels, points and missions stand out as the best valued. Although badges were also been well valued by students in the longest experiences, in the shortest experience, it was one of the worst rated elements. The elements that students liked the least of all those analyzed, were the leaderboard and the blocked content.

The digital revolution is causing the new generations to demand new ways of learning. Motivating students is one crucial element of the learning-teaching process to achieve students’ learning, which is the main objective of education. Using typical gaming elements in non-game environments, gamification transforms the learning process into a more motivating and enjoyable experience. Therefore, gamification offers adequate solutions for the educational needs of the new generation of students. Although most studies have found benefits from gamification, the results have not been encouraging in some cases. Several review studies suggest that more empirical studies are needed to investigate the motivating effects of using gamification in different educational settings and for specific student types. This study wants to answer whether using the proposed gamification design affects motivation, engagement, and satisfaction in teaching computer science to university students from other disciplinary areas such as journalism and audiovisual communication. The experiment consists of a gamified experience in a virtual classroom in Moodle for four weeks on general computer science content. A control group and a test group were used. The difference between the two was the use of gamified elements (points, badges, levels, task unlocking...). From the data obtained in this study, no significant differences were found in motivation and satisfaction between the different groups or the different methodologies. Our results demonstrate a specific positive correlation between engagement, motivation, and satisfaction. It is worth noting the positive values obtained in this type of course among all the students who were part of this experience and methodology.

Students’ participation and motivation are of great importance in their learning process. The decrease in attendance and difficulties in stimulating students’ activity makes it necessary to find new methodologies that can solve these problems. The use of game mechanics in non-ludic environments (Gamification) has begun to be of great interest in research, since it could increase the motivation and therefore the activity of the students. This study tries to verify if there is an existing relationship between gamification and a possible increase in student activity or between the cessation of gamification and student activity. In addition, it evaluates whether a greater student activity corresponds to a greater learning improvement. In the obtained results, no significant differences were found between the methodology or the activity with a learning improvement. According to the study, the simple use of gamified elements does not necessarily imply a solution to the problems posed. The students’ activity in a course of these characteristics does not imply a better learning improvement, the importance lies in the quality of the activity generated and not in the quantity.

A reduced interest and low motivation in learning amongst vocational students has become a challenge with many traditional strategies not capable of providing a solution to motivation and encouraging participation in learning. The use of elements of games in non-recreational environments (gamification) may be a possible solution, since research indicates an improvement in user experience and engagement, with possibilities of improved motivation and behavioral results. However not all studies obtain positive results, the success of gamification is influenced by the design, the sample, and the context. This study analyzes a gamification design with the most common elements in three methodological approaches (teacher-centered, student-centered, and mixed) in three different periods throughout a program of study with vocational training students. The results indicate that the mixed approach performed worse than the other two. Carrying out a greater number of tasks did not imply a better result in the subject marks, but rather paying more attention to each task influences the result positively.

Currently gamification is being extended as a methodology to create learning courses. Although, Moodle is the most extended free platform for educational courses and it contains by default elements of gamification, most of gamified experiences found used other tools. This document considers the implementation of an interface that allows an easy management of gamification in Moodle.