Kids love winning. Then again, who doesn’t? Winning is a great feeling even if there was nothing on the line. I can win a game of pick up basketball and ride that sense of accomplishment all day. It’s even better if the game wasn’t a complete blow out. That means I defeated a worthy opponent! What a wonderful feeling! Then again, if I lost it’s no big deal. It was just a game of basketball after all.
One day whist playing Mario Kart Wii online I saw that I was up against a player who’s level was at 9999. Maxed out! My only thought was that he was one of the best or most dedicated Mario Kart players in the world. I beat him. Skidded past him at the finish line after he was taken down by a blue shell. I was elated! I took pictures! I called my parents (ok, I didn’t do that). Point being, I got nothing out of that race except some experience points and self satisfaction.
Students want this feeling in the classroom. They love to compete with their friends and see who can out do one another. I’m not really talking about grades. Although many students compare grades during the school week it’s not something they really brag about. Getting an A on your science test isn’t as cool as hit that game winning shot in double over time. ClassRealm is still going strong in my classroom and the aspect of competition hit a dizzying high this week. My three top level students decided they were going to out write, out read, out participate, and out help each other. In other words they were pushing themselves to be the top in the class, level wise. My other students caught on instantly and began pushing themselves as well. What do they get for all this hard work they are putting in? Tallies on a sheet. Levels that won’t matter in a months time. What they don’t realize is that this competition is motivating them to do better, to do more. They may go on to 7th grade and forget all about ClassRealm (I hope not…), but one of those papers they wrote, one of those books they read, one of those times they participated to earn an experience point may prove beneficial. That’s the kind of competition you want in school. One with an outcome that seems menial later on, but pushes students to improve. The best part is that they’re all winners, they just don’t know it.
Intrinsic Motivation is motivation that comes from within, hence the prefix “in”. It’s motivation that is driven by your enjoyment of the activity and not to achieve some physical reward or outcome. Confidence is a huge part of intrinsic motivation, if you aren’t confident you probably aren’t accomplishing a task purely out of enjoyment. Students who have intrinsic motivation are those who want to learn simply to gain knowledge, as opposed to getting good grades. It is hard to find students who have intrinsic motivation in grades K-12, not to say they don’t exist. This being said, all teachers should strive to make their students intrinsic learners.
Example Number One – When I was little I would read books for school assignments and in the summer because there was a reading program at my local library where one could win prizes for completing books. I read because I wanted a good outcome, an A on my report card or an awesome prize from the library. Eventually I realized that I didn’t care so much about the prizes and grades and that reading could open my mind to new worlds (and other cliché phrases you see on posters). To this day the majority of my reading is for enjoyment, but I may have never gotten to this point had it not been for the extrinsic factors dealing with reading.
Pride – When you complete a game all you get is a virtual trophy, a high score, or possibly an alternate ending. Even though these rewards aren’t physical they still push players to obtain them. Achievements in video games are a source of pride. Sure, it took you hours and hours to get that one achievement, but you can show it off to all your online buddies. I caught all 150 original Pokemon in the late 90’s, and I told everyone I knew, even if they didn’t care.
Fun – Another reason gamers game is purely for entertainment. It’s fun! I love my life and everyone in it, but it’s still exciting to step in to Link’s boots and rescue Zelda. I can’t run around with a sword slaying enemies and collecting rupees in real life without the local police getting involved, so I pick up a wiimote and escape in to the world of Zelda. Many students don’t want to be at school. They may not hate it, but they’d rather be elsewhere. Why not make school a place where students 
Oh, hello. I didn’t see you there. I thought maybe you’d like to meet some of the minds behind ClassRelam, you know, before you decide to love or hate it.
ClassRealm was an idea I have had since I graduated and it’s popularity, which will hopefully rise, stunned me from the start. I in no way invented gamification in the classroom, but I am determined to find the most effective implementation to date. I will put every ounce of my effort (and the little bit of money I have) in to ClassRealm to see it succeed. Wanna know more? Feel free to comment below or email me at ben@classrealm.com.
People have been calling, emailing and writing in asking “What is going to happen next with ClassRealm? What are your plans?”
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