Ci a ion: Oka iz, A.; Hueb a, M.;
Sa asola, A.; Iba e xe, J.; Bidegain,
G.; Zubimendi, J.L. Gami ying
Physics Labo a o y Wo k Inc eases
Mo i a ion and Enhances Acquisi ion
o he Skills Requi ed o Applica ion
o he Scien i ic Me hod. Educ. Sci.
2023,13, 302. h ps://doi.o g/
10.3390/educsci13030302
Academic Edi o s: Panagio is Fo a is,
Ma io Michaelides, Theodo os
Mas o as and Ca he ine G undy
Recei ed: 16 Feb ua y 2023
Re ised: 10 Ma ch 2023
Accep ed: 11 Ma ch 2023
Published: 14 Ma ch 2023
Copy igh : © 2023 by he au ho s.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
This a icle is an open access a icle
dis ibu ed unde he e ms and
condi ions o he C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion (CC BY) license (h ps://
c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/
4.0/).
educa ion
sciences
A icle
Gami ying Physics Labo a o y Wo k Inc eases Mo i a ion and
Enhances Acquisi ion o he Skills Requi ed o Applica ion o
he Scien i ic Me hod
Ana Oka iz 1,* , Ma a Hueb a 1, Ane Sa asola 2, Julen Iba e xe 1, Go ka Bidegain 3,4 and Jose Luis Zubimendi 1
1Depa men o Applied Physics, Facul y o Enginee ing in Bilbao, Uni e si y o he Basque
Coun y (UPV/EHU), Paseo Ra ael Mo eno “Pi xi xi” 3, 48013 Bibao, Spain; [email p o ec ed] (M.H.);
[email p o ec ed] (J.I.)
2Depa men o Applied Physics, Facul y o Enginee ing, Gipuzkoa, Uni e si y o he Basque
Coun y (UPV/EHU), Eu opa Plaza 1, 20018 Donos ia, Spain; [email p o ec ed]
3Depa men o Applied Ma hema ics, Facul y o Enginee ing in Bilbao, Uni e si y o he Basque
Coun y (UPV/EHU), Paseo Ra ael Mo eno “Pi xi xi” 3, 48013 Bibao, Spain; [email p o ec ed]
4
Resea ch Cen e o Expe imen al Ma ine Biology & Bio echnology, Plen zia Ma ine S a ion, Uni e si y o he
Basque Coun y (PiE-UPV/EHU), A ea za Pasealekua, 48620 Plen zia, Spain
*Co espondence: [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac :
Al hough inc easing s uden mo i a ion is widely accep ed o enhance lea ning ou comes,
his ela ionship has sca cely been s udied quan i a i ely. The e o e, his s udy aimed o add ess his
knowledge gap by explo ing he e ec s o gami ica ion on s uden s’ mo i a ion and consequen ly
hei lea ning pe o mance, ega ding he p ope applica ion o he scien i ic me hod. To mo i a e
s uden s and enhance hei acquisi ion o new skills, we de eloped a gami ica ion amewo k o he
labo a o y sessions o i s -yea physics in an enginee ing deg ee. Da a ega ding s uden mo i a ion
we e collec ed h ough a Like -scale- ype sa is ac ion ques ionnai e. The in e -i em co ela ions
and C onbach’s alpha con i med he in e nal consis ency o he ques ionnai e. In addi ion, he
lea ning ou come was assessed based on he s uden s’ labo a o y epo s. S uden s pa icipa ing
in gami ied ac i i ies we e mo e mo i a ed han hose pa icipa ing in non-gami ied ac i i ies and
ob ained be e lea ning esul s o e all. Ou indings sugges ha gami ied labo a o y sessions boos
s uden s
´
ex insic mo i a ion, and consequen ly inspi e hei in insic mo i a ion and inc ease hei
lea ning pe o mance. Finally, we discuss ou esul s, wi h a ocus on speci ic skills and he sho -
and long- e m e ec s o gami ica ion.
Keywo ds: gami ica ion; mo i a ion; lea ning ou come; scien i ic skills
1. In oduc ion
A common de ini ion o gami ica ion is “ he use o game design elemen s in non-
game con ex s” [
1
]. In gene al, he e m is used i game elemen s and mechanics a e
in oduced o mo i a e he end-use s o an ac i i y [
2
]. The ul ima e goal is o s imula e
pa icipan s’ ac ion and p omo e hei use o he skills equi ed o he game in di e en
con ex s. In educa ional en i onmen s, in pa icula , adop ion o gami ied expe iences has
quickly sp ead, because o he po en ial o engage s uden s and cap u e hei a en ion [
3
,
4
].
Fu he mo e, gami ica ion can mee he demand o new me hods ha adap lea ning
p ocesses o “digi al na i e” s uden s [
5
]. Many s udies in he li e a u e ha e epo ed
he mul iple bene i s o gami ica ion, such as helping s uden s in e nalize a opic on a
deepe le el; p o iding immedia e eedback, inco po a ing a ole-playing aspec ha
b ings s uden s in o new en i onmen s and si ua ions; and empowe ing s uden s when
hey achie e he goals o he gi en ac i i ies [6–8].
A s ong a gumen suppo ing gami ica ion o he eaching p ocess is based on he
hypo hesis ha gami ica ion signi ican ly inc eases mo i a ion, hus imp o ing lea ning
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/educsci13030302 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/educa ion
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 2 o 14
esul s. A ecen s udy has demons a ed ha mo i a ion is highly dependen on he design
o inno a i e and upda ed opics ha engage s uden s and os e be e lea ning a i udes,
as well as on he use o new me hods ha s imula e knowledge acquisi ion [
9
]. The au ho
o [
10
], in a seminal s udy, has uni ied he esul s epo ed in he li e a u e ega ding se ious
games and gami ica ion. Se ious games a e de ined in he educa ional con ex as “games in
which educa ion (in i s a ious o ms) is he p ima y goal, a he han en e ainmen ” [
11
].
S udies abou gami ica ion and lea ning ha e p oposed ha beha io s and a i udes as-
socia ed wi h he ins uc ional con en may a ec he lea ning ou comes. The au ho s
o [
12
] explained his same idea by classi ying he ou comes in o expe ien ial (psychological
ones) and ins umen al (lea ning ones) and [
13
] e iewed he li e a u e, ying o c ea e a
quan i a i e scale o e alua e he lea ning ou comes. The aim o gami ica ion is o change
he beha io s and a i udes ele an o lea ning, and consequen ly imp o e lea ning esul s.
Sel -de e mina ion heo y has been widely applied o gami ica ion [
14
,
15
]. The indings
ha e indica ed ha sa is ying he needs o compe ence, au onomy and social ela edness
is also cen al o in insic mo i a ion, and ha en iching he lea ning en i onmen s wi h
such elemen s can a ec lea ning ou come h ough modi ying said en i onmen s [16].
Howe e , ecen e iews ha e no ed ha addi ional esea ch is s ill necessa y o ho -
oughly assess he bene icial ou comes claimed in mos p io s udies. The au ho s o [
17
], in
a c i ical e iew, ha e epo ed ha many s udies on his opic ha e no p esen ed conclu-
si e e idence o he esul s and, disag eemen exis s among he s udies ollowing igo ous
p ocedu es: al hough mos such s udies ha e indica ed bene icial e ec s o gami ica ion,
se e al ha e demons a ed nega i e e ec s. A me a-analysis by [
18
] has indica ed ha
he ac o s con ibu ing o success ul gami ica ion emain unknown. Despi e conside able
esea ch e o s in his ield [
2
,
19
], a conclusi e me a-analysis indica ing he e ec i eness
o gami ica ion in he con ex o lea ning and educa ion has ye o be epo ed. Fu he
high-quali y esea ch is needed o enable a mo e conclusi e in es iga ion o he ela ionship
be ween gami ica ion and lea ning. Al hough a di e si y o gami ica ion dynamics al eady
exis s [
20
–
23
], ending owa ds an indi idually ailo ed gami ica ion scheme [
24
], gami ied
lea ning echniques con inue o e ol e, and new ins uc ional mechanisms a e s ill de el-
oped and designed. Howe e , e iews ocusing on di e en aspec s ela ed o gami ica ion
ag ee on he need o a uni ied esea ch-based heo y o gami ied lea ning [13,25].
The main objec i e o his wo k was o pa ially ill his knowledge gap h ough
igo ous quan i a i e esea ch on he co ela ion be ween mo i a ion and lea ning. A
compa a i e s udy o he lea ning esul s o s uden s ained wi h and wi hou gami ica-
ion ac i i ies was pe o med. In addi ion, he mo i a ion o he s uden s was e alua ed.
Di e en gami ica ion ac i i ies based on a compe i ion–collabo a ion scheme we e de-
signed, because he social dynamics appea s o a o mo e e icien , mainly p ocedu al
lea ning [
18
]. Impo an ly, ou analysis was based on a combina ion o cogni i e and
p ocedu al lea ning, which is no e y common in he li e a u e.
2. Ma e ials and Me hods
The co ela ion be ween s uden s’ sa is ac ion and lea ning ou comes was s udied,
and bo h aspec s we e quan i ied. In he ollowing subsec ions, a e p esen ing he con ex
o his wo k, he design o he gami ica ion o he labo a o y sessions is desc ibed in de ail.
Subsequen ly, he p ocedu e o assessing lea ning ou comes, as well as he su ey and
p ocedu e designed o assessing s uden sa is ac ion, a e explained.
2.1. Pa icipan s and Con ex
The p esen s udy was pe o med a he Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y, in Bilbao
(Spain). All pa icipan s we e i s -yea enginee ing s uden s a ending he labo a o y
sessions o he In oduc o y Physics o Enginee ing cou se (see Syllabus in Appendix A). In
hese sessions, he s uden s wo ked in g oups o h ee o i e (he ea e deno ed labo a o y
g oups). Eigh labo a o y sessions we e conduc ed pe academic yea ( ou wo-hou
sessions/semes e , a session pe mon h), wi h he i s h ee ac ing as in oduc o y sessions.
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 3 o 14
In he subsequen sessions (non-in oduc o y sessions), he s uden s we e asked o s udy a
physics-associa ed phenomenon based on de ined and limi ed p e ious knowledge: hey
we e equi ed o apply he scien i ic me hod, s a ing om he s ep o hypo hesis o mu-
la ion, and o comple e he en i e p ocedu e by submi ing a epo o hei wo k. Each
labo a o y g oup submi ed a epo pe labo a o y session and ecei ed he co esponding
eedback and a sco e. A majo goal o he labo a o y sessions is o s uden s o acqui e
he skills equi ed o co ec ly apply he scien i ic me hod, including he necessa y da a
analysis concep s, and o p oduce p ope epo s o hei in es iga ion. Many s udies ha e
epo ed he bene i s o expe imen al o open-ended me hods in p omo ing he acquisi ion
o such skills [
26
–
30
]. Du ing he 2019/20 academic yea , wo ypes o lea ning dynamics
we e applied o implemen hese open-ended me hods in wo andomly o med g oups:
gami ied lea ning (G g oup wi h 136 s uden s) and non-gami ied lea ning (NG g oup, he
con ol g oup wi h 120 s uden s).
2.2. Desc ip ion o Gami ied and Non-Gami ied Dynamics
No ice use s o en ha e ouble in comp ehending he scien i ic me hod [
31
]. In he
pas ew yea s, de iciencies in he applica ion o he scien i ic me hod and da a analysis
ha e been epo ed. The e o e, ou ins uc o eam ini ially implemen ed he non-gami ied
labo a o y eaching me hod desc ibed in [
30
,
32
], consis ing o wo in oduc o y sessions
add essing hese de iciencies.
In he i s in oduc o y session, he scien i ic me hod was explained, and he ocus
was on he o mula ion o hypo heses and expe imen al design. S uden s we e equi ed o
comple e se e al exe cises (selec ing alid hypo heses om a lis , p oposing an expe imen-
al design o a gi en hypo hesis, and inally p oposing a hypo hesis and i s co esponding
expe imen al design), based on he eading ma e ial ha hey we e gi en a he beginning
o he cou se.
The second in oduc o y session ocused on he analysis o expe imen al da a, includ-
ing aspec s ega ding expe imen al e o s, selec ion o meaning ul me hods o plo ing
da a, analysis o he g aphical ep esen a ions and pe o ming adequa e eg essions. Again,
he s uden s we e equi ed o comple e se e al da a-analysis ela ed asks wi hin he scope
o a gi en in es iga ion, including he p ocedu es ha would be equi ed in he subsequen
labo a o y sessions. This non-gami ied ins uc ion in labo a o y me hods was used in he
con ol labo a o y g oup in his s udy (g oup NG).
The gami ica ion discussed he e was applied in wo s ages. Fi s , he in oduc o y
sessions we e gami ied h ough he in oduc ion o a leade boa d as a game elemen in
each session. Second, a anking o he labo a o y g oups du ing he en i e cou se was
pe o med o encou age compe i ion, whe ein collabo a ion among eamma es is essen ial
o achie e a sha ed objec i e [33]. G oup G was ained using hese me hods.
Th ee in oduc o y sessions we e ca ied ou o he G g oup. The i s session co e ed
he g aphical ep esen a ion o da a and quali a i e and quan i a i e analysis o g aphs.
The s uden s we e gi en a ic ional con ex , in which hey we e equi ed o assume he
oles o echnicians a an amusemen pa k and analyze whe he a Fe is wheel unc ioned
acco ding o i s echnical speci ica ions. The labo a o y wo k was based on a pa ially
incomple e expe imen al da a se (i.e., a able consis ing o posi ion- ime alues in which
some pa s o he heade s and he da a we e missing, and he e o e i was no ob ious
wha kind o da a i co esponded o). The s uden s we e equi ed o deduce wha physical
magni ude was hidden in he da a in he ables and de e mine he speci ics o he physical
phenomenon ha was being in es iga ed h ough he quan i a i e analysis o he g aphical
ep esen a ions o he da a. The s uden s we e guided h ough he exe cise. To ensu e ha
s uden s we e no s uck a any pa icula s ep, hin s we e p o ided o he mos di icul
asks; hese hin s we e p og ammed o be displayed on a sc een a e he es ima ed ime
equi ed o pe o m he co esponding ask had elapsed. The ole-playing aspec o his
ac i i y and he deduc i e ype o guesswo k ha s uden s we e equi ed o pe o m o
in e p e he gi en incomple e da a se s we e pa o he gami ica ion designed o his
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 4 o 14
labo a o y session. Fas e comple ion o a ask was awa ded highe sco es i he esul s
we e co ec .
The second gami ied in oduc o y session co e ed he handling o expe imen al e o s.
The s uden s we e gi en a new ic ional con ex , in which hey we e asked o assume
he ole o scien is s. He e, he s uden s comple ed a se ies o calcula ions based on he
expe imen ally measu ed da a o a gi en in es iga ion. Again, p og ammed ips we e
used o ensu e ha all g oups comple ed he assignmen in ime. In his case, he s uden s
ecei ed immedia e eedback a e each ask, and we e allowed o ea emp he asks
un il hey we e co ec ly comple ed. Mo e co ec esponses and as e esponses ecei ed
highe sco es.
Finally, a hi d in oduc o y session co e ed he o mula ion o hypo heses and expe i-
men al design. S uden s we e p o ided wi h an online quiz, in which hey we e equi ed o
selec he co ec hypo hesis o expe imen al design among se e al p oposals in di e en
si ua ions. Selec ing he co ec esponse o one si ua ion would unblock he nex one.
Fas e comple ion o asks esul ed in highe sco es.
A e all h ee in oduc o y sessions we e comple ed, each g oup ecei ed a single
sco e, ob ained as he sum o he h ee in oduc o y sessions’ sco es. This single sco e
de e mined he ini ial posi ion in he anking. The anking posi ion o each labo a o y
g oup a ied h oughou he cou se, acco ding o he sco e ob ained in he epo s o he
subsequen labo a o y sessions (non-in oduc o y sessions).
2.3. Assessmen o S uden Sa is ac ion h ough a Su ey
All pa icipan s we e asked o a e hei sa is ac ion wi h di e en aspec s o he
lea ning ac i i y by using a sui able measu ing ins umen based on he wo k o [
34
,
35
]. The
ins umen consis ed o a su ey composed o 16 i ems (ques ions) in h ee ca ego ies: (M)
mo i a ion, (C) commi men and a i ude and (A) subjec -associa ed knowledge, ma e ials
and sui abili y (see Table A1 in Appendix B). The i ems we e e alua ed on a i e-poin
Like scale [
36
]: (1) s ongly disag ee, (2) disag ee, (3) neu al, (4) ag ee and (5) s ongly
ag ee. These Like - ype i ems we e combined in o a single composi e sco e/ a iable o
each o he main hemes, a ing s uden sa is ac ion. Combined i ems p o ide a measu e o
a pe sonali y ai [37].
2.4. Assessmen o Lea ning Ou comes
We e alua ed he e ec s o he gami ica ion o he in oduc o y sessions and o main-
aining a anking o he en i e cou se. A ub ic consis ing o 40 i ems was used o assess
he epo s submi ed by he s uden s a e each non-in oduc o y session. A o al o 21 o
he 40 i ems we e ela ed o he skills co e ed in he in oduc o y sessions in bo h G and
NG g oups, and hose 21 i ems we e selec ed o e alua e he lea ning ou come. Table 1
summa izes he skills e alua ed and he numbe o i ems o each ca ego y (see he lis o all
i ems in Table A2, Appendix B). Fo each i em, he only wo op ions we e “OK” (indica ing
ha he s uden s showed a sa is ac o y deg ee o achie emen o ha pa icula skill) o
“no OK” (when a pa icula skill was no su icien ly de eloped). The success pe cen age
in a g oup was measu ed as he pe cen age o he o al numbe o OK sco es o each i em.
2.5. Da a Analysis
2.5.1. Analysis o he S uden Sa is ac ion Su ey
Validi y and In e nal Consis ency
The alidi y and in e nal consis ency o he Like scale ques ionnai e e e s o he
gene al ag eemen be ween mul iple Like -scale i ems ha composed a composi e sco e o
he su ey measu emen o each cons uc . Validi y was de e mined by applica ion o a
co ela ion ma ix o he a iables o cons uc s used o combine i ems (M, C and A), and
C onbach’s alpha [38] was used o assess in e nal consis ency.
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 5 o 14
Table 1.
Summa y o he skill ca ego ies used o he e alua ion o he e ec o he gami ica ion.
The collec ed da a co espond o he epo s submi ed a e he i s (23 o which we e submi ed
by g oup G and 20 by g oup NG) and he second ( o which 10 epo s came om g oup G and
15 om g oup NG) non-in oduc o y sessions. I is common o a signi ican ac ion o he s uden s
o d op ou du ing he cou se, which explains he lowe numbe o da a collec ed a e he second
non-in oduc o y labo a o y session. A de ailed lis o he 21 i ems used o he e alua ion o he
e ec o he gami ica ion is shown in Table A2, Appendix B.
I em Ca ego y E alua ed Skill Numbe o I ems
Hypo heses P oposal o hypo heses 3
Fo mula ion o hypo heses 2
Expe imen al
design and se up
Expe imen al design 4
Expe imen al se up 2
Analysis o he
esul s
P esen a ion o expe imen al
condi ions and collec ed da a 2
G aphical ep esen a ion and
quan i ica ion 5
E o handling 1
Adequa e exp ession o he
measu emen s 2
The no mali y Shapi o–Wilk es indica ed ha he da a dis ibu ion signi ican ly
di e ed om no mali y. Consequen ly, he non-pa ame ic ank-based Spea man co ela-
ion es was applied o he co ela ion ma ix. This ma ix showed he in e -i em sco e
co ela ion and he i em o al co ela ion, hus yielding a o al sco e o each i em and hen
co ela ing each i em’s sco e wi h he o al sco e.
The adi ional alpha coe icien [
38
] may no be obus o he iola ion o he no mal
assump ion and missing da a. Non-no mal da a end o esul in addi ional e o o bias in
es ima ing in e nal-consis ency eliabili y, hus making he alpha coe icien o he sample
less accu a e [
39
]. Consequen ly, he obus C onbach alpha [
40
] was used o explo e he
eliabili y o in e nal consis ency o he ques ionnai e. Wi h his me hod, obus con idence
in e als we e es ima ed o he alpha coe icien . In addi ion, he alpha coe icien was
es ima ed h ough emo al o i ems o each o he h ee a iables measu ing sa is ac ion.
E ec s o Gami ica ion Sessions on S uden Sa is ac ion
The su ey was conduc ed among s uden s ained in he adi ional and gami ied
sessions. The e ec o he gami ied sessions on s uden s’ sa is ac ion wi h he lea ning
expe ience was es ed wi h he Wilcoxon ank-sum es wi h con inui y co ec ion, because
he da a dis ibu ion signi ican ly di e ed om no mali y. Simila ly, he e ec s o gende
and cou se epe i ion on he s uden s’ sa is ac ion wi h he lea ning expe ience we e
explo ed wi h he same es .
2.5.2. Analysis o Lea ning Ou comes
The da a om he s uden s’ e alua ions o bo h gami ied and non-gami ied sessions
we e no no mally dis ibu ed. The 2
×
2 con ingency and expec ed equency ables we e
c ea ed o he ca ego ies p esen ed in Table 1. Because he sample was small, and/o he
expec ed coun s we e lowe han 5% in some cases, he independence be ween he ac o s
o gami ica ion and lea ning ou come (success) was es ed wi h nonpa ame ic Fishe ’s
exac es [41] ins ead o he mo e common chi-squa e es .
The da a we e analyzed in R 4.0.3 so wa e [
42
]. Speci ically, he in e nal consis ency
o he ques ionnai e was explo ed wi h he R package alpha coe icien . The ollowing R
packages we e also used o gene a e he esul s p esen ed: psych, co plo , co , mul iplo ,
dply , Pe o manceAnaly ics and Hmisc.
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 6 o 14
3. Resul s
3.1. Sa is ac ion, Su ey Validi y and In e nal Consis ency
O e all, in e -i em and i em o al co ela ions we e signi ican o he ca ego ies M,
A and C, which showed mode a e and s ong posi i e co ela ions, pa icula ly wi h he
o al a e age sco e (see Figu e 1 o ca ego y M, and Figu es A1 and A2 in Appendix B o
ca ego ies C and A, espec i ely). The non-linea i ed cu es o e all indica ed a epe i i e
pa e n o posi i e ela ionships. The i ems in ca ego y M showed he highes signi ican
co ela ion among i ems and wi h he o al a e age sco e. I ems M3 and M4 showed he
highes co ela ion. Fo ca ego ies A and C, he in e -i em and i em o al co ela ions we e
also signi ican , and mode a e posi i e co ela ions we e obse ed o mos i ems.
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, x FOR PEER REVIEW 6 o 16
2.5.2. Analysis o Lea ning Ou comes
The da a om he s uden s’ e alua ions o bo h gami ied and non-gami ied sessions
we e no no mally dis ibu ed. The 2 × 2 con ingency and expec ed equency ables we e
c ea ed o he ca ego ies p esen ed in Table 1. Because he sample was small, and/o he
expec ed coun s we e lowe han 5% in some cases, he independence be ween he ac o s
o gami ica ion and lea ning ou come (success) was es ed wi h nonpa ame ic Fishe ’s
exac es [41] ins ead o he mo e common chi-squa e es .
The da a we e analyzed in R 4.0.3 so wa e [42]. Speci ically, he in e nal consis ency
o he ques ionnai e was explo ed wi h he R package alpha coefficien . The ollowing R
packages we e also used o gene a e he esul s p esen ed: psych, co plo , co , mul iplo ,
dply , Pe o manceAnaly ics and Hmisc.
3. Resul s
3.1. Sa is ac ion, Su ey Validi y and In e nal Consis ency
O e all, in e -i em and i em o al co ela ions we e signi ican o he ca ego ies M,
A and C, which showed mode a e and s ong posi i e co ela ions, pa icula ly wi h he
o al a e age sco e (see Figu e 1 o ca ego y M, and Figu es A1 and A2 in Appendix B o
ca ego ies C and A, espec i ely). The non-linea i ed cu es o e all indica ed a epe i-
i e pa e n o posi i e ela ionships. The i ems in ca ego y M showed he highes signi i-
can co ela ion among i ems and wi h he o al a e age sco e. I ems M3 and M4 showed
he highes co ela ion. Fo ca ego ies A and C, he in e -i em and i em o al co ela ions
we e also signi ican , and mode a e posi i e co ela ions we e obse ed o mos i ems.
Figu e 1. The equency dis ibu ion o sco es o each i em esponse in ca ego y M, bo h indi idu-
ally (M1–M6) and combined (sco e), is p esen ed on he diagonal. Below he diagonal, he bi a ia e
sca e plo s wi h a i ed non-linea cu e a e displayed. Abo e he diagonal, he alue o he in e -
i em co ela ion and he co ela ion o each i em wi h he o al sco e (Spea man ank) a e plo ed.
The signi icance le el is indica ed wi h symbols “***”, “**”, “*”, “.” and “ ”, deno ing p- alues o
0.001, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1 and 1, espec i ely.
Figu e 1.
The equency dis ibu ion o sco es o each i em esponse in ca ego y M, bo h indi idually
(M1–M6) and combined (sco e), is p esen ed on he diagonal. Below he diagonal, he bi a ia e sca e
plo s wi h a i ed non-linea cu e a e displayed. Abo e he diagonal, he alue o he in e -i em
co ela ion and he co ela ion o each i em wi h he o al sco e (Spea man ank) a e plo ed. The
signi icance le el is indica ed wi h symbols “***”, “**”, “*” and “.”, deno ing p- alues o 0.001, 0.01,
0.05 and 0.1, espec i ely.
The obus C onbach alpha wi h 95% con idence in e als was es ima ed o all i ems,
oge he and sepa a ely, o each o he ca ego ies. The alpha coe icien was 0.89 (0.84, 0.94)
(a e age alpha (Lowe CI, Uppe CI)) o all i ems, hus sugges ing a high o e all in e nal
consis ency o he ques ionnai e. The in e nal consis ency o ca ego y M was he highes
among all h ee ca ego ies, wi h an alpha coe icien o 0.87 (0.81, 0.93).
The alpha coe icien was also es ima ed o each ca ego y a e emo ing, in u n,
each i em o he ca ego y (see Table 2 o ca ego y M and Table A3 in Appendix B o
ca ego ies C and A). Fo ca ego y M, emo ing i ems esul ed in a maximum inc ease in
he a e age (whole M-scale) alpha, om an alpha o 0.87 o 0.88. This inc ease was no
s a is ically signi ican , gi en he con idence in e al and s anda d e o ; ha is, o his
ca ego y, none o he i ems we e edundan o unnecessa y.
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 7 o 14
Table 2.
A e age coe icien alpha, CI and SE i an i em is d opped o ca ego y M. Rows M1–M6
p esen coe icien alpha when ha i em is d opped om he ques ionnai e. The las ow, M, p esen s
he alue o alpha o he whole scale o he ca ego y, wi h no d opped i ems.
I ems M
alpha Lowe CI Uppe CI SE
M1 0.85 0.75 0.95 0.05
M2 0.88 0.79 0.97 0.04
M3 0.83 0.70 0.96 0.06
M4 0.86 0.76 0.96 0.05
M5 0.85 0.74 0.96 0.05
M6 0.87 0.78 0.96 0.05
M0.87 0.81 0.93 0.03
3.2. E ec s o Gami ied Sessions on S uden Mo i a ion
S uden mo i a ion was assessed using he answe s o ca ego y M o he sa is ac ion
ques ionnai e. The a e age sco es ob ained in his ca ego y we e 3.71
±
0.76 (mean
±
SD)
o g oup G and 3.40
±
0.55 o g oup NG. The e ec o gami ied sessions on mo i a ion
was signi ican (Wilcoxon ank-sum es : W = 1617, p= 0.002).
The e ec s o gende and cou se epe i ion on s uden sa is ac ion we e es ed o de ec
addi ional ac o s a ec ing s uden sa is ac ion. No e ec o hese wo ac o s was obse ed
(W = 88, p- alue = 0.8741 o gende and W = 100, p- alue = 0.831 o cou se epe i ion).
3.3. E ec s o Gami ied Sessions on Lea ning Ou comes
Se e al signi ican di e ences we e obse ed o g oups G and NG, based on he
esul s shown in Table 3. Acco ding o he da a co esponding o he i s session epo , he
s uden s om g oup G ob ained mo e sa is ac o y esul s in he o mula ion o hypo heses,
speci ically o he i ems assessing he alidi y o he hypo heses and hei co ec o mula-
ion (Table A2 in Appendix B). Mo eo e , hey also ob ained be e esul s in he “analysis
o esul s” sec ion, and his e ec was pa icula ly signi ican o he calcula ion o e o s
and exp ession o measu emen s.
The di e ences be ween g oups G and NG we e less ele an in he second-session
epo s and he ca ego ies ha showed signi ican di e ences in he i s epo became
less di e en ia ed. Howe e , new signi ican di e ences we e de ec ed in he ca ego ies o
expe imen al design and g aphical ep esen a ion and quan i ica ion.
Table 3.
Fishe ’s exac es esul s (p- alue) and he pe cen age o s uden s wi h success ul esul s.
Resul s o g oups G ( ained wi h a gami ied me hodology) and NG ( ained wi h a adi ional
non-gami ied me hodology) in bo h i s and second labo a o y epo s. A p- alue < 0.05 (in bold *)
indica es a signi ican associa ion be ween he eaching me hod and lea ning success.
Fi s Labo a o y Repo Second Labo a o y Repo
G oup G G oup NG p-Value G oup
G
G oup
NG p-Value
Hypo heses
P oposal o
hypo heses
(3 i ems)
100% 91% 0.044 *96% 100% 0.50
Fo mula ion o
hypo heses
(2 i ems)
98% 89% 0.046 *97% 82% 0.08
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 8 o 14
Table 3. Con .
Fi s Labo a o y Repo Second Labo a o y Repo
G oup G G oup NG p-Value G oup
G
G oup
NG p-Value
Expe imen al design and
se up
Expe imen al design
(4 i ems) 48% 43% 0.88 69% 46% 0.03 *
Expe imen al se up
(2 i ems) 34% 15% 1.0 45% 42% 1.0
Analysis o esul s
P esen a ion o
expe imen al condi ions
and collec ed da a
(2 i ems)
72% 48% 0.27 85% 70% 0.23
G aphical ep esen a ion
and quan i ica ion
(5 i ems)
69% 62% 0.88 64% 56% 0.04 *
E o handling
(1 i em) 30% 5% 0.05 *29% 27% 1.0
Adequa e exp ession o
measu emen s
(2 i ems)
47% 22% 0.007 *58% 33% 0.08
4. Discussion and Conclusions
The pu pose o his s udy was o analyze whe he a co ela ion exis s be ween g ea e
mo i a ion among s uden s in a i s -yea uni e si y physics cou se in an enginee ing
deg ee p og am and he lea ning ou comes conce ning he applica ion o he scien i ic
me hod in labo a o y p ac ical examina ions. A gami ica ion amewo k was designed
and applied, o achie e highe s uden mo i a ion. The co e o he gami ied ac i i ies was
applied in he ini ial in oduc o y sessions, and he mo i a ion and lea ning ou comes
we e assessed he ea e . The G g oup ecei ed one mo e in oduc o y session ( h ee
sessions) han he NG g oup ( wo sessions) due o he cha ac e is ics o he game-based
dynamic, which equi ed some mo e ime o in oducing he same concep s. Since he
same concep s we e in oduced, we do no hink his in oduces a signi ican bias in o
he s udy. Howe e , we should use cau ion when in e p e ing he esul s o lea ning
pe o mance, and ecognize ha an ex a session o he G g oup could in pa be bene i ing
he lea ning p ocess and ou comes
S uden sa is ac ion was e alua ed wi h a Like -scale- ype su ey. In e -i em co e-
la ions and obus C onbach’s alpha analysis, including dele ion diagnos ic es ing [
39
],
con i med he alidi y and eliabili y o he ques ionnai e, pa icula ly o he mo i a ion
ca ego y. The analysis indica ed ha mo i a ion was highe among s uden s in he G g oup.
Indeed, gami ica ion has been ound o be ela ed o ex insic mo i a ion, and o inspi e
in insic mo i a ion [
2
,
43
]. Re . [
2
] explo ed he ela ionship be ween gami ica ion and
mo i a ion by e iewing 32 s udies, 20 o which sugges ed ha gami ica ion inc eases
s uden mo i a ion, as obse ed he ein. Speci ically, in highe educa ion, ou esul s co-
incide wi h hose o epo s sugges ing ha gami ica ion has posi i e e ec s on in insic
mo i a ion [18,44].
Rega ding he lea ning ou comes, ou esul s sugges ha he highe mo i a ion
achie ed h ough gami ica ion ac i i ies has an o e all posi i e e ec on he acquisi ion o
he analyzed skills by s uden s. In gene al, he success a es (% o s uden s wi h success ul
esul s) achie ed by he G and NG g oups (shown in Table 3) e ol ed di e en ly. The
Educ. Sci. 2023,13, 302 9 o 14
gami ica ion p oduced an immedia e posi i e impac on he success a es ( i s epo ),
while his e ec was less e iden in he long e m (second epo ). The success a es show a
slowe and mo e p og essi e imp o emen in he NG g oup. Howe e , he esul s show
an o e all sizable e ec o gami ied ac i i ies on longe - e m lea ning pe o mance. This
is in line wi h he conclusions de i ed om a me a-analysis o 24 s udies conduc ed in
Re . [
45
]. The less-e iden e ec o gami ica ion obse ed in he second epo and he
po en ially long- e m dec ease in lea ning pe o mance needs o be ca e ully in es iga ed.
Speci ically, he leade boa d cons uc ed o mo i a e s uden s in he gami ied lea ning
en i onmen is a c i ical s ep, since hese boa ds can ha e some limi a ions associa ed
wi h hei design. In gami ied lea ning en i onmen s such as he one he e, s uden s
ecei e eedback on hei exe cises h ough a leade boa d, and hey a e ewa ded o
hei accomplishmen s [
46
]. Some imes he gap be ween lea ne s in e ms o lea ning
pe o mance can be wide, and lea ning mo i a ion dec eases, pa icula ly o hose in
he lowe anks when hei achie emen s a e compa ed wi h hose o he high- anked
lea ne s [
47
]. This po en ially nega i e e ec o he leade boa ds can be success ully
add essed by applying some design p inciples ha minimize ela i e dep i a ion and
lea ne s’ expe iences o ailu e and maximize lea ne s’ expe ience o success [46]
A pa allel eading o he esul s shown in Table 3can be achie ed h ough analyzing
he s a is ical signi icance (p- alues < 0.05, ma ked wi h an as e isk) o he i ems associa ed
wi h he skills e alua ed in he epo s. The signi ican alues demons a ed a posi i e
associa ion be ween gami ica ion and lea ning success in he co esponding skill. The
esul s o he i s epo showed signi ican di e ences be ween he G and NG g oups in he
ca ego ies o hypo heses, e o handling and adequa e exp ession o measu emen s. In he
second epo , signi ican di e ences we e ound in wo addi ional ca ego ies: expe imen al
design, and g aphical ep esen a ion and quan i ica ion. Only he skills associa ed wi h he
expe imen al se up, and he p esen a ion o he expe imen al condi ions and collec ed da a,
did no show any signi ican di e ences in lea ning success.
Despi e he signi ican imp o emen in lea ning ou comes, due o an imp o ed mo i-
a ion h ough gami ica ion, he success a es o some e alua ed skills we e no as high
as would be desi able. A edesign o he gami ied ac i i ies di ec ed owa d hose skills
may help sol e his p oblem. The au ho s o [
45
] p oposed s udying he implemen a ion
o long- e m gami ica ion o explo e po en ial no el e ec s and o he consolida ion and
pe pe ua ion o lea ning ou comes. Fu he wo k should be pe o med o s udy his issue
in dep h.
Au ho Con ibu ions:
Concep ualiza ion, A.O., M.H. and A.S.; me hodology, A.O., M.H., J.L.Z. and
A.S.; o mal analysis, J.I., A.S. and J.L.Z.; in es iga ion, A.O., M.H., J.L.Z., J.I. and A.S; esou ces, A.O.,
M.H., J.L.Z., J.I., G.B. and A.S.; s a is ical analysis, G.B.; w i ing—o iginal d a p epa a ion, A.O., J.I.,
G.B. and A.S.; w i ing— e iew and edi ing, M.H., G.B., J.I. and A.S.; isualiza ion, G.B.; supe ision,
A.O.; p ojec adminis a ion, A.O.; unding acquisi ion, A.O., M.H. and A.S. All au ho s ha e ead
and ag eed o he published e sion o he manusc ip .
Funding:
This wo k was unded by he ice- ec o a e o Inno a ion, Social Commi men and
Cul u al Ac ion o he Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y h ough SAE-HELAZ (PIE 2019-20, 83).
Ins i u ional Re iew Boa d S a emen : No applicable.
In o med Consen S a emen :
In o med consen was wai ed because he su ey was anonymous
and he pa icipan s could no be iden i ied, hus complying wi h he Spanish Da a P o ec ion and
Digi al Righ s Ac 3/2018 ( he “Da a P o ec ion Ac ”).
Da a A ailabili y S a emen :
Da a may be a ailable o o he esea che s unde easonable e ms
o use. Que ies abou he e ms o use and eques s o da a should be add essed o he p incipal
in es iga o o he esea ch eam, Ana Oka iz ([email p o ec ed]).
Con lic s o In e es : The au ho s decla e no con lic o in e es .
