Gamification for Learning Sustainability in the Blackboard System: Motivators and Obstacles from Faculty Members' Perspectives

Gamification is one of the basic components that enhance the sustainability of learning management systems (LMSs) in improving learning outcomes and motivating learners to face challenges and continue effectively in implementing educational tasks. Some of the LMSs do not have an integrated structure for gamification, but there are some simple tools that can be relied upon in managing gamification processes, and among these is the Blackboard system. Blackboard is witnessing a high level of use in the educational process within King Abdulaziz University, as it has been the main e-learning system at the university since the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, the present study was an attempt to identify the motivators and obstacles of employing gamification through the Blackboard system from the faculty members' point of view. The study relied on the interpretive paradigm, where a phenomenological approach was used to find out the motivators that encourage 12 faculty members at King Abdulaziz University to use gamification via Blackboard, and to identify the obstacles that might dissuade them. The results of the study were as follows: the main motivators included attracting attention, engaging in learning, motivation, and entertainment, while the main obstacles included time, digital skills, technical issues, lack of resources, contentment, and indifference. The results of this study suggest that while there are motivators for faculty members to employ gamification in electronic courses, there are still the same number of obstacles facing staff members in employing gamification in digital learning environments. © 2023 by the authors.

Gamified Platforms: The Impact of Digital Incentives on Engagement in Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Gamified platforms have a great role in motivating students to proceed with enthusiasm in learning events and activities. The COVID-19 pandemic has generated some tensions and pressures that were reflected on students' engagement in learning when studying through digital platforms. Accordingly, this research examines the impact of using gamified platforms on engagement in learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The quasi-experimental approach was used to compare the first experimental group that used the G1-Gamified platforms and the second experimental group that used the same platform but not gamified and was referred to as G2-Non-gamified platforms. The research sample in the quantitative study consisted of 60 students from the tenth grade in Jeddah, who were randomly distributed to the two research groups. A measure of engagement in learning has been developed and consisted of three themes with a total of 24 items. The results showed the preference of the first experimental group, which used gaming platforms, in improving indicators of engagement in learning through educational platforms during the pandemic. The research recommended the need to employ digital incentives such as points, badges, levels, and leaderboards in digital platforms to increase the effectiveness of these platforms in improving learning outcomes. © 2022, Logos Verlag Berlin GmbH. All rights reserved.