Business Model behind Gamified Education

by Dongsoo Kim

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Posted on November 23, 2022

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Some business idea sounds wonderful and at a glance, it seems so promising and fun. However, it can be totally different story when you analyse its earning models and effects, feasibilities, and especially the logics behind it. Yes, while I studied and experienced several business models, I realised the logic “Why-Model-Result”(why this business is needed and how it should be structured within that reasons, and what it will bring as a result) is the most important part for planning business. Gamification of Education is not a new concepts at all and many times it failed. I am not against the gamification. However, I want to point out certain conditions would be required to make a successful, sustainable gamified education business.

Why: Gamification?

Obviously, the reason for gamification is to arouse students’ interest in study. However, it would be difficult to beat the other game solely focus on fun, especially when the edu-game requires something to memorize or its contents dig deep of certain field. Even though there are well-made edu-games around the world, however, students play the game more violent and provocative instead of edu-game, because now matter how fun the edu-game is, it needs the process of constant learnings which can exhaust players. Of course, you can say the education cannot always be memorizing knowledge and understanding deeply. I do agree with it, there must be certain way to be fun, but it is not about whether gamification or not. It is more about educational skills and models.

Model: Unflexible

Gamification can make education less flexible. Contrary to the conventional way of lecture, today’s education trend is not unilateral. People gather togeter, raise the topic by themselves and teach what they learned to each other. That is because of fast-changing information and those information can be easily obtained throughout the network. You might think of metaverse or similar platform, and I highly agree that metaverse will change the paradigm of people’s interaction and education methods. However, gamification here is not about just making platform that people can meet each other. The gamification is, programifying the education, which needs more time to create, update the contents compared to verbal lecture and text. There are so many hurdles to get through to make and update the one Software. You might already experience silly edu-game when you were young, which was so easy sometimes but keep showing those easy contents that makes you feel bored. However, in the lecture, the lecturer can switch their contents to meet students’ level and deal with certain students who excel the others. In this sense, gamification can make education more monolithic.

Result: Side effects

From school, we can earn knowledge and other ability to endure difficult texts and lectures for further education in the future. I do not think the profound knowledge and not yet discovered research which requires a lot of efforts can be earned by edu-game. However, if students get used to easy and fun ways to get knowledge, they might lose their interest or motivation to learn deeper knowledge.

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