Maybe iPad kids need... video games??

Keeping kids focused on education these days feels like an impossible task.

From the moment they can hold an iPad, they’re plunged into a world of flashing lights and colors, with thousands of addictive apps, games, and media just a fingertap away.

But, what if we could fight fire with fire? 🔥

Our team at AE Studio got together for a virtual roundtable to discuss:

Gamification.

AKA — how to harness the elements that make video games addictive, and use it to get kids hooked on educational technology instead.

We talked about past gaming projects we’d worked on (and games we’ve played)... the lessons we learned... and how we can apply them to Educational Tech products.

Here are two key principles we took away:

Keep ‘em playing with never-ending, nonstop novelty

Kids respond best to gameplay with constant variety and frequent hits of instant gratification.

In both EdTech apps and video games, devs must dial up these factors to 11:

1. Knowing what goals are expected of them (if it’s ambiguous, they’ll tune out)

2. Clearly visualizing their progress through badges or achievements (to create a feeling of investment)

3. Frequent, unique rewards they can use to customize their avatar and expand their skillset/exploration (collecting lots of little “goodies” for a greater purpose at the end of the journey)

This is why games like Roblox and Fortnite are so wildly popular with kids — they keep a constant gameplay loop where all three elements feed into and reinforce each other.

Make learning fun through an Unfolding experience

One of our team’s favorite video game genres is the “metroidvania.”

These are action-adventure games that use a concept we call “Unfolding” — one of the most powerful ways to turn learning into a game.

A game is Unfolding when there is a mystery to uncover, “question marks” to find, and quests to complete.

(Because otherwise, if you know everything that’s going to happen ahead of time, like in a syllabus, then it turns into a chore! 🥱)

You earn tools that allow you to unlock new areas — ones that you could see before, but couldn’t reach without a specific powerup.

Suddenly, the exploration all makes sense, and you get that amazing “AHA!” feeling.

This feels satisfying because it emulates the most natural way to learn:

You get new abilities (and information) that allow you to understand and tackle old problems in a new context!

As it applies to EdTech:

When students are given the chance to “connect the dots” on their own and come to their own conclusions, they will both remember more of what they learned and feel accomplished while doing it.

All said and done...

We could talk for days about all the topics we covered at this roundtable.

(And we’ll share more lessons in future newsletters 😀)

But it’s only one small slice of what we specialize in here at AE Studio.

Gamification is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to creating engaging, effective apps.

From fintech to healthcare, e-commerce to social platforms – we've built creative, thoughtful solutions across pretty much every industry. 

No matter what technical challenge your team is thinking through, we’re here to help you build by:

• Guiding your project with deep technical know-how

• Building your product from concept to launch

• And creating robust, efficient code that grows with you

Have an idea and want to make sure it lives up to the vision? 

Let's chat about it.

And until then...

Look out for more AE Studio Bytes every Tuesday and Thursday!