Article Gold Open Access 2020

Exit for success. Gamifying science and technology for university students using escape-room. A preliminary approach

Heliyon
Journal · Vol. 6 · Issue 7 · Art. e04340
Abstract

Education; Gamification; Higher education; Escape room; Academic motivation; STEM Education; Science education; Engineering Education; There is a growing tendency to incorporate gamification activities with the aim of improving student's motivation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses. One of the strategies to apply gamification in the classroom is the use of the escape room. In this work different experiences of escape room in the context of formal university education are analysed. The analysis of students' opinions shows that such activities are well received regardless of background (engineering or education) or gender. The emotions that arise from the experience are mostly positive and the students state that they have developed both specific and transversal competencies. Finally, practical considerations are proposed based on the lessons learned from the developed experiences. © 2020 The Authors; © 2020 The Authors

Keywords

Author Keywords

Gamification Higher education Engineering education science education education STEM education Academic motivation Escape room

Index Keywords

Author Affiliations
Departamento de Didáctica de las Ciencias Experimentales y Matemáticas, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz, Badajoz, Spain
Departamento de Didáctica de las Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz, Badajoz, Spain
Departamento de Ingeniería del Diseño, Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Seville, Spain
Departamento de Ingeniería del Diseño, Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Seville, Spain, Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Energética y de Los Materiales, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz, Badajoz, Spain
Funding & Acknowledgements
Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, MINECO
Grant: GR18004
Funding text 1: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain , and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura , partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund .; Funding text 2: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain, and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura, partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
European Regional Development Fund, FEDER
Funding text 1: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain , and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura , partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund .; Funding text 2: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain, and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura, partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
Agencia Estatal de Investigación, AEI
Funding text 1: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain , and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura , partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund .; Funding text 2: This work was supported by Research Project EDU2016-77007-R (AEI/FEDER, UE) of Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain, and by Research Project GR18004 of the Regional Government of Extremadura, partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
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