Analysis of the teaching role in a gamification proposal in the teacher’s master’s degree

Abstract

Introduction: learning environments have suffered enormous changes in the last few years, as a consequence of social transformations and the student body new demands. Furthermore, motivation in higher levels of education is related with a better academic performance, with the teaching staff role as a key aspect to have an impact on it. In this context, gamification is especially relevant, since it takes advantage of the attractiveness and significance of games and videogames to boost the implication and the learning experience. On the other hand, TV programs are a format that generates a great interest in university student. Therefore, the objective of this article is to analyse the teaching staff’s role in a gamification proposal based on the TV program Masterchef, based on the narratives of its participants, with the intention of knowing its incidence and the aspects highlighted by them. Methodology: the participants were 29 students (4 female, 25 male) from de MA in Teaching from the University of Granada. A qualitative methodology was employed, and a phenomenological study was conducted. Through an open question, and using Google Drive, the students shared, anonymously and voluntarily, their emotions, the things they learned and both the negative and positive aspects they lived throughout the experience. The analysis was done using the software Nvivo. Results: the three characteristics that the students highlighted about the professor, and that according to their narratives, had the most impact on the degree in which they took advantage of the proposal were: the levels of exigence (which made them give the better of themselves), the feedback (which favoured the learning process and the feeling of making progress) and the care for details (which contributed in the immersion of the participants and the credibility of the proposal). Conclusions: seeing the obtained results, the teacher/professor is a key differentiator element in these types of approaches, resulting in a higher degree of implication from the students and a higher degree of satisfaction with the proposal.

Keywords: teaching role, gamification, learning, university, students.