Designing ways for learners to exercise autonomy in their online courses can yield gains in engagement, retention, and mastery. Looking to the world of game design provides a helpful analogy.
This article is part of a series exploring the intersections of game and learning design.
We are wrapping up our brief overview of how the essential mechanisms of gameplay (the elements of a game that make it a game) are also vital in creating effective and engaging learning environments.
In prior articles, we saw how clear goals and regular feedback make games compelling and player actions meaningful. The same strategies enhance online learning experiences: clear goals (instructional learning objectives) and regular feedback (such as formative assessment) serve to render the learner’s efforts relevant and authentic.
Now, let’s turn our attention to the final crucial component of gameplay: a sense of autonomy.
Autonomy in Games
Keith Burgun, whose framework we’ve been following, refers to the sense of autonomy element as “decision-making.” Survivor challenge designer Nick Metzler refers to it as “voluntary action.” Halo creator Jason Jones calls it “empowering the player.” All point to the same fundamental idea: providing the player with a feeling of control and involvement through the rules, mechanics, and interactions in the system.
For an interactive system to be a game at all, players must take actions of their own devising. Though the possibilities are constrained by the rules (any given turn at chess, for instance, has a strikingly finite number of options prescribed by the rules), players creatively craft their moves from an array of variables within the game and in their minds.
Players do not react robotically to the game’s inputs. Rather, they bring their intelligences and personal styles to bear on the gameplay. They evaluate the feedback presented by the concrete realities of the game and make personal decisions about how to win.
Put another way, player agency is designed into the game. Unambiguous goals and a steady flow of feedback lay a foundation for the player to tap analytical and creative powers to exert control and influence the game’s outcome at every turn.
Autonomy in Learning
Likewise, learners should have the opportunity to absorb and invest themselves in the learning environment.
A course designed so learners make meaningful, individual choices about how they access, practice, and demonstrate mastery of the content and skills can foster their sense of ownership in the learning process.
Proponents of Universal Design for Learning have advocated for this for some time. Furthermore, research shows that self-determination improves retention—so long as the choices are presented in ways that are non-trivial and engage the learner on the personal/human level of her prior knowledge, experiences, values and beliefs.
Here are a few ideas to get the ball rolling. Of course, the list below isn’t comprehensive and does contain some overlap. Still, it provides a starting point for offering learners opportunities to make decisions and interact with their learning.
- Choice of Project Topic: Allowing learners to choose topics they are enthusiastic about is a standard practice in higher ed research projects. It is also a high-value strategy. Whether you offer pre-determined topics, invite learners to propose their own (see next bullet), or both (a great strategy that offers guidance to learners that need support in deciding), the choice fosters a deeper connection to the material.
- Proposals: Having learners submit project topic proposals early in the process empowers them to take charge. It has the benefit, too, of giving instructors the chance to provide feedback and ensure alignment with course goals and remediate misunderstanding for learners veering off-course. Decisions are most meaningful when accompanied by feedback, building confidence and stoking ownership in the task.
- Flexible Delivery Mode: Where appropriate, allowing learners to choose the format in which they will demonstrate mastery can make for an engaging, authentic, and memorable experience. For example, Learner A might choose to submit an essay while learner B prefers delivering a presentation. Learner C might prefer making and uploading a humorous video skit that satisfies the assignment. The challenge here for us is designing a rubric that can accommodate multiple modes of delivery with integrity. In our example, executing the skit should require no less mastery of the objectives than the essay. All allowed modes must be sufficiently rigorous and aligned to the learning objectives.
- Choices in Smaller Assignments: Extend decision-making to weekly activities and assessments. Offering options of discussion prompts, for example, encourages more authentic, high-value responses. As another example, social annotation of texts,
- Grading Contracts: This approach allows learners to set their own goals, choose assignments, and collaborate with the instructor to determine the grade they want to achieve. This strategy transports the decision-making covered in the above bullets to the entirety of the course, asking students to plan for and wrestle with the “big picture” of the course early and often. It is a holistic way to build up a sense of autonomy throughout the course, encouraging learners to take ownership of their learning process and align their efforts with their personal interests and strengths. (See alternative grading methods).
- Reflection on Choices: Incorporating reflective writing helps learners think critically about their decisions and understand their rationale, which fosters confidence and intrinsic motivation. These may be required assignments, but there are no wrong answers. Maybe, for instance, a learner chose to write about Frankenstein because he has fond memories of watching the film with his grandpa. That’s reason enough – and for the learner, making that connection is a boon to personal investment in the activity.
Conclusion
Exploring the similarities inherent between great games and great learning experiences can lead to better learning design. The design choices involved in creating engaging games also make learning function in a profound way.
A game, after all, is designed with the human at its center. It’s a safe environment designed for applying one’s mental efforts, analytical and creative, toward a goal by having some fun figuring out what to do with the feedback received at each step of the way. The best online learning experiences fit that same description.