A Fun and Different Course

How Gamification Transformed an Online U.S. History Survey

Abstract

This article examines how one instructor employs the principles of gamification in an introductory U.S. history survey. Through the use of a "choose your own grading adventure," which includes 350 assessment choices, the instructor has created a course where students exercise their autonomy and demonstrate their competency over course content. The article argues that gamifying an introductory college-level survey has many advantages for students. Most notably, the course's grading adventure motivates students to complete work in one of the more difficult course modalities -- an asynchronous online learning environment -- as evidenced by the high proportion of students who earn an A each semester.