Overcoming the Instrumentalization of Gamification?

Gamification in educational technology has elicited both excitement and skepticism among educators and researchers. While advocates tout its potential to engage learners and cultivate intrinsic motivation, critics highlight its theoretical complexities and potential pitfalls. This paper delves into the paradox of gamification; meaning that gamification promises dynamic learning and yet, at the same time, condenses learning to a deterministic feedback apparatus. The paper examines the instrumentalization within gamification and the prevalent reliance on cybernetic feedback loops in educational contexts. By critically scrutinizing three hypotheses characteristic of the systematic pursuit of gamification-operational effects, the paper argues that the uncritical adoption of gamification risks oversimplifying learning processes, diminishing intrinsic motivation, and undermining the organic complexity of educational environments. To address these challenges, I stipulate two approaches that educators and technologists might adopt to reach a more nuanced and reflexive merger of technology and learning, embracing principles of participatory design, and prioritizing ethical inquiry.

Keywords: Gamification; Educational technology; Instrumentalization; Cybernetic feedback; Learning; Complexity; Intrinsic motivation; Participatory design; Ethics; Critical inquiry