Gamification as a Tool for Social Inclusion in Adult Lifelong Learning

It’s well known that older adults struggle a little bit more when learning new things, could be because their age or the world has change too fast and they feel left behind. For whatever reason, they sit quietly, listen, and avoid speaking too much. Its not because they are not interested, but because past experiences taught them to stay in the background. For some elderly, education just feels not necessary anymore, so this discourages them to even try.

In adult learning, this is something usually happens, lucky for them this is where gamification starts to make a difference not by turning learning into a game, but by changing how it feels.

When someone starts learning and just feels way too serious or demanding, people tend to dissociate. But when activities feel lighter and more approachable, something changes, makes you focus and even have fun while learning.

Gamified experiences reduce pressure, because there´s room to try, make mistakes, and keep trying without fear of being judged. Participation and interaction of people happens more naturally, you gain more confidence, and that’s why gamification works.

As adults start engaging their activities, the process of learning becomes more appealing for them. Shared challenges and simple group activities help learners in this case adults to connect with each other, being surrounded with people their age makes the mood shifts and the process learning gets easier. Instead of competing, they collaborate, feel included. For adults who have felt excluded from education whether because of unemployment, migration, or past failures this sense of belonging can be especially powerful.

What really does gamification make these experiences different and meaningful is when the process of learning connects to their context in real life. Stories and situations that feel familiar help learners see the value of what they are doing.

Basically, the process of learning feels abstract or distant, makes it useful, relevant and possible…

At first progress doesn’t need to be huge, sometimes it’s just showing up and make the best out of it, by being open minded with a great attitude, this will make the learning process way smoother. Gamification helps make these small steps visible to encourage them to keep trying.

At last lifelong learning is not about going back to school as it was before, it’s about creating spaces where adults feel welcome to return and stay.

Gamification helps create those spaces by making learning more human, more inclusive, and more supportive.

And often, that is all it takes to bring people back to learning…