Gamification has taken a new turn \u2013 one which people can hardly have failed to notice \u2013 with Pok\u00e9mon Go. Much has been said about the way it has motivated people to walk in search of the Pok\u00e9mon rewards. Clear evidence, were any needed, of the power of gamification to persuade people to do things they otherwise wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
From a technology point of view Pok\u00e9mon Go is equally interesting. Its successful use of a form of augmented reality has caught many organisations on the hop. Primarily the ones who have invested heavily in virtual reality.\u00a0 They fear the simpler to develop augmented environment offers a wider and more accessible appeal, at a cost they simply can\u2019t match.<\/p>\n
But looking at augmented reality from the wider learning angle, it is about much more than gamification. After all, if gamification is the use of gamified techniques in learning, then just adding augmented reality doesn\u2019t automatically qualify, any more than the using virtual reality does. Proper gamification only really happens we measure some kind of achievement, which is in turn relevant to the learning objectives. To do that we usually need some kind of data measure.<\/p>\n
Pok\u00e9mon Go has shown us how to integrate augmented reality and gaming. We now have to discover how to integrate augmented reality and learning.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So the creation of new worlds, or superimposing objects on the real one, does not in itself constitute \u2018gamification\u2019. We also need some kind of motivating target, which is of course the genius of Pok\u00e9mon Go. It is the objective and the challenge that motivates the learner to do the task. Augmentation merely provides the backdrop. But, my word, how useful a backdrop can the real world be when it comes to learning. Especially for aspects such as skills training and learning in hazardous situations. Could it be that \u2018augmented reality learning\u2019 is about to expand the use of devices into new areas, supporting the acquisition of apprentice\u2019s skills and new work practices previously unaddressed by elearning practitioners?<\/p>\n