embedded in them for data. Then,
we processed the data using Google
spreadsheets. This was a cheap and
user/developer-friendly environment
that allowed me to make the idea a
reality.
Leveling Up
Teachers began at Level 1, where they
were given the embarrassing title
of “Noob” (a gaming term derived
from newbie). Teachers were asked
to perform tasks, or what we called
“missions,” to receive “paw points”
(our school mascot is a bulldog) and
thus reach higher levels. Completing a
Level 1 mission would award a teacher
one paw point. Once they reach 10
paw points, they graduate to Level 2
and trade their Noob title for the much
more socially acceptable “Novice.”
Level 2 missions award players 2
paw points per mission, allowing
them to advance more quickly to
higher levels. Level 3 missions offer
3 points, and so on (see the “Path to
Advancement” on page 25 for a list of
levels, names, and points).
Players quickly notice that as the
levels increase, so does the number
of paw points needed to advance.
We told teachers that they were not
allowed to do missions above their
current level, but they could go back
at any time and complete lower-level
missions to gain some more points
(gamers call this “farming”).
Missions generally revolved around
tutorials on applications for both the
PC and the iPad. We designed a single
mission to take about 15 minutes to
complete at lower levels. This allowed
teachers to work through the beginning levels rather quickly. Teachers
could watch the tutorial on You Tube
or use the version we made using
Screencast-O-Matic.
The aspect of rewards is inherent
in gamification. Because cost was a
major factor, most of the rewards in-
volved titles. Graduating from Level
1 to Level 2 gave teachers the Novice
title. Moving to Level 4 christened
them a “User,” and Level 9 elevated
them to “Tech God.” If a teacher com-
pletes, say, a set of Level 4 missions
about using Google Docs and Forms,
they may earn the title “Google Junk-
ie.” A teacher who finishes the chain
on Twitter will have the title “Twenius”
after his or her name.
These titles are posted on our leaderboard so everyone can see their
peers’ accomplishments. We found
that posting players’ progress is the
best motivator yet. Most teachers want
to be on the top of the board, and no
one wants to be at the bottom.
Creating the Game Mechanics
With all this in mind, I needed the
game to mean something to teachers
intrinsically. The progression needed
to continually engage them by having
them commit to more responsibility as
they moved on. I wanted the teachers
to feel a sense of accomplishment as
they gained confidence in high-level
technology activities. This assurance
was paramount to encouraging teachers
to implement the new technology into
their classrooms. So we designed the
game levels with three tiers in mind:
Novices. Tier I consists of Levels 1–3,
where the teachers are considered
Novices. Level 1 focuses on skills and
information that new teachers would
need to know. Level 2 offers them
some simple PC skills, and Level 3
introduces them to their iPads. Some
Level 2 missions include “I like my
browsers shiny,” a basic introduction
to Google Chrome, and “Cats playing
piano never fail to impress,” which
covers basic You Tube surfing and
video uploading.
Users. Tier II covers Levels 4–6, where
we consider teachers to be Users. These
are the levels where the teachers learn
to use different applications on PCs and
iPads. We believed that after Level 6,
teachers would be very good at finding
apps and using them. Missions include
“Student note taking (Yes, I know it’s a
far-fetched idea),” which includes train-
ing on Evernote and carries the reward
moniker of Evernotologist, and “I am a
Google junkie!,” which covers Google
Docs, Sites, Contacts, and Calendars.
Tech Geeks. In Tier III (Levels 7–9),
the missions change completely for
the new title Tech Geek. No longer
do we instruct with tutorials on apps.
Instead, we look at how they are applying them in their classrooms. A
Level 7 mission may state that it wants
teachers to videotape themselves
teaching and rate their performance
using a nationally recognized teaching survey. This type of mission would
be repeatable, as the more we can get
technology specialist teachers in a
room talking about how to teach with
technology, the better!
Level 7 is also where we introduce
crowdsourcing into the missions.
Teachers can begin by rating apps that
they find by filling out a form. The
results of these ratings are posted for
other teachers’ perusal.
Tech Geeks are also asked in this
level if they would like to improve
our earlier tutorials. This places the
creation of Mission Possible in their
hands and provides a wider variety
of missions from which users can
choose. Missions will get more content specific when teachers of English,
science, math, physical education, and
other subjects are making missions
on apps they use in class and sharing
them with their colleagues.
Some Level 8 missions include “Go
forth and spread the word,” which
covers how to find an app and rate
and share it, and “Have you ever
watched yourself teach?,” which is a
video critique.
I needed to plan a curriculum, not just a set of lessons. It needed to be ongoing, self-paced, and cheap while
giving teachers a sense of accomplishment.
