Gamified learning in higher education: A systematic review of the literature

Abstract The ubiquitous presence of technology in classrooms has inspired a shift from traditional classroom lectures to integrated digital learning environments. These interactive learning environments present the opportunity to evolve the teaching process through the incorporation of game elements that have been shown to capture user attention, motivate towards goals, and promote competition, effective teamwork, and communication. Gamification and game-based learning systems aim to bring these benefits into the learning and teaching process. This paper presents a systematic literature review of game-based learning systems, frameworks that integrate game design elements, and various implementations of gamification in higher education. A systematic search of databases was conducted to select articles related to gamification in education for this review. The objective is to identify how gamified learning systems can be used and categorize its usefulness in higher education. The findings of this literature review allow higher education universities to employ and explore efficient gamified learning and teaching systems to improve student engagement, motivation, and performance.