Impact of Gamified Problem Sheets in Seppo on Self-Regulation Skills

Abstract

Problem-solving competency is important not only in many careers but also in everyday life. Successful problem solvers regulate their cognitive processes and emotions. Our research aimed to study the impact of gamified problem sheets designed in Seppo on self-regulated learning skills. The intervention was carried out with second-year students in the specialization of Primary and Preschool Pedagogy. The research tool was a self-regulated problem-solving scale that was used as a pre- and posttest. In the experimental group, gamification lasted for 6 weeks. The game had 3 levels and the players could choose exercises from any level they wished. The results show that the gamified task sheet helped students to stay motivated and made problem-solving more enjoyable, but decreased some of their self-regulated processes, such as checking the correctness of the solution or searching for more solutions. This decrease could be explained by some psychological theories, the game elements, and the rules of the Seppo gamified problem sheets used in the intervention. On the basis of the conclusions, the role of some gamification aspects in developing different self-regulated processes can be identified, and the importance of a careful design of gamified problem sheets is highlighted.