Persuasion via gamification : mobile applications for supporting positive behaviour for learning (PB4L) pedagogy

Abstract

RESEARCH AIMS AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS: 1) The research study aims to evaluate how teachers are trying to implement PB4L in their classrooms and school-wide via Ka Pai app. RQ1: How does the app compare with existing methods of PB4L pedagogy in place at the school?

2) Evaluate whether the Ka Pai application provides teachers a positive experience through analytic data and teacher feedback. RQ2: How successful was the intervention regarding teacher’s enjoyment and effectiveness for meeting their PB4L pedagogical needs?

3) Prototype the inclusion of Te Reo Māori values in the application and gauge whether teachers valued this feature. RQ3: How well was Te Reo incorporated in the PB4L features of the app and what can be done to better integrate Te Reo?

Teachers in New Zealand schools are faced with a lot of paperwork for teaching and managing behaviour through the Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) initiative. PB4L was created by the Ministry of Education (MoE) of New Zealand after the Taumata Whanonga behaviour summit in 2009. PB4L pedagogy requires teachers to record and reward behaviour as part of its seven essential features. This creates more paper work for teachers as they are required to reward and correct positive and negative behaviour at a 4 to 1 ratio. The problem is the limited amount of time that teachers have to learn and implement PB4L. What is more challenging is that teachers are expected to create reward and record systems that are ubiquitous and accessible.

Teachers at Wesley Intermediate School have been looking for a fast and efficient way to reward and record behaviour since 2014. The teachers also wanted to create a digital tool for PB4L, to reinforce the use of school values based on Te Reo Māori and pro-social behaviour school-wide, but were limited in terms of technical knowledge, resourcing and research capability. We present “Ka Pai” in this thesis, a gamified mobile application prototype that uses game play mechanics in a non-game context. Gamification was used to persuade participants to use PB4L pedagogies and strategies instead of punitive ones. Ka Pai translates to “well done” in Te Reo Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand.

Ka Pai was evaluated with ten teachers at Wesley Intermediate School over a two-week period. The findings reported are based on user metric and qualitative feedback collected via indigenous research methodology called Talanoa - a form of research that enables authentic qualitative research with Pasifika people. The results show that Ka Pai was a success. The teachers used the app extensively, to grow in their knowledge of using Te Reo Māori, were recording and reporting behaviour through the app and enjoyed the use of PB4L more in their classrooms. Further research is suggested to show the impact of the Ka Pai on behaviour outcomes over a longer trial period. Future considerations for research could include, student participation, whanau (family) consultation and comparative studies with a control group/similar app for education.