Other modern forms of learning

1. Introduction

In this activity, we will talk more about two approaches that are increasingly shaping teaching in higher education and the digital environment: gamification and game-based learning, and service learning (including volunteering). Gamification uses game mechanics to enhance motivation and goal-orientation through clear rules, immediate feedback, and visible progress, while game-based learning places students in an experiential problem-solving situation. Both approaches encourage active participation, collaboration, and reflection, and are especially effective when linked to authentic tasks and supported by digital tools for simulations, progress monitoring, and formative assessment.

Community-based learning integrates academic outcomes with concrete contributions to the community. Students work on real-world challenges in partner organizations and, through structured reflection, connect theory with practice, developing professional and civic competences. Volunteering can be part of this framework or a separate activity that, if didactically focused and valued, supports similar goals.

2. Other modern forms of learning

Gamification and learning through play

Gamification is the application of game elements and game mechanics to non-gaming contexts with the aim of increasing engagement, motivation, and learning effectiveness. In education, gamification involves the use of point systems, badges, levels, challenges, and rewards to encourage student participation, develop a competitive and collaborative environment, and strengthen intrinsic motivation.

In contrast to gamification, game-based learning involves the use of games as a teaching tool. Games in this context are not just additions to teaching, but integrated tools for achieving specific learning outcomes. Educational games enable students to acquire knowledge and skills through experiential learning, simulations, and problem-solving situations that reflect real-world challenges. Gamification and games in education are based on constructivist learning theories that emphasize active student participation, contextualization of knowledge, and encouragement of reflection. Based on structured challenges and feedback, students develop critical thinking, decision-making, and collaborative competencies.

Examples of Moodle LMS activities, external plugins and functionality that can be used for gamification:

1. Badges: Badges are automatically awarded when activity completion requirements are met or point thresholds are reached. Applications include micro-goals, motivation for regular work, and badges that can be exported (published publicly).
2. Completion Tracking and Conditional Access: By setting conditions for unlocking content after a certain (set of) conditions are met, lessons are structured into “missions” and “levels” (with well-written mission-style instructions that students must complete in order to advance to the next level). Students only progress once they have met clear criteria, which reinforces focus and pacing.
3. Level Up! (external plugin for Moodle LMS): The points and levels system collects data on student activity in forums, assignments, and tests and displays progress charts. It is used for long-term motivation and to emphasize continued participation.
4. Stash (external plugin for Moodle LMS): Teachers “hide” virtual objects in parts of the course for students to find and collect. Scenarios include quests, exchanging objects for bonus attempts, or accessing additional materials.
5. Game (external plugin for Moodle LMS): Questions from the question bank (which are normally used to create tests) are turned into games like Millionaire, Hangman, crossword, etc. It is used for repeating concepts and quickly practicing terminology.
6. Quizventure (plugin): Questions from the question bank (which are normally used to create tests) are turned into an arcade shooting game where the correct answer is the “target.” It is used in short, motivational checks before class.
7. H5P interactive content: Interactive Video, Interactive Book, Question Cards, Dialogue Cards, Dictation and many other interactive content allow for scoring, instant feedback and branching. Scenarios include simulations, micro-challenges and lessons with interactive branching.
8. Lesson: Learning occurs with decisions and feedback in realistic situations. Used for case studies and multi-solution scenarios with step scoring.
9. Workshop: Peer assessment can be gamified with badges and points for quality feedback. It is suitable for projects and seminars with clear grading rubrics.
10. Completion Progress / Progress Bar (external plugin for Moodle LMS): Visual progress bars and reminders keep pace and reduce procrastination. Often combined with badges and levels.

Examples of gamification in teaching:

Example 1: “Mission to Safe Dose” in Pharmacology

Students navigate a branching lesson with clinical scenarios in the Moodle LMS. Each decision earns points and unlocks the next “levels,” and short H5P quizzes with instant feedback serve as checkpoints. Badges are awarded for topics mastered, and a progress bar reduces procrastination. A final case study integrates previous decisions and verifies learning outcomes. Leaderboards are hidden from the rest of the students, visible only to the individual student, to maintain motivation without unnecessary competition.

Example 2: “360° Campaign” in Marketing

Teams plan a mini-campaign with weekly quests. Each completed task earns points in the Level Up! add-on and unlocks a mentor tip or case study. In the workshop activity, teams earn points not only for the quality of the campaign, but also for the usefulness of the peer feedback. Through the Stash add-on, the teacher “hides” bonus resources that teams find while exploring the course. The final presentation earns more points, and the reflection sums up the achievements and connects them to the learning outcomes.

Example 3: The “Archival Enigma” in History

Students investigate a controversial local history event in a branching lesson in the Moodle LMS activity Lesson and H5P task. They learn by solving the task, for example by checking the sources of information about local history. With the Stash add-on, they collect “artifacts” of hidden documents and photographs that unlock new clues. Points in the Level Up! add-on reward the quality of notes and responsible citation, and badges are awarded for the correct evaluation of sources. They lead a discussion on causes and effects in the forum, then in the workshop they submit a mini-exhibition plan with an explanation of the narrative and conduct a peer assessment using the rubrics prepared by the teacher. The final reflection connects decisions with outcomes on critical analysis and interpretation of the past.

3. Service learning

Service-learning is a form of experiential learning that integrates learning with socially responsible action in the community. A key characteristic of this approach is the reflective component – students not only participate in activities that are beneficial to society, but also systematically reflect on these experiences in relation to academic goals, personal development and social values. This type of learning contributes to the development of social awareness, civic responsibility, ethical reflection and professional competences, especially in the context of higher education. The student learns “outside the classroom” – through concrete tasks such as working with vulnerable groups, environmental initiatives, educational assistance and similar forms of social contribution.

Service learning connects students from different studies into teams that design and implement projects to address specific community needs. In higher education in Croatia, it was experimentally introduced in 2006 at the graduate study program in Information and Communication Sciences at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, and has been implemented continuously since then. Based on John Dewey's ideas about active participation/learning, SL puts the student at the center of the process, reduces forgetting of material, and develops critical thinking and practical experiences.

SL differs from volunteering because it systematically connects fieldwork with academic outcomes and critical reflection, and it also differs from professional practice because, along with application, it specifically encourages the acquisition of new knowledge and skills for the mutual benefit of students and the community. It additionally contributes to social justice, empowers students for personal development and social inclusion, and develops civic responsibility.

Through SL, students acquire competencies important for employment that are often not part of the mandatory curriculum. They consolidate existing knowledge, develop new skills, build experience, contacts and references, and more clearly see the purpose of their studies. At the same time, the faculty's connection with the social environment is strengthened and the goals of its civic mission are achieved.

E-service learning (e-SL)

According to Dailey-Hebert and Donnelli, e-SL is a pedagogy of solidarity and collaboration that engages students through technology in inquiry, reflection, and community action. e-SL encourages students to sharpen their critical thinking and problem-solving skills while learning how to become active and engaged citizens and using digital tools. The goal of e-SL is to connect the classroom with the community by providing students with the opportunity to apply their knowledge in a real-world context. Through this approach, students become more aware of their responsibility to the community and gain a deeper understanding of social needs.

Experts from the Department of Information and Communication Sciences of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, participated in the further development of SL according to the concept of e-SL (e-service learning), as part of the European project "eSL4EU: e-Service Learning for more digital and inclusive EU Higher Education systems", resulting in a set of guidelines and tools developed for higher education teachers with the following goals:

1. build learning systems with an innovative pedagogical approach that integrates community activities into the academic curriculum
2. promote the change from the traditional community-based assistance model to a horizontal solidarity model
3. disseminate knowledge about e-SL methodologies by developing materials to train teachers to adopt e-SL in their teaching practice, guiding their students in implementing e-SL and assessing their learning while addressing the social needs of people with fewer opportunities, especially in cases of emergency situations such as a pandemic or other unforeseen difficulties
4. develop the digital skills of teachers and lecturers in higher education aimed at implementing the e-SL methodology.

The project also created a manual for teachers (in Croatian), which is available at the link.

Technological tools for e-SL

These tools can be used for e-SL:

• Social media and blog platforms: Platforms such as X (formerly Twitter), Facebook groups, WordPress or Medium can be used to share project updates, engage with the community and promote awareness of e-SL initiatives.
• Online portfolio platforms: Tools such as Mahara, Portfolium or WordPress allow students to create and showcase their digital portfolios highlighting their experiences, projects and achievements at e-SL.
• Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) Tool: Innovative technologies such as Oculus Rift or AR mobile applications offer immersive virtual augmented environments allowing students to explore virtual environments related to their projects or engage in simulations.
• Data visualization tools: Tools such as Tableau, Infogram, or Plotly allow the creation of visually compelling charts, diagrams, and interactive visualizations for analyzing and presenting data collected during e-SL activities.

4. Conclusion

Gamification and community service learning are complementary approaches that can significantly increase student engagement on the one hand and the relevance of higher education learning on the other. Gamification enhances motivation through clear goals, visible progress, and timely feedback, while CBL connects academic outcomes to authentic community problems and develops professional and civic competencies.

They yield the best results when they are clearly linked to learning outcomes, when assessment is aligned with the required competencies, and when digital tools are used purposefully and accessible. It is necessary to pay attention to scoring all these activities in an appropriate manner, protecting privacy, ethical cooperation with community partners, and realistic student workloads.

Success depends on pedagogical design and institutional support, as well as consistent formative feedback. In conclusion, the combination of these approaches transforms teaching into an experience in which students not only learn the content, but also develop self-regulation, collaborative skills and a sense of social responsibility, and the university strengthens its role in the community and promotes values such as volunteering and helping others.

5. Bibliography

Grubješić, I. (2025). Igrifikacija u visokoškolskome obrazovanju: iskustva studenata engleskoga jezika kao jezika struke. Hum, 20 (33), 50-76.

Projekt e-sl4eu: Smjernice za društveno korisno učenja za partnere u zajednici.

Projekt e-sl4eu: E-društveno korisno učenje za digitalnije i inkluzivnije sustave visokog obrazovanja u EU: Priručnik za nastavnike.

Projekt e-sl4eu: Metodologija vrednovanja i povezani materijali za ocjenjivanje ishoda učenja studenata.