What is gamification?
Gamification includes incorporating game elements into non-game activities such as homework or quizzes. Common gamification platforms include Kahoot and Duolingo. This active learning strategy is a powerful tool because it directly affects students' motivations and attitudes, which, in turn, influence learning outcomes. It has been linked to increased student motivation, engagement, and course grades (da Silva et al 2022).
ISLAND C
ISLAND C is a gamified online homework system developed by the Holme group. Students are tasked with saving an island struggling with sustainability issues by answering multiple-choice conceptual chemistry questions. Different chemistry modules (first-semester general chemistry topics) are connected to specific United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Each module has multiple levels of increasing difficulty. Other game elements include badges, a point system, a progress bar, and navigation buttons (Clark and Holme 2026). If you would like to test out ISLAND C for yourself, visit the link below.
What is eye-tracking?
The part of the human eye that controls vision includes the cornea, lens, pupil, retina, and optic nerve. These components work together to enable us to see and process visual stimuli. With eye tracking, we can pinpoint exactly what part of a visual stimulus a person is looking at. The setup typically includes the eye tracker, the student, a computer screen, and the researcher. The eye tracker uses infrared technology to determine the XY location of where the viewer's visual axis intercepts the screen. We can use this information to draw conclusions about students' attention and cognitive processes when solving problems in ISLAND C.
References
Clark M.J. and Holme T.A., Journal of Chemical Education, 2026, 103, 3, 1641–1647
da Silva Júnior, J. N.; Castro, G. D. L.; Melo Leite Junior, A. J.; Monteiro, A. J.; Alexandre, F. S. O. Journal of Chemical Education 2022, 99 (2), 678–687.