Gamification of a “geomorphology” bachelor’s degree course

To increase the engagement of the students and to explore alternative teaching activities, a didactical experiment was carried out at the University of Firenze (Italy): the teaching course “Basic elements of geomorphology” was reorganized to include relevant elements of gamification. The main one was a competition among the students based on a serial quiz game, which was carried out at the end of each lesson. This activity was called “Who wants to be a geomorphologist?”, clearly paraphrasing a notorious TV show. The students used their mobile device to access a series of quizzes, previously prepared by the teacher to test the reasoning skills of the students, their ability to make connections between distinct topics, and their capability to enter in a “geomorphological state of mind”. Each participant scored some points based on the answers provided and a general ranking was updated after each lesson. The prize (a “bonus” during the final examination for the top three students) was very attractive for the students, which demonstrated a strong engagement and a positive attitude towards the gaming activity. In turn, the activity was an effective didactical tool as allowed the students to better focus on some key concepts delivered by the teacher.