A Playful Mobile Digital Environment to Tackle School Burnout using Micro Learning, Persuasion & Gamification

Abstract

School burnout refers to exhaustion at school combined with a cynical and detached attitude towards school. It often precedes Early School Leave (ESL), which has great impact on the socioeconomic situation of a person. Numerous local programs exist to deal with school burnout and prevent ESL, but they are all very labor-intensive. To come to a less labor-intensive solution, we proposed an ICT solution. The goal was to create an engaging software environment that youngsters would use voluntarily and that could re-engage them in learning. We developed a so-called playful digital environment, called TICKLE. It allows youngsters to collect digital cards by performing associated challenges in their surroundings. The challenges are small activities intended to reactivate the youngster for learning. Persuasive principles and gamification are used to motivate the youngsters to use the tool. In this paper, we discuss the design decisions that have been taken as well as the main components of the tool.