Harnessing Gamification for Educational Leadership and Its Impact on Primary and Secondary School Students’ Motivation to Learn

The intensive spread of information and communication technologies in modern society and the growing integration of digital tools into everyday life are radically transforming traditional models of learning and teaching. Representatives of the modern generation, who grew up in the digital age, demonstrate unique cognitive characteristics, diverse learning styles, and specific expectations of the educational environment. In the context of dynamic changes in the educational environment, introducing innovative didactic methods and technologies based on ICTs contributes to both the activation of cognitive activity and the emergence of new pedagogical paradigms. The study aims to determine the effectiveness of gamification on the motivation of primary and secondary school students to learn, in particular, by surveying to assess its ability to change the level of learning activity, increase interest in the learning process and stimulate positive motivational behaviour of students in the context of integrating gamification elements into the educational process. Research methods: comparative analysis, systematisation, generalisation, and survey. Results. The survey found that platforms such as Kahoot and Minecraft: Education Edition have shown high efficiency in increasing motivation and developing key competences. At the same time, less popular tools need further optimisation. The high correlation coefficient (.99) between the popularity of platforms and their ability to motivate students indicates a strong positive relationship between these characteristics, which confirms the effectiveness of using gamification platforms to increase motivation. The study found that using gamification in the educational process significantly improves students’ motivation and performance, particularly by increasing the high level of development of key parameters such as motivation to learn, creative thinking and the ability to work independently. Gamification has been shown to impact the learning process positively: 63 per cent of students reported improved attention, 58 per cent reported increased interest in learning, and 70 per cent reported easier memorisation. The study found that 65 per cent of students felt more emotionally satisfied, and 70 per cent became more actively involved in learning. It was determined that gamification is most often implemented in the Ukrainian language and mathematics (35.7% and 31.3%, respectively). It was found that the main methods of gamification used by teachers include virtual awards (85%), interactive games (80%) and mobile applications.