Enhancing Student Knowledge Confidence Through Digital Gamification in Engineering

The rise of immediacy culture, emphasizing instant gratification, has led to students disengaging from taking ownership of their learning, fostering passive environments. This study addresses the issue by building students' confidence in autonomous learning through strategies that cultivate intrinsic motivation. The research aimed to assess students' motivationconfidence and satisfaction-in self-directed learning. An activity was implemented in a sophomore-level Statistics and Experimental Design (DOE) course to promote student-led learning. Teams of 4-5 engineering students designed trivia video games using Game Builder Garage (GBG) on the Nintendo Switch (NS) over one week. These games, featuring DOE-based questions, were intended to help peers prepare for the final exam. Each student generated 10 questions throughout the course, with teams selecting the best ten for their games. The activity culminated in a peer-reviewed competition and a live trivia match. Student motivation was evaluated using an adapted version of Keller's IMMS questionnaire in a PRE-POST experimental design (<tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$\mathrm{n}=55$</tex>) analyzed via paired t-tests (5 % confidence level). The findings indicated a marked improvement in confidence, while satisfaction remained unchanged. Both confidence and satisfaction are two of the four dimensions of motivation outlined in Keller's ARCS model, which forms the basis for the Keller's IMMS questionnaire used in this study. This gamification approach-having students create, not just play, educational games-fostered ownership, engagement, and responsibility, enhancing confidence in learning independently, even in technical subjects like DOE.