Lisa Nielsen: The Innovative Educator

Gamified Learning Can Be Powerful, Purposeful, and Fun

2026-09-18T07:19:35.044-04:00

Gamification has become another target in calls to ban or restrict technology in schools. But where is the research showing that gamification itself is harmful?

Poorly designed programs can keep students clicking for points without producing meaningful learning. That deserves scrutiny. But research also shows that well-designed gamified and game-based learning can support motivation, persistence, collaboration, creativity, and academic growth.

In my new article, Gamified Learning Can Be Powerful, Purposeful, and Fun, I examine the difference between effective and ineffective gamification through examples including Footsteps2Brilliance, Khan Academy Kids, MovieStarPlanet, and Minecraft.

Fun is not the opposite of rigor. We should evaluate what students are doing and learning, not deprive them of powerful learning experiences simply because they include games, challenges, competition, or digital rewards.

Stop Saying the Research Says All Screens Harm Children. It Doesn’t.

2026-09-17T05:41:20.025-04:00

Research about social media, cell phones, distraction, and excessive use is too often used to condemn every screen students encounter.

That is not what the research says.

A student scrolling through social media is not having the same experience as one using a device to analyze data, translate text, receive feedback, collaborate, create, or access captions and text-to-speech. Calling both “screen time” strips away the information that actually matters.

In my latest article, I examine what the research shows, where the arguments from Jared Cooney Horvath and Jonathan Haidt do and do not apply, and why returning students to paper does not automatically improve learning.

The question is not whether students are looking at a screen. The question is what they are doing, whether the technology supports learning, and whether students have meaningful choices.

[Read the full article here.]

We Bought the Devices. We Forgot the Professional Learning.

2026-09-16T05:55:09.151-04:00

My library media center in Harlem in the 90s where
students intentionally went to a space to use technology.

Schools invested heavily in devices and platforms, but too often failed to make the same investment in professional learning, coaching, and staff support. We expected classroom teachers to become technology integrators, often with little more than a device, a login, and a brief introduction to a new platform.

In We Bought the Devices. We Forgot the Professional Learning., I examine what the screen-time conversation is revealing about that approach. More technology use may shift into libraries, labs, technology classes, and other designated spaces. That could be a positive change when it connects students with educators who have the expertise and time to make technology use meaningful.

Reducing routine device use will not fix weak implementation by itself. Schools must invest in developing knowledgeable staff who can decide when technology adds value, when another approach would work better, and how to use each in service of learning.