By Betsy Hill and Roger Stark
When educators talk about gamification in schools, they usually focus on boosting student engagement and motivation. Given how many students today report feeling disconnected from schoolwork, that alone is valuable. But research shows gamification offers far more: it can build persistence and resilience, sharpen problem-solving abilities, encourage creativity, and strengthen other learning skills.
Gamification is commonly defined as the application of game-design elements and game principles in non-game contexts. Game-design elements include features such as points, badges, characters, and clear objectives. Game principles include progressive levels of difficulty, storylines that frame challenges, and rules that structure play and learning.
Applying these elements to education can seem straightforward, yet many implementations miss a crucial characteristic that makes games powerful for learning. One core feature of games is what we call the “no one dies” principle: players are free to try again after failing. Games are built around repeated experimentation and the opportunity to fail, learn, and retry. As Joey Lee and Jessica Hammer of Teachers College, Columbia University explain, many games require repeated failure as part of learning the system—each attempt teaches something new.
At its heart, gamification is therefore about learning through failure. That idea aligns closely with the research on growth mindset pioneered by Dr. Carol Dweck at Stanford. Students with a growth mindset believe intelligence and skill can be developed. They see mistakes as chances to learn rather than permanent labels of ability. This attitude—treating setbacks as information, not shame—supports deeper learning and long-term improvement.
That distinction matters because traditional educational rewards and labels often function as “badges of shame.” Grades and static labels (an “A” student, a “C” student, a student with a learning disability) can stick with learners and limit their willingness to take risks. In contrast, badges or rewards used within genuine gamified learning should signify progress and mastery, not define a student’s potential forever.
Games create a low-stakes environment where trial and error is safe. Players focus on building skills, trying new strategies, and collaborating with supports—conditions that encourage persistence. By contrast, education too often uses high-stakes, one-shot assessments that isolate students and turn evaluation into a final judgment rather than a step toward mastery.
Critics worry gamification will train students to work only for external rewards. There is reason for caution: behavioral research, including work by Mark Lepper and others, shows that offering rewards for activities children already enjoy can reduce intrinsic motivation. If a child who loves drawing begins receiving prizes for it, they may stop drawing when the rewards disappear.
To avoid that trap, design gamified learning to reinforce meaningful progress toward mastery, not to bribe participation. Rewards should acknowledge high-level achievements or milestones that matter to learning goals, and they should be integrated with feedback that helps students improve. When relevance and purpose are clear, gamification supports motivation rather than undermining it.
We have seen the link between gamification and growth mindset in classrooms. In one example, students working on a challenging group project felt stuck. One student said, “We just can’t do this. I don’t think we’ll ever figure it out.” Another student replied, “Remember when we were using BrainWare and we thought we’d never pass a level, but we kept at it and eventually did?” That shared memory of persisting through repeated attempts helped the group persevere—and they succeeded.
Designing classroom experiences that let students fail safely, learn from mistakes, and try again can create more resilient learners. Gamified activities that emphasize iterative practice, feedback, and mastery help build the habits associated with a growth mindset. In short: let students play, fail, reflect, and retry—so they learn how to learn.
For additional strategies on encouraging growth mindset in classrooms and at home, see our webinar on Fostering a Growth Mindset in Your Students and Yourself.
About the authors
Betsy Hill is President of BrainWare Learning Company, which develops tools to build learning capacity through practical applications of neuroscience. An experienced educator, she has studied the neuroscience–education connection and served on the board of trustees at Chicago State University. She teaches strategic thinking in the MBA program at Lake Forest Graduate School of Management and has received awards recognizing her contributions to learning excellence. Betsy holds a Master of Arts in Teaching and an MBA from Northwestern University and is co-author of the book Your Child Learns Differently, Now What?
Roger Stark is Co-founder and CEO of BrainWare Learning Company. Over the past decade he has worked to make cognitive literacy training and assessment accessible and affordable. He led the development of BrainWare SAFARI, an integrated online cognitive training program, and co-authored the book Your Child Learns Differently, Now What?