GAMIFICATION AND LEARNING ENGAGEMENT AMONG PRIMARY SCHOOL PUPILS IN RIVERS STATE NIGERIA

Abstract

The study examined gamification and learning engagement among primary school pupils in Rivers
State Nigeria. Five research questions and five hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted
descriptive survey design. The population of this study comprised all primary school pupils and
teachers in Rivers State, which is approximately 40,000 primary school pupils and 15,000 teachers.
The study adopted multi-stage sampling technique to select a representative sample. In the first stage,
three local government areas (LGAs) were randomly selected from the state. In the second stage,
schools were stratified into urban and rural categories, and a total of 20 schools (10 urban and 10
rural). From these schools, 500 pupils and 50 teachers (550) was selected using stratified random
sampling, ensuring adequate representation of gender, school type, and location. The instrument for
data collection was a questionnaire titled: Gamification and Learning Engagement Questionnaire
(GLEQ). The instrument was validated by the supervisor and two other research experts from the
department of Educational Technology. The reliability coefficient of 0.87 was derived using Cronbach
alpha. Mean (x) and standard Deviation was used to answer the research questions while independent
simple t-test statistics was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the
study revealed among others that; there is a significant effect of gamification on the level of interest
in learning among primary school pupils in Rivers State, Nigeria. Gamification significantly influence
pupils' participation in classroom activities in primary schools in Rivers State. Based on the findings
the study recommended among others that: Schools in Rivers State should integrate gamified learning
techniques into their curricula. Teachers should be trained to design and implement engaging gamebased activities that align with educational objectives.