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With the development of information technology about 40 years ago, the Age of Digitalization began. With the exception of education, it brought about significant changes in how people interacted and how companies ran. Despite the constantly changing technologies all around us, classroom learning stayed the same for a very long time. The traditional methods of reading, speaking, and writing on the chalkboard were used by the instructor as she stood in front of the class to transmit knowledge. This has also been the case up until now for architecture education. However, times are altering. Since today’s kids have grown up with digital technologies all around them, they can gain from innovative teaching strategies like gamification that will test their cognitive abilities.
Gamification for Architectural Niche Mastery
Gamification is the process of incorporating game-specific aspects, such as role-playing, challenges, levels, and rewards, into non-game contexts. According to studies, using gamification approaches in education encourages students to learn by allowing them to use their imaginations to create real-world scenarios in a virtual simulation. This practical method of learning seems almost necessary in a discipline as technical and design-focused as architecture.
Oneistox, a learning platform for architects, designers, and engineers with offices in the US and India, is one of the gamification movement’s more recent proponents. The platform has a history of employing the “white-hat” gamification strategy, which relies on rewarding behavior.
As the first and only digital learning platform to use gamification to teach building information modeling, Oneistox has emerged (BIM). According to many, BIM is the “next big thing” in architecture. It is a methodology that compiles all the data required to develop, produce, and oversee a project in a digital environment.
BIM has been one of the most sought-after and highest paying specialties in the architecture industry for a number of years. Despite this, most architects are still unable to learn BIM because it is not taught in B.Arch curricula.
A Revolutionary Method for BIM Education
Oneistox has been creating a pedagogy integrating gamification since its start in 2019 to make BIM knowledge more approachable to young professionals.
In their “BIM Professional Course,” students have a live simulation of a residential project that adheres to the RIBA standard. In this simulation, students create BIM solutions while following directions from a client and a BIM Manager and working together to complete the project.
The goal of the training is to prepare young professionals to launch their careers in the BIM industry. As a result, it starts with thorough instruction in well-known BIM programs like Revit, Dynamo, Navisworks, BIM 360, Cove.tool, etc. Along with learning BIM theory, students are guided by knowledgeable mentors in the BIM technique.
The next step is a live simulation project where students choose their avatars and play either “BIM Architect/Engineer” jobs. As is customary in role-playing or fantasy games, this is also where the idea is established. Students are informed that they have been chosen to work with a specific client and are now employees of a fictitious BIM consulting firm. By doing this, students assume responsibility for their career objectives and become more motivated to advance in the simulation.
Gamification’s Potential to Revolutionize Architecture Education
As the simulation goes on, users understand the RIBA framework’s steps and what an ISO standard and LOD are. After that, learners are given a list of activities to do in order to “unlock” further RIBA levels. They can go to the Spatial Coordination stage, the Technical Design stage, the Manufacturing stage. And so on and so forth if they finish all of the duties in the Concept Design stage, for example. These responsibilities, which include recording the brief, budgeting, developing a BIM Execution Plan, producing models, and renderings. Also, presentations for the client, doing a design study, etc. Are all drawn from how projects actually get done in the real world.
The learners receive credits for completing any activity, and the mentors then evaluate their work. Making BIM activities difficult for learners to complete increases their internal motivation to advance by giving them a sense of success. They can also monitor the outcomes of their innovation thanks to constant feedback.
Last but not least, interactive, cohort-based learning has shown to be quite effective at fostering coordination and collaboration among students. Students can up their performance throughout the project by being able to follow each other’s progress on a shared page.
Oneistox has demonstrated to the globe a significant departure from the typical cookie-cutter methodology used in the majority of architectural schools. The potential impact of their innovative philosophy for teaching in the digital age on architectural school is fascinating.
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