PRELIMINARY FEEDBACK ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF A GAMIFIED, DATA-RICH, SOLAR SYSTEM ASTRONOMY COURSE

Solar system astronomy courses are generally targeted to general-education students. One strategy to increase student engagement in these courses is to use a gamified course design. Gamified course design is a pedagogical strategy that uses game design elements in the structure of assignments and grading to increase motivation and attention on a task. There have been calls for more education research to evaluate its impact, and our initial study contributes to this, with plans to conduct further research. We developed an online Solar System Astronomy course using a gamified approach, and elements of gamified course design include student choice of assignments they complete to demonstrate achievement of learning outcomes, additive grading, flexible deadlines, multiple attempts of assignments, and ongoing feedback. The course emphasizes the process of science, where students collect and analyze their own data using NASA resources. This active engagement in the online setting promotes a culture of supporting accessibility and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Overall, students felt that gamified teaching positively impacted their success in the class and helped them earn the grade they wanted. They felt that it increased their motivation and gave them ownership of their grade.