The effectiveness of gamification on learning topics related to infertility and abortion among health professions students

The use of innovative technology-based educational methods presents a significant opportunity for positive change and enhancing the quality of student learning. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of gamification in teaching topics related to infertility and abortion to health professions students. In this randomized educational trial, 138 people were selected using a simple random sampling method and divided into two groups: control (69 people) and intervention (69 people). The study sample included students from various health sciences fields studying at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (a university in western Iran) in 2024. Educational topics related to infertility and abortion were presented to students in the intervention (gamification-based teaching) and control (lecture-based teaching) groups. After the intervention, the learning levels of students in both groups were assessed using a multiple-choice question (MCQ) test. The usability of gamification was evaluated using a standardized questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 26 software. The mean age of the study participants was 22.81 ± 2.81. More than half (n = 36, 52.17%) of the students were familiar with gamification. The majority (n = 59, 85.1%) of them were willing to integrate gamification into the teaching-learning process. A statistically significant difference was observed between the mean test scores of the intervention group (7.73 ± 2.45) and the control group (5.42 ± 2.59), with a p-value of less than 0.01. Additionally, the mean usability score for gamification from the students' perspective was at a desirable level, measuring 116.31 ± 19.45 out of 150. According to the results of the final test, the learning level of students in the gamification group on topics related to infertility and abortion was better than that of students in the control group. Gamification can play an effective role as a complement to other conventional teaching methods in increasing learning effectiveness and student satisfaction.