Informatics in Education

This research discusses the use of a gamified web platform for studying software modeling with Unified Modeling Language (UML). Although UML is constantly being improved and studied, many works show that there is difficulty in teaching and learning the subject, due to the complexity of its concepts and the students' cognitive difficulties with abstraction. There are challenges for instructors to find different pedagogical strategies to teach modeling. The platform proposed allowed students to complement their UML knowledge in an environment with game elements. From the results, it can be concluded that the platform obtained great acceptance and satisfaction of use. Most of the students participating in the research were satisfied with the usability of the platform, reporting a feeling of contribution of the tool to studying the content, in addition to pointing out the satisfaction of using gamification as a pedagogical strategy.

The teaching and learning of programming has proven to be a challenge for students of computer courses, since it presents challenges and requires complex skills for the good development of students. The traditional teaching model is not able to motivate students and arouse their interest in the topic. The tool proposed herein, the REA-LP, aims to facilitate the study and retention of content related to the discipline of programming logic at the technical level by presenting its content through various types of media, in addition to allowing students to actively participate in the construction of their knowledge, favoring engagement and motivation. From the results of an empirical study with 39 students, it can be concluded that the tool was very well accepted, being effective in facilitating and assisting participants in their learning, motivation, and interest in classes, mainly due to the way in which the content is presented by REA-LP.