Faculty Spotlight: Fig Lefevre

Gamification in educational settings has gained attention for its effects on motivating students and enhancing cognitive and behavioral learning outcomes (Sailer & Homner, 2019). It involves using game design elements in non-game contexts (Deterding et al., 2011). For example, integrating game-like features such as points or leaderboards can enhance traditional learning activities (Landers et al., 2018). Gamification can also refer to designing games with specific learning outcomes; students achieve educational goals by engaging directly with the gameplay (Plass et al., 2011).

Fig Lefevre (they/ them), a Lecturer and games enthusiast in the Department of Theater at the College of Humanities and Fine Arts UMass Amherst, frequently uses games in their teaching to engage and motivate their students. Lefevre recently began experimenting with Twine, a tech tool for creating interactive stories. Using this tool, Lefevre created several narrative activities that enhanced their students’ engagement and benefited their own professional practice. 

 

What Is Twine?

Twine is a powerful, easy-to-use game design tool that facilitates the creation of interactive narratives, flowcharts, and branching storylines. Both teachers and students can access it for free via browser or download the app for more advanced functions. Lefevre leverages Twine in various ways, especially for narrative-based activities in drama and play.

Why Does Lefevre Use Twine?

Lefevre first discovered the tool in 2021 when having their students in Sci-Fi Theater class engaged with a pre-existing game called Redshift/Portalmetal, which is a trans apocalypse narrative. While Lefevre was not particularly familiar with making their own game tools before then, the student engagement and excitement for that particular activity was so high that they used that unit as an experiment to explore the gaming tools further. Since then, they have continued to use the tool for various purposes.

"As a neurodivergent person, I am often stuck in 'if I can’t see it, I can’t do it' mode. Things that exist only in my brain never make it to paper. Twinery and similar tools have helped me externalize thought processes in a way that helps me visually understand things I couldn’t untangle in my mind." - Fig Lefevre

Lefevre’s experience with neurodivergence and the use of such tools has given them a greater awareness of how other neurodivergent individuals, particularly students, engage with the material. Some students have been taught to use outlines, mind maps, or other brainstorming and analytical tools, and adding this tool to their toolkit has opened up new dimensions of learning possibilities.

Student Feedback

Generally, students’ responses towards the use of Twine have been positive, particularly from those in the upper-level courses where they are using it to dig deeper into independent questions. For entry-level courses and general education classes, students sometimes found it a bit clunky to learn and figure things out on their own, and, as a result, they only used the tool at a surface level.

Lessons Learned from Using Twine

Integrating Twine into classroom activities and personal and professional tasks demonstrates the versatility of gamification and game-based learning tools. Lefevre’s use of Twine transformed traditional learning into dynamic, narrative-driven experiences while also addressing the practical challenges of academic administration. Twine helps merge technology with creativity, opening up new possibilities for both student engagement and faculty efficiency and making it an essential tool for modern education.

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