Abstract:

An Escape Room was designed and implemented to be applied as a gamification tool in higher education. The aim was engaging students in learning, increasing motivation, and bridging the gap between classroom chemistry and the real world, as well as allowing for teamwork and peer learning. Besides, current challenges that nowadays concern to society such as Energy, Transportation, Pollution and Safety of Resources were also approached. Students in the last years of the Chemical Engineering Bachelor and the first year of the Master's Degree were involved in the project.

The implementation was comprised in three phases: the first one was called "Escape Design Contest", in which the students themselves submitted their proposals. Regarding all proposals received, one submitted by undergraduate and master's degree students was chosen as the winning proposal. The main plot and location of the game were the documents related to the research that Dr. Arnold carried out in the field of pesticides before some assassins killed her. The second phase consisted of the adaptation of the winning game to a real Chemical Engineering laboratory. Subsequently, the third and last phase was playing the game by the different organized teams. A control-team composed by PhD students was initially engaged to play in order to evaluate, and adapt, if necessary, the complexity of the challenges. The Escape room comprised eight interconnected challenges according with the proposed story (Save Dr. Arnold) and related to the knowledge acquired in Bachelor were programmed: a crossword puzzle with definitions of specific Chemical Engineering concepts, readings of scientific articles with secret codes, adjustments of chemical reactions, an experimental lab-practice, solving a Matlab script, solving a material balance, and ordering different pictures of a WWTP plant. All these tests were interconnected to provide different keys and solutions to open the cryptex, and locks of the subsequent tests. In turn, a camera was installed in the laboratory to be able to track participants, communicate or provide clues. Four groups of heterogeneous students participated in the game and all of them managed and enjoyed passing the tests.

The Escape Room had a high impact on all the participants of the proposal, the teachers, as well as students who participated in the three phases. It was possible to verify not only the level of autonomy and the depth of knowledge with which the students participated in this initiative, but also certain inequality among themselves. In fact, the students who presented their game proposals were able to put into practice some acquired knowledge, thus reinforcing their understanding and, above all, trying to adapt it to a game environment. It was concluded that the participating students improved their motivation, interest, and involvement in their self-learning, and at the same time, they have reinforced other transversal competencies such as teamwork, among others.

Keywords:

Escape Room, Gamification, Chemical Engineering, Teaching-Learning.