Citation: Bedwell, K.; Garaccione, G.;
Coppola, R.; Ardito, L.; Morisio, M.
BIPMIN: A Gamified Framework for
Process Modeling Education.
Information 2023, 14, 3. https://
doi.org/10.3390/info14010003
Academic Editor: Sanjay Misra
Received: 29 September 2022
Revised: 1 December 2022
Accepted: 13 December 2022
Published: 21 December 2022
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
Article
BIPMIN: A Gamified Framework for Process
Modeling Education
Kylie Bedwell, Giacomo Garaccione , Riccardo Coppola , Luca Ardito * and Maurizio Morisio
Politecnico di Torino, Department of Control and Computer Engineering (DAUIN), SoftEng Group,
10129 Turin, Italy
* Correspondence: luca.ardito@polito.it
Abstract:
Business Process Modeling is a skill that is becoming sought after for computer engineers,
with Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) being one example of the tools used in modeling
activities. Students of the Master of Computer Engineering course at Politecnico di Torino learn about
BPMN in dedicated courses but often underperform on BPMN-related exercises due to difficulties
understanding how to model processes. In recent years, there has been a surge of studies that employ
gamification (using game elements in non-recreative contexts to obtain benefits) as a tool in Computer
Engineering education to increase students’ engagement with the learning process. This study aims
to use the principles of gamification to design a supplementary learning tool for the teaching of
information systems technology. In particular, to improve student understanding and use of BPMN
diagrams. This study also analyzes the usability and motivation of the participants in using different
game elements in increasing student motivation and performance. As part of the study, a prototype
web application was developed, which implemented three different designs, each incorporating
different game elements relating to either progress, competition, or rewards. An evaluation was then
conducted on the prototype to evaluate the performance of the practitioners in performing BPMN
modeling tasks with the gamified tool, the usability of the proposed mechanics and the enjoyment
of the individual game mechanics that were implemented. With the usage of the gamified tool, the
users of the experimental sample were able to complete BPMN modeling tasks with performances
compatible with estimates made through expert judgement (i.e., gamification had no negative effect
on performance), and were motivated to check the correctness of their models many times during the
task execution. The system was evaluated as highly usable (85.8 System Usability Score); the most
enjoyed game elements were rewards, levels, progress bars and aesthetics.
Keywords: software engineering; software engineering education; business process modeling
1. Introduction
Computer engineering is consistently one of the most highly demanded fields in
the workplace, with computer engineering-related jobs frequently appearing in the ten
most in-demand jobs in Europe [
1
]. Recently these skills have become even more sought
after due to the digital workplace transformation accelerated by the pandemic. Part of
becoming a computer engineer is understanding business processes and how they relate to
information systems. If able to accurately model business processes, computer engineers
can more effectively design, evaluate and implement information systems that support
business needs.
At the Politecnico di Torino, these skills are taught as part of the Master’s Degree in
Computer Engineering course. In particular, students are taught how to model and analyze
organizational processes using Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN). BPMN is a
standard for the graphical representation of business processes. It can be used both at a
high level for process analysis and modeling and at a lower level for actual implementation.
It describes the functional and organizational aspects, i.e., who does what and when.
Information 2023, 14, 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/info14010003 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/information
