By reflecting-in-action,  the practitioner is able to gain metacognitive awareness  and perceive his/her intuitions and biases, test  hypotheses, and take on new perspectives. The  approach of having students learn by designing their  own games combines design thinking and game-based  learning (Kafai, 1995, 2006; Li, Lemieuz,  Vandermeiden, & Nathoo, 2013). Design thinking also  supports new forms of literacies brought on by new  media technologies as well as game-based learning.

It is likely that the effects of gamification cannot  easily be measured satisfactorily through surveys of  motivation, engagement, attendance, or grades because  there are too many variables that could affect how students  respond. Critics of gamification argue that it over

simplifies complex problems (Bogost, 2015; Robertson,  2010). However, both gamification and design thinking  are approaches to problem-solving. With design thinking,  gamification may be used in more meaningful ways  because design thinking offers a different lens through  which to conceptualize the problem.