University lecturers are swapping lectures for board games, escape rooms, and role-playing simulations—but no one has yet run the large-scale study needed to prove whether these playful methods actually work. The problem is straightforward. Most university teaching still relies on lectures and exams, even though employers and researchers agree these methods poorly prepare students for a fast-changing world. Playful learning—which includes everything from simulation games to creative play spaces—has shown promise in small studies, boosting motivation, reducing fear of failure, and improving creativity. But without a systematic evidence base, university leaders remain reluctant to adopt these approaches at scale. The RE:PLAY project will fill that gap. Researchers will study eight different playful learning approaches across arts, social sciences, STEM, and health subjects in UK universities. They will interview senior leaders, survey students and staff, and design a toolkit for creating effective playful learning experiences. If successful, the project could transform how universities teach. A robust evidence base would give vice-chancellors and course leaders the confidence to embed playful methods across disciplines. The toolkit and design framework could also spread into further education, adult learning, and corporate training—anywhere people need to learn complex skills for an unpredictable future.
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Context and challenge. Traditional didactic higher education teaching and assessment methods, such as lectures and examinations, do not adequately equip students for an increasingly complex and fast-changing world yet are still commonplace throughout the sector. The growing use of playful learning approaches presents a timely opportunity to change university teaching for the better so that graduates are better equipped to tackle the complex problems faced by future societies. Researchers argue that play can enhance higher-level learning, increase intrinsic motivation, combat fear of failure, improve sense of belonging, and enhance creativity. However, playful learning in higher education lacks a robust and systematic evidence base of what works, in what contexts, why, and what the impacts are. As a result, university leaders and educators may be reluctant to endorse playful approaches, inhibiting the changes needed to enhance education and support the next generation of learners. Playful learning brings together games (engaging experiential learning environments) and play spaces (inclusive safe imagination environments) to create learning where failure is normalised. Eight different playful learning approaches have been identified but there has been no systematic study into the effectivities of these different approaches or their use in different disciplinary contexts. Aims and Objectives. The aim of the RE:PLAY project is to carry out the foundational work to develop a rich and deep quantitative and qualitative exploration of the use of playful learning in UK higher education. It will develop an evidence base on the effectiveness of eight playful learning approaches across Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences and Business, STEM, and Health-related subjects. The objectives are to: O1. explore how playful learning approaches are currently used in UK HE and the perceptions of senior leaders; O2. investigate experiences, benefits, drawbacks, and barriers associated with playful learning for students, academics, learning designers, and academic support staff; O3. design, implement, and evaluate a learning design process, framework, and toolkit for developing effective playful learning experiences; O4. research the effects of playful learning on student learning, intrinsic motivation, fear of failure, sense of belonging, and creativity. As well as providing evidence on the use and value of play, RE:PLAY will implement and evaluate a broad mixed-methods approach that can be used to evidence the value of any higher education learning and teaching innovation. Potential applications and benefits. Evidence of the effectiveness of playful learning will influence how these approaches are used across the higher education sector, and potentially into the wider further education, adult and corporate education sectors. The increased understanding of how best to use and design playful learning will benefit leaders’ decision-making regarding teaching and learning and academics’ teaching practice, improving student learning and experience. The playful learning design guidance, model, and toolkit that we will produce will benefit learning designers, academics, and other teaching staff to develop the skills required to embed playful learning approaches in the most effective ways to ensure that students are best equipped for the future work of work. The research design, data, and instruments will benefit higher education scholars investigating changes to teaching practice. Overall, the evidence provided by the RE:PLAY project will increase the legitimacy of playful learning approaches and facilitate their increased use across the sector, supporting students to embrace play to gain the skills and attitudes they will need to face the global challenges that the future holds.
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