Background: Today, the world has been made up of diverse systems because of its changing nature. These systems are embedded in the fabric of human life and have their complexities and intricate connections. A different attitude and thought about the phenomena arising from these systems is necessary to understand these complexities and relationships. Systems thinking is an important cognitive skill in individuals.
Aim: The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate students' systems thinking in several different situations. In the first case, students' systems thinking is tested without training. In the second case, the students' systems thinking score will be assessed using a gamification approach with the help of designing a game. The third case, which is also emphasized in the research, is the use of gamification in systems thinking training. In this case, students are tested using an Internet-based game design. The main purpose of this study is to compare students' systems thinking in these three situations.
Methodology: This is applied research that has been done with a quantitative approach. The statistical population of this study is 10-12 years old students in an area called Bahmani located in Bousher. After sampling, 170 students were selected based on convenience sampling. These students were divided into three groups based on the research goals and hypotheses, and their results were compared using a comparison test. SPSS software was used for data analysis.
Conclusions: The findings showed that the mean scores of students evaluated by the gamification approach were significantly different from those of students who were traditionally (without training). It was also confirmed that the students' systems thinking score in the training mode (along with the gamification) was higher than when they only used it. Also, the students' systems thinking score in the training mode (along with the training gamification) is higher than the traditional one (without trai