Let me just start by saying, I am not an expert in the subject of gamification nor am I trying to be. These ramblings are just my opinion.
This opinion is based on the following experience. 10 years in the IT industry, a life time of playing games, running a games review website, writing about and reviewing games for 5 years, teaching martial arts and working in the education sector for a few years helping to develop learning materials.
People learn and develop in different ways, but one thing has become clear over the last few decades of education. Fun makes learning easier. Just look at how your children are taught their ABC’s. We all were taught the song. Some of us were shown flash cards – C is for Cat.