Taiwanese Ambassador Interview: Wu Chang Hsin on Gamifying His Classroom with ClassMana

After Classcraft shut down, thousands of teachers worldwide lost the classroom gamification tool they relied on daily. Wu Chang Hsin, a high school chemistry teacher from Taiwan, was one of them — he had been deeply using Classcraft's role-playing, teamwork, and random event systems to integrate gamification into his classroom management and student motivation.

We sat down with Chang Hsin to learn how he transitioned to ClassMana and how he uses gamification elements like experience points, health points, gold, and class events to keep nearly 300 high school students highly engaged and motivated to learn.

I'm a chemistry teacher at Taoyuan Municipal Daxi Senior High School in Taoyuan, Taiwan, teaching students from grades 10 to 12 (ages 16–18). In addition to chemistry (4 classes), I also teach an inquiry and research course (teaching students to conduct scientific research, 2–3 classes) and a game design thinking course (teaching students to design board games, 1 class). Each semester I typically teach around 300 students.

I loved the gamification elements in Classcraft, including the point system (levels, experience, health, gold), role-playing (classes, abilities), teamwork, and uncertainty (random events). Having been a lifelong gamer, it was natural for me to bring these elements into the classroom so I could learn and play alongside my students. I let students choose their own character class, form their own teams, and support each other through skills tied to different role conditions. I linked semester grades to character levels. Students earned experience by demonstrating good behavior in class — such as bravely answering questions, submitting assignments on time, and voluntarily turning in their phones to stay focused. Rule violations were handled through health deductions, encouraging good habits like no eating in class, staying seated, and no swearing. When health reached zero, students faced fun punishments like playing truth or dare, cleaning the lab once, or going a day without their phone. If they didn't complete the punishment, they wouldn't receive their grade for that period — a form of negative reinforcement. What impressed me most was the "random events" feature, which brought uncertainty and excitement to every class. I even designed a "teacher sings" event so students could feel that the teacher was adventuring alongside them, making them more willing to engage with the gamified learning.

For me, the point system (levels, experience, health, gold), role-playing (classes, abilities), teamwork, and uncertainty (random events) are all indispensable — they create a unique synergy together. However, apart from Classcraft, there was virtually no other system in the world using this model. When Classcraft announced it was shutting down, I went through a period of anxiety. I tried using ClassDojo as a replacement for the point system, created my own character cards and skill sheets, and tracked student data through Google Sheets. AI tools were just starting to emerge at the time, so I also tried working with AI to build a random events system. But manual tracking was simply too complex and time-consuming. Just as I was about to try developing my own system, I discovered ClassMana. It turned out that so many educators around the world shared my deep appreciation for what Classcraft brought to learning. I'm truly grateful that ClassMana came along and solved so many of my teaching challenges.

My current approach continues what I did with Classcraft. Each student has a character, and character levels correspond to their participation grades. At the start of each class, I randomly select a student to draw a class event, and the event's effects apply to part or all of the lesson. During class, I record good behavior with experience points and deduct health for violations. When health reaches zero, I use a separate website I developed to handle random punishment draws (ClassMana doesn't have this feature yet). Gold is used beyond the system's character features — it functions as a class currency that students can use to bid on seats, choose cleaning duties, or exchange for souvenirs prepared by the teacher. After ClassMana added the teams feature, I also adjusted my skill design to encourage students to heal teammates for bonus experience, further fostering teamwork among peers. I'm glad ClassMana keeps evolving, and I'm very excited for the future addition of character class features!

The most useful features for me are: character levels, experience, health, gold, teams, and class events. I'm also really looking forward to future additions like character classes, death penalty mechanics, and the ability for students to set custom account passwords.

Students care deeply about their grades and rankings. Since I tie participation grades to character levels, they actively interact with me during class to earn experience and are careful to avoid character death and the random punishments that come with it. Students strategically combine their own skills with their teammates' abilities, freely exploring and learning in class. I also assign extracurricular science tasks — completing them on time earns experience, while not completing them doesn't result in health deductions. However, I grade and provide feedback as quickly as possible so students feel that the teacher values every individual's learning progress.

For teachers who don't often incorporate game elements into their teaching or don't play games much themselves, I'd suggest starting by watching the getting started guides on the website and reading other teachers' experiences and usage tips. Find an approach that fits your classroom, then gradually introduce it.

The most fun has to be the "teacher sings" event — students pick a song from a playlist I've prepared and have me sing it in class. They always choose the most difficult songs, the ones most likely to make my voice crack! The teacher's genuine willingness to adventure alongside the students always livens up the entire class, and student engagement and classroom interaction noticeably increase. It's one of the moments I treasure most in gamified teaching.