All Play Makes Studies Less Dull – But Does It Get the Work Done?

As higher education grapples with increasingly complex subjects, educators turn to playfulness as a super tool for learning. In a couple of weeks, some of these innovators will gather at Uppsala University in Sweden for the ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Conference 2025 to explore the approach.

There is only one week to go until the historic Main building of Uppsala University turns into the playground of the fifth ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Conference. Jonathan Schalk, the conference's project manager, has agreed to give a sneak peek into this year's theme – playfulness in higher education.

The conference is one of ENLIGHT’s yearly events. It focuses on the development of pedagogical methods, a subject that draws attention as schools and universities around the world struggle to maintain student motivation.

“It’s a serious matter”, Schalks admits. 

So, why the focus on play? 

“Because playfulness changes the way to knowledge”, he answers.

“There's a common perception that certain topics cannot be played with, that they have to be learnt in a very strict format. This conference addresses all subjects with the same question: Can you teach this in a playful way? And then shows methodologies currently used across all scientific fields that successfully introduce a playful attitude into teaching and learning.” 

A Record-Breaking Interest

The theme seems to have struck a chord. The conference saw a huge interest in contributing and will host a record number of participants.

They will arrive to academic conferences that present a magician as a key note speaker; an evening with board games and seemingly endless opportunities for role-plays. A night at the museum is also on the programme. “That’s a don’t-miss item”, Jonathan Schalk underlines. He goes on to explain that the museum in question is a newly opened one situated in Uppsala Castle, home of Swedish monarchs in the late Middle Ages.

But aren’t museums often used as elegant venues for formal networking?

“Oh, this one is going to be nothing like that”, Jonathan Schalk says with a knowing smile.

Participants won’t be mingling; they’ll be busy playing their way through the history of Uppsala. Their guides are the very researchers who helped develop the pedagogy of this immersive exhibition from scratch. Afterwards, they’ll be having flashbacks of Swedish kings and queens they never heard of before, and probably never will again. And they’ll think, “Why did the name of that soup-eater Erik stick when I can’t remember my passwords?”

At least that's what Jonathan Schalk, is hoping for.

In the picture above is a happy Jonathan Schalk standing at the stairs of Uppsala University in Sweden.

Developing New Approaches

“Playfulness is already used in all academic fields, but there is a need to develop new approaches”, Schalk points out. Playfulness currently attracts certain personality types, and there are students and teachers who do not like it. “And you can't force anyone to play. It only works if you want to participate.” To trigger the development of new styles in playful pedagogies, the conference has introduced idea-generating sessions.

“In each session, a ‘question holder’ gets forty-five minutes to explore a subject or an argument with peers from the ENLIGHT network, to see what patchwork of ideas comes out of it. Think of it like a role play, collaboratively writing an essay.” And it is not all going to be fun and laughter. “A significant aspect of the conference is the serious side of playing games”, Schalk notes.  

“Role-playing doesn't always have to involve a fun character. It just allows people to explore and relate to a given subject by immersing themselves in a different personality, a character that may be both challenging and sad.”

Inspiring the Future of Education

When asked what he hopes the conference will achieve, Schalk responds:

“Hopefully it will spark lots of new collaborations across Europe to develop tools like pedagogical games. But this is also about universities celebrating the fantastic efforts of teachers who are truly engaged with their students and take responsibility for their learning, for the future of our societies. I hope it will inspire stakeholders in education to support them when they develop new ways to knowledge.”

Whatsapp