Systematic Review of the Use of Gamification in the Development of Reading Comprehension Skills in Education

Revisión Sistemática del Uso de la Gamificación en el Desarrollo de Habilidades de Comprensión Lectora en Educación

Ingrid Natalia Benito Ladino

Bachelor's degree in early childhood pedagogy and student of the Master's program in education, Corporación Universitaria Iberoamericana, Bogota. ibenito@estudiante.ibero.edu.co

Alexandra Camelo Bohórquez

Psychologist and student of the Master's Degree in Education, Corporación Universitaria Iberoamericana, Bogotá. acamelo@estudiante.ibero.edu.co

Andrea del Pilar Linares Rodríguez

Social Worker and Student of the Master's Degree in Education, Corporación Universitaria Iberoamericana, Bogotá. alinar11@estudiante.ibero.edu.co

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SUMMAR

This study examines the use of gamification as a pedagogical strategy for the promotion and development of reading comprehension based on the potential of this methodology to enrich learning and promote the integral development of children from an early age. For this purpose and through the application of a qualitative methodology, based on a systematic literature review following the PRISMA protocol, 32 articles published between 2020 and 2024 and found in the Scopus and Google Scholar databases were analyzed. The selected studies explore the impact of technological tools and gamified strategies in educational environments, with a focus on their effects on the cognitive, emotional and academic development of children. The results highlight that gamification, supported by educational applications and interactive platforms, promotes more motivating and effective learning. In addition, the use of these strategies to favor the acquisition of logical and problem-solving skills is highlighted.

Keywords: Comprehension, teaching, educational game, reading, educational technology.

RESUMEN

Este estudio examina el uso de la gamificación como estrategia pedagógica para la promoción y desarrollo de la comprensión lectora partiendo del potencial que tiene esta metodología para enriquecer el aprendizaje y fomentar el desarrollo integral de los niños desde edades tempranas. A tal efecto y mediante la aplicación de una metodología cualitativa, sustentada en una revisión sistemática de literatura siguiendo el protocolo PRISMA, se analizaron 32 artículos publicados entre 2020 y 2024 encontradas en las bases de datos Scopus y Google Académico. Los estudios seleccionados exploran el impacto de herramientas tecnológicas y estrategias gamificadas en entornos educativos, con un enfoque en sus efectos sobre el desarrollo cognitivo, emocional y académico de los niños. Los resultados destacan que la gamificación, respaldada por aplicaciones educativas y plataformas interactivas, promueve un aprendizaje más motivador y efectivo. Además, se resalta el uso de estas estrategias para favorecer la adquisición de habilidades lógicas y de resolución de problemas.

Palabras Claves: Comprensión, enseñanza, juego educativo, lectura, tecnología educacional.

Introduction

Reading comprehension is fundamental for the integral development of children and has a crucial importance in aspects such as the development of language and writing skills, also according to the criteria of Gómez (2014), reading comprehension is essential for academic success as it allows students to understand what they read and thus follow instructions, solve problems and learn concepts facilitating the learning of new skills and knowledge in school. Reading and understanding texts helps develop cognitive skills such as critical thinking, memory and analytical skills, so children learn to make inferences, identify main ideas and relate information, which is fundamental in their intellectual development. In this sense, fostering reading comprehension from an early age can have a lasting impact on children's academic and personal success, so it is essential to promote activities and strategies that support this development.

For some years now, the educational system has had to face the reality of a changing world in which technology has an increasing presence in the school, this forces the teacher to analyze the environment in which the educational process is currently developed and establish whether the educational practice is still guided by obsolete didactic models, which turn the classroom into a routine place that is not able to motivate the student, understanding that there is an important generational change in what Prensky (2012) defined as digital natives specialized in the search for content through the use of technology who are accompanied by digital immigrant teachers who must adapt to manage to guide students by providing contexts and appropriate questions that ensure the quality of the learning process.

Freire (1981), illustrates the importance of reading by pointing out that reading is not only focused on written language, but transcends textual intelligence to understand the world; in that sense, Gómez (2014, p.22) mentions "the importance of reading comprehension to develop at the same time speaking, listening and writing skills and therefore comprehension skills that allow understanding not only written language but also the world and its components." The development of reading comprehension skills constitutes a problem for a significant part of the population. According to statistics from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO (2022) reports that by the year 2021 worldwide, more than 845 million people did not reach the minimum levels in terms of reading skills. In the same period in Latin America and the Caribbean, 36% of children lack reading skills.

Gamification is a pedagogical strategy that has the potential to transform teaching-learning dynamics by incorporating game elements, such as challenges, rewards and narrative, in educational contexts. However, many teachers, although they have at their disposal several technological and methodological tools to implement gamification processes, do not use them due to the lack of specific training in this approach. This lack of knowledge not only hinders the implementation of these strategies, but also limits their ability to integrate them effectively with fundamental activities, such as the promotion of reading in children. According to Deterding et al. (2011), gamification requires an intentional design that connects educational objectives with game mechanics, which is not always evident to unprepared teachers.

The purpose of any educational system is to provide children with the necessary tools to facilitate their own development, transferring to the student all those experiences, skills, knowledge and values necessary for the performance of an adequate role in a society that is characterized by being hopefully unpredictable in many and almost always diverse aspects. The infantile education in this system has to be oriented to the formation of the integral personality. This formation is characterized as a social fact based on human functional valuations (affectivity, will, knowledge and intellect) and a social formation in specific characteristics proper only to the evolutionary moment lived. If the aim is to guide the process of cultural transmission in the learner, the first and most fundamental consequence will be to adapt the educational methods, more or less orthodox, to the different evolutionary stages.

The integration of gamified technologies in reading instruction could be particularly beneficial in addressing traditional barriers to reading interest and comprehension, such as lack of motivation or the perception of reading as a boring task. Studies such as Hamari et al. (2014) have shown that gamification can have a positive impact on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, especially in educational settings. Therefore, using pedagogical strategies based on gamification can transform the use of technological media that today represent a distracting factor for students and transform them for educational purposes and achieve what Cortez (2018, p.34) defines as "the importance of stimulating skills and learning from what motivates the student; either by using gamification and technology.

Therefore, the present research aims to make an exhaustive review of the existing literature, covering the methodological characteristics employed in previous studies, the types of instruments used and the specific purposes proposed. All this in order to establish a contribution to the state of knowledge through the synthesis and dissemination of the findings.

Materials and methods

Scope and Type of Study

During the conduct of this documentary study, a literature review was completed, since according to the criteria of García and Carrascal (2016), the most significant results of the wealth of scientific articles that were taken into consideration can be summarized and highlighted by describing in a synthesized manner the summary of the information located, thus managing to provide answers to specific research questions. In that sense and according to the opinion of Hernandez and Mendoza (2018, p.147) "the systematic literature search is a study of exploratory and descriptive scope".

The review was carried out according to the criteria of Reyes (2022), which proposes the following steps: 1) Define the formulation of the problematic situation and the objectives to be achieved with the research work, 2) Detail the principles and conditions that will allow establishing inclusion and exclusion characteristics will have the articles and what are the indicators of validity and relevance of the same..., 3) Plan the form and structure of the search for academic documents, 4) Generate specific searches supported by the use of specialized search engines and databases of recognized reputation, 5) Evaluate the quality parameters of the preliminary results that were found according to the parameters set out above, 6) Systematize and interpret the results.

Instruments

To collect the data, a table was prepared where the information from the bibliographic records was condensed according to the fundamentals proposed by the PRISMA-P methodology, which establishes according to Bavaresco (2016) the necessary elements to evaluate academic documents, including the characteristics that the information search protocol should have and the elements that are related to the planning and examination of the data.

In this matrix, identification criteria were added, such as the title of the article, its authors, the year in which the document was published, together with content criteria that included the objectives of the study and some important methodological elements.

Procedure

At the time of conducting the literature search, articles were taken into consideration whose main topic was the application of pedagogical strategies based on gamification to develop reading comprehension in elementary education, in Latin American journals and publications written in Spanish. For this purpose, the Google Scholar search engine and the Scopus database were used. These databases were taken into account due to their multidisciplinary characteristics and the recognition they enjoy in the scientific community, as stated by Cea (2015).

The structure of the terms used for the search were, in Google Scholar we searched for combinations that included the words "Gamification" "Reading comprehension" "Gamification didactic strategies", the preliminary results were filtered by documents written in Spanish between the years 2020-2024. In the Scopus database, an algorithm including the descriptors was organized as follows: TITLE-ABS-KEY (Gamification) AND (Reading comprehension) AND (Gamification teaching strategies) (LIMIT-TO (LANGUAGE, "Spanish")) AND (LIMIT-TO (ACCESSTYPE (OA))). From the preliminary results, the relevant results for the years 2020-2024 were chosen.

As inclusion criteria, according to the definition of García et al. (2011), we chose documents with free access in Spanish and that referred to Latin American studies without discriminating the stage of their work. Likewise, only those documents with at least one of the main descriptors used in the search and with a publication date between 2020 and 2024 were included in the title or abstract. Articles whose main topic was far from gamification and reading comprehension, outside Latin America and in a language other than Spanish were not taken into account.

The initial search yielded 1,172 results of which 388 were obtained in Scopus and 784 in Google Scholar. After applying the filters and inclusion criteria, 208 articles were available for manual classification. From there, a quick reading of the abstracts was carried out, finding duplications and discrepancies that reduced the total number of valid articles to 32 that fully met the pre-established criteria in the purpose of this research. The selection and synthesis procedure was carried out as shown in the following diagram

Figure 1.

Flowchart of the information source selection process.

Source: Urrutia and Bonfill (2010).

Results

Thirty-two documents were identified that met the inclusion criteria specified above and that constitute the base material on which the literature review was performed.

Table 1.

Document selection matrix.

	Author Year	Title	Country	Approach	Target
1	Moscote, José; Suarez, Martín (2020)	Strengthening of competencies related to reading comprehension through gamification used as a pedagogical strategy.	Colombia	Qualitative	To enhance reading comprehension skills through gamification as a pedagogical strategy for 5th grade elementary school students.
2	Cano, Emilse; Cuesta, Edinson (2020)	Gamification as a motivational strategy in the reading comprehension process.	Colombia	Mixed	To implement a motivational gamification strategy in the teaching-learning process to strengthen reading comprehension in students of the first cycle, first, second and third grades of the IE Monseñor Gerardo Patiño of the municipality of Cáceres Antioquia, through the use and appropriation of ICT.
3	Moreno, Ramiro (2020)	Didactic strategy mediated by gamification to strengthen reading comprehension in 4th grade elementary school students.	Colombia	Mixed	To develop a didactic strategy mediated by gamification to strengthen reading comprehension in 4th grade students of the Nuestra Señora de la Consolación Educational Institution.
4	Guzmán, M.; Londoño, Doris (2020).	Didactic strategy in reading comprehension from digital gamification, to improve institutional welfare in primary education.	Colombia	Qualitative	To propose a didactic strategy through different pedagogical activities, from the gamification by challenges and challenges, through the education 3.0 platform, which includes the collaboration of the family, improving the level of reading comprehension of the students of the 5th grade of the Juan Henrique White Educational Institution.
5	Grimaldo, Heylem; Zapata, Yuly (2020)	Gamification as a strategy for strengthening and developing reading comprehension skills in 3rd grade of elementary school.	Colombia	Qualitative	To evaluate the impact of a pedagogical strategy based on gamification in the development of reading comprehension skills in third grade students at the Camilo Torres Restrepo Educational Institutions in Barrancabermeja and the Juan Atalaya integrated school in Cúcuta.
6	Salas, Carmen (2020)	Reading comprehension enhanced by ict-mediated gamification in elementary school students.	Colombia	Qualitative	To describe the influence obtained with the incorporation of gamification as a didactic strategy mediated by ICT for the improvement of reading comprehension in students of the fifth grade of elementary school in IED Luz Marina Caballero.
7	Balseiro, Marly (2021)	Gamification strategy for the development of the inferential level of the reading comprehension in fifth grade students, Centro Educativo Palmira de San Onofre, Sucre.	Colombia	Mixed	To identify the type of impact of a gamification strategy on the inferential level of reading comprehension, through the implementation of a Virtual Learning Object in fifth grade students of the Palmira Educational Center.
8	Aldana, Gloria (2021)	Gamification as a pedagogical strategy to improve reading comprehension processes in fifth grade students.	Colombia	Quantitative	Improving reading comprehension in fifth grade students of the Rafael Bernal Jiménez school in the city of Bogotá using the following strategy gamification pedagogy
9	Parra, Alba; Serna, Luz (2021)	Strengthening reading and writing skills through the Kahoot gamification tool in elementary school students.	Colombia	Qualitative	Strengthen reading and writing skills through learning strategies supported by Kahoot gamification tools in students. of 3rd grade of elementary school at IE Henry Marín Granada.
10	Alarcón, Nancy; Beltrán, Francy (2021)	Gamification as a ludic-pedagogical strategy to strengthen reading comprehension in second grade students.	Colombia	Mixed	To implement gamification as a ludic-pedagogical strategy to strengthen reading comprehension in second grade students of the Escuela Normal Superior Sede Rural Viento Libre Ubaté.
11	Cardenas, Katherine (2021)	Gamification in Genially as a didactic tool for strengthening reading comprehension.	Colombia	Qualitative	To strengthen the textual comprehension and interpretation of seventh grade students of Colegio Once de Noviembre, through the Genially platform, where students perform activities in a gamified virtual space.
12	Cabrera, Anna (2021)	Gamification as a strategy to support the reading and writing process in second grade students of primary	Mexico	Qualitative	To design a didactic planning that integrates gamification strategies to support the teaching and learning processes to develop reading and writing skills in second grade elementary school students in the subject "Lengua Materna. Spanish
13	Moscoso, Erika (2021)	Strengthening reading comprehension with the use of the Educaplay platform through gamification and challenge-based learning.	Colombia	Qualitative	Strengthen reading comprehension with the use of the Educaplay platform through gamification and challenge-based learning in 4th grade students of the educational institution Monseñor José Manuel Salcedo del Bolo San Isidro.
14	Aranguren, Jimena; Conde Angélica (2021)	Gamification as a strategy for the improvement of reading and writing skills in elementary school students.	Colombia	Quantitative	To determine the effect of gamification strategies, generated in the Kahoot tool, on the development of reading and writing skills of second and third grade students of the I. E. Politécnico de Soledad.
15	Coral, Carlos; Hormaza, Estefanía (2021)	Design of gamification strategies with the use of the Moodle platform to strengthen reading comprehension processes in second grade students at the San Luis Gonzaga Educational Institution.	Colombia	Qualitative	To strengthen reading comprehension through gamification strategies with the use of ICT in second grade students of the San Luis Gonzaga de San Luis - Tolima school.
16	Burgos, Zulma; Pimiento, Eliana (2021)	Strengthening children's literature through gamification in fourth grade elementary students	Colombia	Mixed	To implement didactic strategies through gamification with the purpose of strengthening the teaching and learning of children's literature to fourth grade students elementary school grade
17	Monroy, Leidy; Ramírez, Leslie (2021)	Gamification and challenge-based learning as a pedagogical strategy to strengthen reading comprehension and textual production in third grade students.	Colombia	Mixed	To strengthen reading comprehension and textual production through the implementation of a classroom plan supported by gamification and challenge-based learning, using the "Cerebriti" platform in third grade students of the San Luis Gonzaga Educational Institution, National Headquarters (Ibagué Tolima).
18	Lemus, Camilo (2021)	Gamification as an innovative strategy for strengthening reading comprehension in fourth grade elementary school students	Colombia	Quantitative	To implement a pedagogical strategy based on gamification integrated with the Cerebriti platform, in order to improve the teaching-learning processes in reading comprehension of students in the fourth grade of elementary school at the Barrios Unidos del Sur Educational Institution.
19	Carrillo, Ángela (2021)	Gamification and reading comprehension	Colombia	Qualitative	To design a pedagogical innovation proposal that, through gamification, proposes a valid alternative in the search for strengthening the levels of textual comprehension and interpretation (literal, inferential and critical) in fifth grade elementary school students.
20	Beleño, Dulys (2021)	Strengthening reading comprehension through gamification tools in first grade elementary school students.	Colombia	Qualitative	Strengthening reading comprehension in first grade students of the Olaya District School through gamification tools.
21	Fernández, Nicolás (2022)	Gamification-based pedagogical strategy to strengthen reading comprehension in second grade students.	Colombia	Mixed	To strengthen reading comprehension processes through the development of a pedagogical strategy based on gamification in second grade students of the Bateas Educational Institution of the municipality of Acevedo in the Department of Huila.
22	Chávez, Leidy; Díaz, Rhita; Guevara, Jesús; Sandoval, Deisy (2022)	Strengthening Reading Comprehension at the Literal and Inferential Levels through Gamification in Third Grade Students of the San Antonio Educational Institution.	Colombia	Qualitative	To strengthen reading comprehension in the literal and inferential levels of third grade students of the San Antonio Educational Institution, through the implementation of a pedagogical strategy supported by gamification.
23	Maza, Eymi (2022)	Innovation of the future of reading comprehension through of gamification in second grade elementary school students: Scenarios to 2032.	Peru	Quantitative	Exploring the future through gamification for reading comprehension in second-grade elementary school children to the year 2032.
24	Ramos, César (2022)	Gamification and reading comprehension in students from second grade in an educational institution in Huancavelica, 2022	Peru	Quantitative	Promote students' interest in reading rather than improve the development of reading comprehension skills through the implementation of successful reading strategies and activities according to students' learning levels and needs.
25	Rodríguez, Cindy; Hernández, Libardo (2022)	Offline gamification as a classroom strategy to strengthen reading comprehension processes in the fourth grade of primary school.	Colombia	Qualitative	Strengthen reading comprehension skills in fourth grade students of a rural school and an urban school of the IE Francisco José de Caldas in the municipality of Viotá Cundinamarca through the incorporation of offline gamification elements in the classroom.
26	Palacios, Carina (2023)	Gamification and the process of reading comprehension of 1st grade students at Elite School - Huacho	Peru	Quantitative	To determine the relationship between gamification and the reading comprehension process of 1st grade students at Elite School - Huacho, 2023.
27	Cerón, Angy; Cerón Marlyn (2023)	Ubiquitous learning and Gamification as a didactic strategy to strengthen the skills and knowledge of writing and reading comprehension in third grade students of the Mortiño Educational Institution, Guacas, Isnos, Huila.	Colombia	Qualitative	To strengthen the skills and knowledge of writing and reading comprehension in third grade students of the Mortiño Educational Institution, Guacas, Isnos, Huila, through the design and implementation of a web page.
28	Fuentes, Camila; Sáenz, María (2023)	Gamification as a didactic strategy for the development of reading comprehension skills. in third grade students	Colombia	Qualitative	Implementing gamification strategies that can be used to strengthen reading skills in third grade students at the institution. Camilo Torres" educational program.
29	Becerra, Lourdes (2023)	Innovative strategies for reading and writing.	Ecuador	Qualitative	To analyze innovative strategies for teaching reading and writing, with the purpose of evaluating their effectiveness in educational environments. The aim is to understand the impact of these strategies on the development of reading and writing skills, in order to identify effective pedagogical practices that can improve the learning process in this area.
30	Vera, Vilma; Báez, Myriam (2024)	Innovative didactic strategies for the promotion of reading habits in elementary school students.	Ecuador	Qualitative	To analyze innovative didactic strategies to promote reading habits in elementary school students.
31	Rojas, Patricia (2024)	Gamification strategy in teaching comprehension reading by primary school teachers in Cañete educational institutions, 2024	Peru	Quantitative	To determine the influence of gamification strategy in the teaching of reading comprehension by primary school teachers in educational institutions of Cañete, 2024.
32	Poma, Rosa; Álvarez, María; Auccahuallpa, Roxana (2024)	Kahoot as a didactic strategy to develop reading in children 6 to 7 years old	Ecuador	Qualitative	To explore the use of the Kahoot educational platform as a strategy for reading development in children aged 6 to 7 years.

Source: Based on Moscote (2020), Cano and Cuesta (2020), Moreno (2020), Guzman and Londoño (2020), Grimaldo and Zapata (2020), Salas (2020), Balseiro (2021), Aldana (2021), Parra and Serna (2021), Alarcon and Beltran (2021), Cardenas (2021, Cabrera (2021), Moscoso (2021), Aranguren and Conde (2021), Coral and Hurmaza (2021), Burgos and Pimiento (2021), Monroy and Ramírez (2021), Lemus (2021), Carrillo (2021), Beleño (2021), Fernández (2022), Chávez et al. (2022), Maza (2022), Ramos (2022), Rodríguez and Hernández (2022), Palacios (2023), Cerón and Cerón (2023), Fuentes and Sáenz (2023), Becerra (2023), Vera and Báez (2024), Rojas (2024) and Poma et al. (2024).

Table 2 includes the distribution of the articles according to the year of publication between 2020 and 2024, with the years 2020 and 2021 having the highest percentage.

Table 2.

Articles Published by Year.

Year	Number of items	Percentage
2020	6	19%
2021	14	44%
2022	5	16%
2023	4	12%
2024	3	9%
Total	32	100%

Table 3 shows the proportion between studies according to their methodological approach.

Table 3.

Classification by Methodological Approach.

Approach	Quantity	Percentage
Qualitative	18	56%
Quantitative	7	22%
Mixed	7	22%
Total	32	100%

Table 4 shows the articles published by country of origin, with Colombia (75%) and Peru (13%) accounting for the largest number of publications. In contrast, Mexico appears with only 3% of the publications.

Table 4.

Classification by Methodological Approach.

Country of Origin	Number of items	Percentage
Colombia	24	75%
Peru	4	13%
Ecuador	3	9%
Mexico	1	3%
Total	32	100%

Regarding the main characteristics of the papers, all had descriptive, exploratory or correlational scopes; likewise, all the studies had non-experimental and cross-sectional designs. Twenty-six studies mentioned the sample that the researchers used; of this group, 60% included teachers working in public educational institutions and the remaining 40% in private educational institutions; in all these cases the sample evaluated was less than 200 individuals.

Among the findings found in the literature review, there is agreement among the authors when defining reading comprehension as one of the fundamental skills for the academic and personal development of students, since it allows them to interpret, analyze and reflect on written information. However, in many educational contexts, students face difficulties in this competence due to lack of motivation, traditional methodologies that are not very dynamic and a scarce link between the contents and their interests. ^{((11-17-19)) In} this sense, gamification has been consolidated as an innovative strategy capable of transforming learning, promoting active participation, commitment and the development of reading skills in a playful and meaningful way.

A clear majority of the literature consulted explores the impact of the use of gamification in strengthening reading comprehension, analyzing how game mechanics, challenges and rewards can improve students' interest in reading and facilitate the acquisition of reading skills.and therefore, it is from a theoretical review and practical experiences in the classroom, effective strategies that combine game elements with teaching-learning processes in Spanish language are presented.

In this sense, the development of reading comprehension implies the ability to decode, interpret and reflect on a text, allowing the reader to construct meanings and apply knowledge in different contexts. However, multiple studies have shown difficulties in this skill at different educational levels, especially in the first years of education. Among the factors that influence these difficulties are the lack of reading habits, unattractive materials for students, and teaching based on traditional methods that do not encourage motivation or critical thinking.

It is for these reasons that in the context of primary education, it is essential to design didactic strategies that encourage the enjoyment of reading and facilitate the development of comprehension skills at different levels: literal, inferential and critical. In this sense, gamification is presented as an effective alternative to transform the way in which students interact with texts, promoting a more dynamic and meaningful learning. ^(18-27-32)

Thus, gamification is a pedagogical strategy that incorporates game elements in teaching contexts to increase motivation, participation and the learning experience. Among the most commonly used components in gamification are challenges, difficulty levels, rewards, progress boards, avatars and immersive narratives. In the field of reading comprehension, gamification can be applied in a variety of ways, such as, activities in which students must overcome reading comprehension challenges to advance in a story or reach a goal within a gamified environment, reward and progression systems in which points, badges or levels are awarded as students complete activities related to text interpretation and analysis.

Likewise, fictional contexts are created in which students assume the roles of explorers, detectives or investigators who must solve mysteries by reading texts, combined with the use of interactive digital platforms, applications and educational games that can complement traditional teaching and make reading comprehension activities more attractive.

The authors consulted reiterate the benefits of gamification in the development of reading comprehension as a consequence of greater motivation and commitment, taking into account that the inclusion of game dynamics makes students become actively involved in their learning process, increasing their interest and effort to improve their reading comprehension. Research reveals that linking reading with immersive experiences and interactive activities favors the retention of information and deep understanding of texts, developing cognitive skills as a consequence of critical thinking, problem solving and decision making, key skills used in text analysis. Likewise, the achievement of adapted environments and appropriate gamification strategies that include teamwork and healthy competencies are able to promote cooperation and exchange of ideas among students.

Although adaptability to different learning styles is one of the positive features of gamification, it requires the customization of activities according to the level and pace of each student, facilitating an inclusive, effective, structured teaching, aligned with the learning objectives. Some methodological recommendations include the creation of gamified reading clubs, with weekly challenges in which students must read texts and pass tests to advance in a shared story. Another recommended technique involves the use of progression and reward boards, which become achievement systems in which students earn badges for completing reading comprehension activities at different levels of difficulty.

Although gamification offers multiple advantages, its implementation also presents challenges that must be considered such as the proper design of activities, taking into consideration that it is not limited to the delivery of superficial rewards, but is focused on the construction of meaningful learning and that in some contexts, it is evident the difficulty to access resources, connectivity and technological devices that may hinder the use of digital tools for gamification, so a balance must be established between traditional and digital methods, without losing sight of the fact that the playful approach must not displace the pedagogical objectives.

The literature consulted establishes that education faces the constant challenge of capturing the attention and motivating students in their learning process, in a context in which traditional methods are often monotonous and ineffective, hence gamification has emerged as an innovative pedagogical strategy that allows transforming the classroom into a dynamic, interactive and meaningful space, taking advantage of elements and mechanics of games to promote motivation, commitment and active learning in students. Similarly, gamification is considered as a pedagogical strategy that boosts student motivation, promoting learning based on active participation, positive reinforcement and the resolution of challenges, maintaining that this methodology does not simply involve playing in the classroom, but applying principles of game design such as competition, levels of difficulty, rewards and narrative to enhance learning that also generates a dynamic environment in which students assume active roles, reducing the perception of study as a tedious task and fostering a positive attitude towards learning.

Several studies have shown that gamification has a positive impact on multiple aspects of learning, including increased engagement and participation, since the integration of game elements increases the involvement of students in academic activities, meaningful learning, since gamified experiences favor the retention and understanding of information, the development of cognitive and socioemotional skills, thanks to the promotion of critical thinking, problem solving, creativity and teamwork, an increase in student confidence and self-esteem with a decrease in the fear of error, since the methodology offers multiple learning opportunities through trial and error, decreases the anxiety associated with traditional assessments and allows challenges and rewards to be adapted to the pace and learning style of each student.

With respect to the development of reading comprehension, this is a fundamental aspect in education, since it allows students to interpret, analyze and reflect on the texts they read. Within the levels of reading comprehension, the inferential level is key, as it implies the ability to deduce information that is not explicit in the text from contextual clues and previous knowledge. In this context, gamification has emerged as an innovative strategy to strengthen cognitive skills, fostering students' interest and motivation through game elements that allow students to access, interpret and construct knowledge autonomously. However, several investigations have shown difficulties in the development of the inferential level, which limits students' ability to extract implicit meanings from texts.

In this context, gamification is presented as an effective alternative to improve reading comprehension, transforming teaching into a playful and motivating experience. This paper explores how gamification can enhance the development of the inferential level of reading comprehension through activities structured around challenges, rewards and game dynamics. Therefore, reading comprehension is a fundamental skill in the academic development of students, as it allows for the interpretation, analysis and construction of meaning from texts.

Conclusions

This systematic review on the use of gamification in the development of reading comprehension skills in education allows us to identify key trends and evidence of the impact of the use of these pedagogical strategies. First, it is confirmed that gamification is an effective tool to improve reading comprehension in primary school children and the studies analyzed highlight that elements such as immediate feedback, extrinsic and intrinsic motivation and the integration of game mechanics (points, badges, challenges and rewards) generate an increase in student engagement and autonomy, which has a positive impact on text comprehension and analysis.

Second, the findings suggest that the effects of gamification on reading comprehension depend on contextual factors, such as the design of the strategy, the student profile, and the difficulty level of the texts. Although most studies report significant improvements, some warn that inappropriate use of gamification, especially when it focuses on proficiency rather than meaningful learning, can divert students' attention and negatively affect their performance.

Likewise, there is evidence of a diversity of methodological approaches in the studies reviewed, which makes it difficult to generalize the results. Although there is research with rigorous methodologies that support the effectiveness of gamification, there are also gaps in terms of longitudinal studies that allow us to evaluate the sustained impact of these strategies on reading comprehension in the long term.

Finally, the review highlights the need to continue exploring new ways of integrating gamification into reading instruction processes, with an approach based on adaptive learning and the use of emerging technologies. The combination of gamification with active methodologies, such as project-based learning and artificial intelligence, represents a promising area for future research, understanding that gamification is emerging as an innovative tool with high potential to strengthen reading comprehension in diverse educational contexts.

However, its implementation must be carefully planned to ensure that the play component does not replace the pedagogical purpose, but rather enhances it by representing an innovative and effective strategy to improve students' reading skills. By integrating game dynamics into the teaching process, more motivating, interactive and meaningful learning is achieved. Although its implementation requires careful planning and overcoming certain challenges, the benefits in terms of engagement, skill development and improved text comprehension make this methodology a valuable alternative to transform the teaching of reading in the classroom.

Thus, gamification represents an innovative and effective strategy to enhance the development of the inferential level of reading comprehension. By incorporating game dynamics, it stimulates curiosity, motivation and critical thinking in students, generating a more meaningful and lasting learning. The implementation of this strategy requires careful design, balancing playful elements with pedagogical objectives. Although there are challenges in its application, the benefits in terms of engagement, motivation and development of reading skills justify its integration into educational processes. Not only does it transform the way students interact with texts, but it also promotes autonomous and reflective learning, essential for their academic and personal development.

Likewise, a rational use of ludic elements must be maintained, which without a clear educational purpose, can divert attention from learning and in some contexts, the lack of access to digital tools can limit the implementation of gamified strategies.

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