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Transformative Learning Experiences with Kyle Wagner is a show created for DISRUPTORS and INNOVATIVE EDUCATORS looking to create more socially, globally, emotionally aware citizens and student-centered classrooms through transformative project- based learning experiences. Through 1:1 interviews, Kyle dissects learning experiences from EDNOVATORS just like you, and unpacks the simple strategies and structures that allowed them to happen. To date, over 1,000 classrooms have been transformed through 1,000 + learning experiences.

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How do you engage students like a game designer? Ignite passion, empower learners, enliven curriculum

Mar 19, 2026

How do you get students so engaged that they ask for extra paper, and don't want class to end?

 

In this episode I sit down with Vince, founder of Press Start Studios and curator for Games for Change Hong Kong, to explore how game design principles transform student engagement, creativity, and intrinsic motivation. Discover how thinking like a game designer shifts your entire approach to curriculum—and why the best teachers are actually already doing this without realizing it.

 

In this episode, we explore:

 

  • Why game-based learning is about intrinsic motivation and agency, not gamification gimmicks like badges and leaderboards
  • How to apply game design thinking to any subject—from reefs and rainforests to your existing project-based learning
  • How game design and project-based learning work together: structuring your curriculum as interconnected quests, levels, and challenges that build toward meaningful real-world outcomes
  • Practical ways to sprinkle game mechanics into your curriculum without it feeling forced or artificial
  • How students become so engaged they ask for extra sheets of paper because their story won't fit—and want to come back before school even starts

Listen now to unlock the game design principles that turn learning into an adventure your students won't want to leave!

Connect with Vince: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincentsiu/ (LinkedIn)

Learn more about Press Start Academy: https://www.pressstartacademy.com/en/ 

Get the 12 Shifts Book for Student-Centered Environments: https://www.amazon.com/Where-Teacher-Kyle-Wagner/dp/1032484713 

Take the 12 Shifts Scorecard: www.transformschool.com/12shiftsscorecard 

Vince's Bio: 

At Press Start Studios, Vince produces innovative, inspiring, interactive learning products. Through Press Start Academy, he brings them to life through immersive, impactful, in-person learning experiences.

In an adjacent, not-for-profit role, Vince serves as the Founding and Lead Curator for Games for Change Hong Kong, Asia's first local chapter of an inspiring global movement that spotlights the power of games to drive change—and the change the game industry is leading. He believes Asia is ready to lead the conversation on both top-down and bottom-up impact through immersive mediums and has many exciting stories of experimentation and innovation to share. Through G4CHK, Vince aims to help push these boundaries even further.

Vince is deeply passionate about and committed to social impact and change, and he strives to support meaningful causes wherever possible—both through his organizations and in his personal capacity.