“YZU Dolphin” Set Sail! Launching an RPG-Style Independent Learning Competition

As colleges and universities across Taiwan entered what became the longest winter break in history—nearly two months long—the concern arose about how to prevent students from “lying flat” and letting the time slip by. In response, Yuan Ze University’s International Language and Culture Center launched an innovative self-directed learning activity during this year’s winter vacation.

With gamified mechanisms that overturned the traditional concept of winter assignments, the Center collaborated with the online learning platform Hahow for Campus and the Lungchung Xiangshang Education Foundation to create the “Employment Skills Upgrade Mission: START” competition. Students were invited to form teams and board the virtual adventure ship “YZU Dolphin,” where they had seven weeks to challenge five major skill checkpoints.

Yuan Ze University adopted a flexible “16+2-week” academic structure, in which two independent-learning weeks followed immediately after final exams. The university transformed these weeks into a role-playing RPG-style challenge, designing learning maps such as “Skill Harbor,” “Language Islands,” and “Digital Waves.” Participating teams were required to accumulate online course-viewing hours and points within the stated period. Through peer motivation and competitive elements, students not only earned physical rewards but also strengthened teamwork, self-management, and workplace soft skills.

Shin-Hong Chen, Director of the International Language and Culture Center, stated that a long vacation represented a golden period that could determine differences in students’ competitiveness, and that learning should not be limited to passive online course viewing. Instead, gamified strategies should spark active exploration. He noted that the program content included AI tool usage, investment and financial literacy, sustainable development, and foreign languages. He emphasized, “Through competition and peer companionship, students’ motivation to learn will be entirely different.”

This year’s event also invited administrative and teaching staff to register for the first time, creating a cross-role learning culture of “teachers and students learning together, staff competing as well,” and shaping a new landscape of autonomous learning across the campus. Registration had already reached its peak, and the activity was expected to engage around 300 students and staff, marking the beginning of a winter journey interwoven with knowledge and accomplishment. At the same time, it demonstrated Yuan Ze University’s continued innovation in promoting digital and independent learning.