Educational Technology - Augmented Reality
N. Zanjani; F. Fathi; M. Ajdadi; M.J. Eslampoor
Abstract
Background and Objectives: The integration of technology in education has significantly transformed the teaching and learning processes. Among the new technologies, augmented reality stands out due to its ability to provide interactive and engaging educational experiences. This technology has been able ...
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Background and Objectives: The integration of technology in education has significantly transformed the teaching and learning processes. Among the new technologies, augmented reality stands out due to its ability to provide interactive and engaging educational experiences. This technology has been able to improve students' motivation, participation, and understanding of concepts. On the other hand, multiplication, as a fundamental mathematical operation, poses a challenge for students to learn because of its abstract nature. In math subjects, augmented reality has been used to teach geometry and rarely for other areas. Therefore, further exploring the use of this technology in other areas of teaching math, such as algebra, is worth examining. The objective of this research is to explore the usability of augmented reality applications to teach multiplication. Usability is critical to investigate, as it ensures that young users can easily engage with and benefit from educational content. The difficulty of using applications and the lack of attractiveness will negatively impact user engagement. Therefore, examining usability requirements is of great importance.Materials and Methods: The research method included an expert review and a user survey. A class of 17 third-grade students was selected from a private school, and the researchers implemented instructional plans in collaboration with teachers. The application used was designed by an Iranian group and included multiplication lessons, tests, and educational videos. Its augmented reality capability allowed students to interactively understand multiplication concepts using the phone's camera. The System Usability Scale questionnaire was used with a 5-point Likert scale that was localized for children and translated into Persian to evaluate the usability. This questionnaire included 13 questions about ease of use, interaction, and overall satisfaction with the program. The content validity of the questionnaire was checked using the CVR index, while Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to check its reliability. The answers were analyzed using SPSS software, and the mean, standard deviation, and correlations were checked.Findings: This research showed that the augmented reality application for teaching multiplication to children is generally usable and attractive. The questionnaire's validity was confirmed with a CVR score of 0.99, and its reliability was evaluated with Cronbach's alpha of 0.704 at an almost acceptable level. Participants found the program easy to use and engaging, and required little help from adults. Correlation analysis showed that the need for more help was negatively related to decreased confidence in performance, while a better understanding of the program was positively related to willingness to continue working with it. According to an expert review, the design of the program was compatible with the cognitive needs of children and uses simple design, bright colors, and attractive characters; However, the use of a small font and the lack of in-app audio and visual guides were among its weaknesses. Physically, the app had large buttons, well-spaced components, and simple menus that made it easy to work with. In terms of social-emotional needs, it was possible to choose a male or female narrator and use the augmented reality feature, but there were no customization options such as changing the background or characters, and gamification elements such as scoring or creating a sense of progress.Conclusions: Incorporating augmented reality applications into math education can increase student engagement and motivation, but considerable attention to usability guidelines and improvements in app design are necessary. This research, in addition to highlighting the principles that are necessary in the design of the user interface of the augmented reality program for teaching multiplication, to make it attractive and easy to use for children, has taken an innovative step in the evaluation of educational programs by presenting the Persian version of the System Usability Scale questionnaire for children, using a systematic approach to translate and localize the questionnaire.
Educational Technology - Augmented Reality
A. Tavangar; H. Rezghi shirsavar; F. Ahmadi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: The world of tomorrow differs from today’s world. It belongs to those who hold the reins of policy-making and planning, capable individuals who understand the demands of their time and plan accordingly. The education system serves as a key to the future, being one of ...
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Background and Objectives: The world of tomorrow differs from today’s world. It belongs to those who hold the reins of policy-making and planning, capable individuals who understand the demands of their time and plan accordingly. The education system serves as a key to the future, being one of the most vital social institutions in any country’s development. Its aim is to nurture creativity and talent among students. In this context, emerging technologies like the Metaverse have the potential to revolutionize education, creating a new civilization where place, time, and territory no longer constrain learning. This research focuses on forecasting through future-oriented planning based on scenarios. It delves into uncertainties and changing conditions, painting a panorama of diverse futures for policymakers. Its goal is to envision the future of Metaverse technology in educationMethods: This research was applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-combined (synchronization-data transformation model) based on scientific resources, documents, observations, field surveys, and software analysis in terms of research method. The research population included experts in education and technology units of provincial departments who were active in smart schools, media literacy, and electronic content production. A purposeful sampling method (snowball) was used to select 17 participants. In the qualitative section, all statements from the expert panel (10 webinar sessions, totaling 20 hours) were reviewed several times, important points were extracted, and structured questionnaires with Likert scale questions were prepared. Afterwards, the problem definition and identification of components began, and through the analysis of driving forces and existing uncertainties, the development and description of scenarios and the recommendation of strategic options were concluded. Qualitative data identified five key factors affecting the future of metaverse technologies in cultural-social, managerial, structural, physical, and economic dimensions through the expert panel. Quantitative analysis was based on the use of SPSS software, and qualitative data analysis was done through Vensim, MICMAC, and Scenario Wizard software, and strategy presentation was done with the SWOT analytical model. The research tools in the quantitative section included structured interviews with 42 items, which were prepared through the expert panel, and the face validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by experts, with an alpha coefficient of 0.82 calculatedFindings: The structural analysis matrix of the drivers was calculated using the MicMac software and then through the Scenario Wizard software, the golden scenario (with 2 scenarios), the disaster scenario (19 scenarios), and the believable scenario (3 scenarios) were calculated. Also, through the SWOT table, the internal and external matrix was calculated, the coefficient and final score of internal factors were 1.94 and the score of external factors was 2.2, which indicates the internal weakness of the system and the average condition of the external system.Conclusion: Despite the relative progress in the field of quantitative growth of education and technology compared to developed countries, the educational system of Iran has not had much success and technology and the use of virtual reality in the classroom has no meaning and the practionters are only satisfied with the purchase of technological equipment in the school; it is necessary to create a suitable platform to reach the golden scenario. If the goal is
Educational Technology - Augmented Reality
S. Khazaie; R. Nejati; M. Karbasi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Planning for the success of students in the world is one of the priorities of teaching English in the secondary schools in Asia. The improvement of the English reader's skills to understand the actual needs defined as the +language by representing the events of the world in ...
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Background and Objectives: Planning for the success of students in the world is one of the priorities of teaching English in the secondary schools in Asia. The improvement of the English reader's skills to understand the actual needs defined as the +language by representing the events of the world in language learning milieu based on educational technology is in progress. Although extending the sense in the scenes of serious games is done for easy language learning, the active visual and verbal working memory of students has not been considered as an effective factor in reading. This study endeavored to investigate the allocation of sensory weight in virtual reality games for teaching English reading to Asian students with different working memory abilities.Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted by selecting 916 male and female students from secondary schools. Using parallel-group design, students participated in the working memory tests. These Iranian (N = 612) and non-Iranian (Pakistani, N = 204; Iraqi, N= 40, and Kashmiri, N = 64) were studying in the 10th grade of the second year of high school and were enrolled in language institute to learn English in the fall semester of academic year 2022-2023. In order to ensure homogeneity of the participants according to the level of English proficiency, a junior TOEFL test was administered, and students whose English proficiency score was between one standard deviation higher and one standard deviation lower than the mean were selected to take part in the study. The scores of the participants' working memory test were converted into standard scores with a mean of zero and a standard deviation of one. Based on the working memory capacity, the participants were placed in one of the active memory quadrants. Then, they were randomly divided into intact and experimental groups to learn English reading online or through virtual reality games in 14 sessions. In each session, first, the main researcher taught English reading passages to the participants using Skyroom educational software for 30 minutes. Then, online or virtual reality-based activities were provided to students to practice reading skills for 20 minutes. Participants were assessed formatively each session and a score of 0-20 was recorded for each student. The participants expressed their experience of the senses in the course of reading in each session verbally.Findings: The results of the analysis of repeated measures ANCOVA showed that extending the sense in teaching English readers through virtual reality games significantly facilitated students' learning. Adding auditory sense to scenes of virtual reality game significantly improved the reading progress of students who had high verbal working memory capacity. Although psychological and real-life categories were emphasized in the interviews, students with high working memory underlined the sense extension as useful for learning English reading in relation to the surrounding world.Conclusion The findings of this study revealed that extending the sense in virtual reality games is beneficial for learning English reading when it is in line with students' working memory. The correct allocation of the sense in the scenes of virtual reality games results in the use of English reading in the world, namely + language.
Educational Technology - Augmented Reality
M. Yousefei; H. Zangeneh
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Students' negative attitude toward teaching and learning, especially in elementary school, is a fundamental problem for parents and teachers, affecting the future of the individuals and society. One of the reasons for this attitude is the use of conventional methods. These ...
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Background and Objectives: Students' negative attitude toward teaching and learning, especially in elementary school, is a fundamental problem for parents and teachers, affecting the future of the individuals and society. One of the reasons for this attitude is the use of conventional methods. These types of classes hinder students' dynamism and make them tired and unmotivated. But today, technology can be used to enrich our classrooms. Virtual reality is a technology that has helped to change students' attitudes and made classroom environments more dynamic. In fact, it can be defined as the simulation of a situation, and the attitude consists of a person's beliefs, feelings, and behavior. In the early period, the first attitudes are achieved in a person, and this attitude plays an important role in the motivation and behavior of a person. On the other hand, technologies play an essential role in human life today, and it is necessary to use them in different areas of life with correct and purposeful planning. One of these critical fields is education. Regarding education and training, the choice of media is a fundamental issue. The selection of media should be made according to factors such as the characteristics of the learner in order to be effective. If the media are not selected and designed correctly, they will cause financial losses and waste of time. So how to design the media, which is the virtual reality here, is very important in influencing the attitude. On the other hand, according to Howland's message learning theory, the three factors of source, message, and audience characteristics are among the factors that should be taken into account to change the attitude. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to review the studies conducted in the field of using virtual reality in terms of attitude in the elementary course was in line with the answers to these questions: a) What factors play a role in choosing virtual reality technology for use in elementary classes in terms of students' attitudes? b) How is the design of virtual reality content to improve the attitude of elementary school students? And c) How are the educational activities in the classes based on virtual reality to improve the attitude of elementary school students?Methods: The study was conducted in a systematic review from August to November 2022. The search was carried out in the Wiley, Scopus, Springer link, and Web of Science databases with the keywords Virtual reality, Attitude, and Primary students, along with the relevant word groups. The criteria for the entry and acceptance of the research included these items: related to virtual reality and the use of this technology in teaching and learning, in relation to primary school students, in relation to attitude, research in English or Farsi, and field articles. Finally, according to the inclusion criteria, the data from 12 cases were extracted, described, analyzed, and inferred from 233 studies.Findings: According to the research questions, data were extracted, such as research countries, subjects, educational level, explanations of virtual reality, and activities from the cases (articles) that have been chosen for analysis. After analyzing and combining their findings, more studies have been taken in countries like Taiwan, China, and Korea and in fifth and sixth grades. Subjects have worked on science, social studies, English language, and physical education. In fact, according to these findings, the use of virtual reality in the fifth and sixth grades of elementary school and subjects such as sciences had the most significant impact on the students' attitudes. Also, after combining and putting together the data related to virtual reality content and features such as sense of presence, content, repetition, practice, problem-solving, animation mode, use of real images, and educational factor. These findings show that these elements in virtual reality may play a role in students' attitudes. The activities performed in the classes included viewing the content, examining and exploring the content, doing homework, working in groups, listening to the teacher's instructions, and questioning and answering. These characteristics and elements were gathered from putting together the information of previous research, but only mean the existence of all these factors in some of the studies.Conclusion: From the explanation and conclusion of the findings, it can be said that: 1) an important criterion in the use, selection, and application of technologies, including virtual reality, is to pay attention to the characteristics of learners, including their age and 2) the characteristics of the subject that must be paid attention to. When the learner is in the abstract stage, this technology can improve learning and attitude. In fact, from their findings and analysis, it was concluded that age is an important factor in paying attention to attitude, and the use of virtual reality when the learners are in the abstract stage is effective. Also, the use of virtual reality in subjects such as sciences, which has features such as spatial and temporal limitations and abstract content, can be effective. Designers of virtual reality content should design it in such a way that is possible to check and explore the content, interact, repeat the content, and practice and solve the problem. Based on the finding related to inferences of classroom activities, it can be concluded that teachers must group students before viewing virtual reality and add additional explanations after viewing it. In fact, the group is an essential factor that affects learners' attitudes. Also, they must provide tasks and assignments per the objectives and content and allow them to ask questions and answers. Finally, according to these factors, virtual reality technology can be used to create, change or improve the attitude of elementary school students.
