Designing an Educational Program Supported by Augmented Reality Technology in Obtaining the Social Concepts and Developing Creative Thinking in Kindergarten – Level II

Abstract

The aim of the study is to develop an educational program supported by augmented reality technology, and to determine its effectiveness in the acquisition of social concepts and the development of creative thinking among kindergarten – level II. In accordance with the nature of the subject and the objectives of the study, the experimental method was adopted. The sample of the study is Lank kindergarten in which (30) children were selected by drawing and divided into experimental group (who were taught using the prepared program based on augmented reality technology) and consisted of five boys and ten girls, and control group (who were taught using the standard kindergarten program and style) and consisted of six boys and nine girls. Then, the researcher has developed her own educational program, according to the appropriate principles and guidelines for developing educational programs, by using augmented reality technology, which was an application that was named (Sazan AR) that was dedicated to the content of the program of the subject of the research, as well as the content of the official kindergarten booklet. In it, the chosen images from the aforementioned booklet are shown as 3D figures and educational videos. Further, the researcher has developed a measurement for the social concepts to evaluate the sample of the research before and after the application of the program. She simultaneously used Torrance’s criteria (TTCT, 1966) to evaluate the research sample’s creative thinking before and after the application of the program. After implementing the program on the research sample, it was found that the (teaching - learning) program based on augmented reality technology is effective in acquiring social concepts, when comparing the pre-test and post-test of the experimental group. There was also a statistically significant difference in the post-test between experimental and control group at the level of evidence (0.05) in favor of the experimental group. Further, while the program was effective in developing creative thinking among the children of the experimental group when comparing pre-test and post-test, there was no significant difference between the post-test of experimental and control groups at the level of evidence (0.05). Finally, the study concluded that the use of augmented reality technology in the teaching process is an effective and better way than the conventional way of teaching. Augmented reality technology is also appropriate for the kindergarten stage and is an enjoyable experience for them in the learning process. Despite the advantages of augmented reality technology, development and application of the technology is not an easy task at the individual level and by teachers alone, therefore the ministry of education should help with its preparation and application.