Mathematics Assessment Using Virtual Reality: A Study on Indonesian Elementary School Children

Abstract

Technology can be a useful tool to obtain the interest of the digital native individuals in performing mathematics assessment. This research aims to seek evidence that technology-based mathematics assessments using virtual reality (VR) and tablets are more preferred by elementary school children than conventional assessments using paper and pencil (PAPI). This study also examines whether children have difficulties in doing VR assessment compared to tablets assessment. In addition, this study wants to know whether children's judgments are significant predictors for mathematics scores of children. To achieve these goals, the researchers constructed three different mathematics assessments based on the Indonesian curriculum. A total of 199 children in their third year of schooling were administered a mathematics assessment that was implemented either as PAPI, as tablet or as VR assessment. Afterwards, children were asked about their assessment preferences, whether they experienced difficulties in doing the assessment, how they rated their own mathematics performances, and how much fun they had during the given tasks. Parents were asked about their educational background. Result suggests that children prefer doing mathematics assessment using VR compared to PAPI. VR group reported more difficulties in some but not all aspects of assessment to tablets group. In addition, the result of hierarchical regression suggests that schools can explain a significant amount of variance in the mathematics competence in all modes of assessment. This study delivers important findings about conducting mathematics assessment using VR.