The application of smartphone sensors to promote cognitive abilities easier and more effective physics learning

Abstract

The use of sensor on smartphones as physics learning media encourages teachers to reconstruct teaching methods. This paper presents the effect on students’ cognitive abilities using an accelerometer and a gyroscope sensor simultaneously in learning circular motion, as well as students’ responses and the effectiveness of sensor media on smartphones used. A pre-experimental research design was used in this study which involved 12 students of XII MIPA at SMA Negeri 1 Pagaden Subang Jawa Barat. They learned circular motion guided by the smartphone sensors-based worksheets and were tested using an essay test for cognitive abilities measurements. Meanwhile, students’ responses and the effectiveness were obtained using a Likert scale questionnaire. The improvement of students’ cognitive abilities was significantly higher than the pretest which was obtained from the N-gain with a final value of 0.41. Worksheets using smartphone sensor media were more effective than conventional learning. In addition, students showed a positive response in which 93.75% of students were interested, 85,42% were motivated to learn the circular motion, and 91.14% of students became easier in understanding physics concepts.