Media Can Be Used As A Teaching Material In Blended Learning Environment

General Words:

Media Can Be Used As A Teaching Material In Blended Learning Environment, AR 3D pop-up book is a multimedia curriculum material which has been developed based on learning objectives. The media has been designed to assist teachers in elementary schools. The results indicated that the developed media can be used as a teaching material in blended learning environment and as an edutainment media for individuals. Students involved in this experiment were very excited with the

AR environment. The technology became a magnet and aroused a heightened interest in learning. Storytelling and cartoons were suitable for the Grade Three students’ age. The participants expressed the desire to study from AR 3D pop-up books in other subjects. Students indicated that the developed media of this research was “a miracle” and increased their attention to learning. The research found that the AR 3D pop-up book played an important role in learning selected aspects of the English language. The AR 3D pop-up book in multimedia mode can be used effectively under the blended learning environment for children. This innovation will be used effectively as a curriculum material for children of both genders. This AR 3D pop-up had its own unique features which differed from other kinds of multimedia or 3D objects and seems very equipped in providing a rich multimedia environment.

SUMMARY, DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS:

This quasi experimental research was conducted with the population of 484 Grade Three students. 99 students were purposively selected for piloting and testing in the research and development process. This curriculum materials research aimed to develop the AR 3D pop-up book for a blended learning environment in a selected developing country, Thailand. The result presents a story of success of AR 3D pop-up book as an academic tool which enhanced the learning of Grade Three students. Best practice of using innovation technology and the appropriate educational theory applied to develop this multimedia educational product resulted in high student achievement. It was revised multiple times based upon the feedback from experts in many fields. Remarkably, this research relied on student centred learning combined with carefully observing individual students to discover and document ways to improve the quality of learning materials.   

On the one hand, the developed AR 3D pop-up book has highlighted many benefits that include:  

1) availability in both online and offline modes which can be used at anytime, 

2) completion of the necessary steps of AR learning materials development, 

3) AR multimedia packages can enhance learning activities, 

4) integration of a variety of learning skills such as listening, reading, comprehension and creativity, and

5) functionality depended on teachers’ requirements and students’ learning capability.   

On the other hand, for future research the AR 3D pop-up book should be able to be improved in many ways and these include: 

1) The acceptability of the various types of graphic objects not only 2D graphic, image and voice but also 3D objects, video and so forth,

2) The function of adding voice and sound to the object which should extend to accepting both the uploading of files and recording voice.

3) The ability to interact with users in terms of rapid feedback to motivate learning outcomes. 4) The capacity to report a log of users on each section of the media which will assist the producer to know about the learning behaviour of each user.

5) The availability of content in AR for educational purposes which is in high demand from teachers who need some ‘learning aids’ in their class. 

The results have confirmed the potential of AR for academic purposes. The AR creator offered a possible option to produce an AR 3D pop-up book without dealing with complicated computer programming. The simple character of a book represented a classical form of delivery of content. The co-operation among the educational technologists, experts in children’s storytelling, contents experts and AR creator was a great combination of talented minds that were needed to lead this project to completion. The high involvement of students is also a significant stimulant and motivator for future AR research. Blended learning environments integrating computer technology and face-toface pedagogy will be a noteworthy educational feature to assist developing countries. AR and other techniques for educational purposes such as gaming and role-playing should be studied in greater depth since the output will definitely enhance modernization of instruction for the future.