Developing Cuboid Recognition-based AR Application for Preschool Marine Education

Augmented Reality (AR) is widely used in education because of its ability to deepen learning interactions by overlaying virtual objects with the real world. However, there is a lack of empirical studies on the impact of using AR in preschool marine education. To address this issue, this paper developed a cuboid recognition-based AR application and applied it to preschool marine courses, and further investigated its impact on students’ learning achievement and motivation. We adopted a quasi-experimental approach, using a pretest and posttest to measure learning achievement and scales to measure motivation and technology acceptance. A total of 60 students in the middle grades of kindergarten were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. Students in the experimental group learned about the knowledge using the iPad AR application, while students in the control group learned the same material using traditional teaching methods. The results showed that the students in the experimental group scored higher than the students in the control group in terms of learning achievement and motivation (attention, confidence, relevance, and satisfaction). In addition, students in the experimental group had a high level of technology acceptance for teaching with the AR application. Our study provides an empirical basis for the application of AR in preschool marine education. In addition, this paper illustrates how the cuboid recognition-based AR application can be developed for formal educational purposes.