Augmented Reality for Science Education
Birgitte Lund Nielsen1 Harald Brandt1 Håkon Swenson2 Marianne Georgsen1
1 INTRODUCTION Augmented reality (AR) holds great promise as a learning tool. So far, however, most research has looked at the technology itself – and AR has been used primarily for commercial purposes. As a learning tool, AR supports an inquiry-based approach to science education with a high level of student involvement. The AR-sci-project [1] (Augmented Reality for SCIence education) addresses the issue of applying augmented reality in developing innovative science education and enhancing the quality of science teaching and learning. AR-sci is an ongoing, international project funded by ERASMUS+. AR-sci is aimed at developing augmented reality (AR) for educational purposes, specifically for science education, and in particular for lower secondary school.
Figure 1: The 3 stages in the AR-sci project, running 2015-17.
2 ABOUT AUGMENTED REALITY AR has been defined on the following three properties [2]: • It combines real and virtual objects in a real environment • It runs interactively, and in real time • It aligns real and virtual objects with each other.
Location-based AR is typically marker-less in contrast to marker-based AR which uses visual cues to anchor digital content, made possible through image recognition algorithms. The use of AR in education is still in its infancy.
Augmented Reality is often divided into the two categories - marker-less and markerbased. Marker-less AR uses sensor data such as GPS to identify where the user is and overlay contextual information. Marker-based AR relies on visual markers such as images, objects or QR codes. Cheng and Tsai [3] supplement these two categories when differing between location-based AR and image-based AR.
Wu et al. [4] condense the following affordances related to AR: • it presents learning content in 3D perspectives • it is ubiquitous, collaborative and enables situated learning • it supports learners’ sense of presence, immediacy, and immersion • it visualises the invisible • it bridges formal and informal learning
Figure 2: Three examples of first generation educational AR (a) AR Sandox in use (b) 3D landmap visualisation (c) Student nurses examining human respiration with a marker based AR application
3 METHODS To survey current practices and future needs for AR in education, a group of experts were consulted in a Delphi-study. The Delphi methodology is a qualitative approach facilitating the systematic identifi-cation and analysis of the judgements of individual participants in a panel of experts [5]. Issues are explored through multiple iterations with two or more rounds of se-quential questionnaires concerning a specific topic. Condensations of opinions de-rived from one questionnaire are included in the next. All in all, 35 experts, teachers, science education researchers and ICT designers were identified from the four partici-pating countries
4 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Based on the survey we have 11 continua in relation to the educational uses of AR in science education (Figure 3). From the user being an observer to designs with interactive elements. From the user being a consumer to designs where the user is also creator. From the user working individually to designs where collaborative work is built-in. From designs decontextualized from a certain context to designs facilitating situated learning. From designs supporting content-oriented learning of science to designs supporting inquiry-based science education.
Figure 3: Two examples of first generation educational AR, developed before the AR-sci project, coded with the nine categories in the final framework. Blue: “Sandbox”. Red: Human respiration.
REFERENCES
The continuum targets the degree to which the user interacts with the AR materials. The continuum targets the degree to which the AR offers students the possibility to actively create or produce something. The continuum targets the degree to which the AR offers students the possibility to actively create or produce something. The continuum targets the degree to which the AR is designed to be used in a specific situation/ location. The continuum targets the degree to which inquiry based science is built into the AR, e.g. students posing questions and hypotheses, analyzing data, and communicating their findings. From static designs to designs being data driven. The continuum targets the degree to which data is collected and represented while using the AR. From having a mono-perspective to juxtaposing different per- The continuum targets the degree of layered information spectives. about the same phenomenon. From classic multi-media to 3D visualization. The continuum targets the degree to which 3D visualizations are present in the design. From a virtual reality setting to real-world augmentation. The continuum targets to what degree real world inquiry is built into the AR design.
1. AR-sci project webpage, http://www.ar-sci.dk/ 2. Azuma, R., Baillot, Y., Behringer, R., Feiner, S., Julier, S., & MacIntyre, B.: Re-cent advances in augmented reality. Computer Graphics and Applications, IEEE, 21(6), 34–47 (2001) 3. Cheng, K.-H., & Tsai, C.-C.: Affordances of Augmented Reality in Science Learning: Suggestions for Future Research. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 22(4), 449–462 (2013)
4. Wu, H., Lee, S.W., Chang, H. & Liang, J.: Current status, opportunities and chal-lenges of augmented reality in education. Computers & Education, 62, 41-49 5. Osborne, J., Collins, S., Ratcliffe, M., Millar, R. & Duschl, R.: What “ideas-about-science” should be taught in school science? A Delphi-study of the expert community. Journal of research in Science Education, 40(7), 692-720 (2003)
VIA University College, Denmark www.via.dk/celm 2 Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences (HIOA), Norway www.hioa.no 1
Partners Funder
contact:
[email protected]
