Drawing on Augmented Reality to Develop STEM Competencies in Primary Education

Abstract

This article proposes PluggedAR, an application aimed at children aged 6 to 9 and based on Augmented Reality (AR) for mobile devices. PluggedAR allows working on basic concepts of programming as binary numbers, image representation, programming languages, graphics, and minimum spanning trees. In order to test the effectiveness of PluggedAR, a study has been conducted questioning whether the use of AR increases the enthusiasm of students to learn and encourages them to solve the proposed activities. In fact, all the participating students (100%) agreed that learning new concepts with PluggedAR is more entertaining and fun, and their desire to use it in the classrooms was expressed by all of them (100%). In addition, the wide variety of activities has been met with mixed preferences by students. A group of teachers has also participated, and a high percentage of them (50%) believe that PluggedAR is highly recommended for working with children, and 33% of them highlight the wide range of concepts offered by PluggedAR. It is expected that the use of PluggedAR supports the development of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) skills such as problem-solving, logical thinking, or decision making.