Investigating the Factors that Influence Technology Acceptance of an Educational Game Integrating Mixed Reality and Concept Maps

With the rapid development of mobile learning technologies as well as relevant hardware and software platforms, there is a bright prospect for mixed reality (MR) applying in the field of education. However, appropriate knowledge navigation and concept arrangement methods are urgent to diminish students' cognitive load in the virtual learning environment. In this preliminary study, concept maps were selected as scaffolding tools to help students navigate through the MR learning space, and an educational game prototype named MMRCM integrating MR and concept maps was developed to investigate students' technology acceptance about it. Considering the novelty of this new type of MR application, an extended version of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was constructed with the MR game design elements and the concept map usefulness as external factors. A middle school physics experiment using MMRCM was conducted to help students learn the abstract concepts of friction. The evaluation results showed that the model's external factors have significant correlations with both perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. The findings indicated explicit intention to use MMRCM, which implied that MR gaming and concept maps could be integrated as an effective instructional tool in science education.

Automated summary

With the rapid development of mobile learning technologies, there is a bright prospect for mixed reality (MR) in education, but appropriate knowledge navigation and concept arrangement methods are needed to reduce students' cognitive load. The integration of MR and concept maps in an educational game prototype MMRCM showed significant correlations between external factors and students' acceptance of the technology. This suggests that MR gaming and concept maps can be effective instructional tools in science education.