Investigating elementary school students' technology acceptance by applying digital game-based learning to environmental education

Authors

  • Yuh-Ming Cheng Shu-Te University
  • Shi-Jer Lou National Pingtung University of Science and Technology
  • Sheng-Huang Kuo Shu-Te University
  • Ru-Chu Shih National Pingtung University of Science and Technology

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.65

Keywords:

digital game-based learning, elementary school student, environmental education, Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)

Abstract

In order to improve and promote students' environmental knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour, integrating environmental education into the primary education curriculum has become a key issue for environmental education. For this reason, this study aimed to investigate elementary school students' acceptance of technology applying digital game-based learning (DGBL) to environmental education. A total of 32 fourth graders in an elementary school participated in a seven-week DGBL teaching experiment. After the experimental teaching session, a survey concerning "perceived ease of use", "perceived usefulness", and "user intentions" was conducted. The results show that the DGBL system is suitable for both genders at all levels of experience. In addition, the 4th grade students' "perceived ease of use", "perceived usefulness", "attitudes toward use", and "intention to use" reveal a high degree of positive and significant correlations. Furthermore, a path analysis verifies that DGBL acceptance will be directly influenced by a learner's "attitude toward use" and "perceived usefulness." Finally, when designing DGBL for 4th graders, the rich learning content and ease of use should be taken into account because they significantly contribute to a learner's intention to use the system, which may result in greater learning effectiveness.

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Author Biographies

Yuh-Ming Cheng, Shu-Te University

Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering

Shi-Jer Lou, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology

Professor, Graduate Institute of Vocational and Technological Education

Sheng-Huang Kuo, Shu-Te University

Assistant Professor,

Ru-Chu Shih, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology

Associate Professor, Department of Modern Languages

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Published

2013-02-28

How to Cite

Cheng, Y.-M., Lou, S.-J., Kuo, S.-H., & Shih, R.-C. (2013). Investigating elementary school students’ technology acceptance by applying digital game-based learning to environmental education. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 29(1). https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.65