The development and usability testing of game-based learning as a medium to introduce zoology to young learners

Abstract

The development of information technology in every point of life, creates innovation in an easier way. An example of innovation that can be combined with children's education system is game-based learning. In this study, the game-based learning which involved gesture recognition as input has been developed. The matching string algorithm was used in the development process of the proposed game-based learning. The user should match the animal shadow with the suitable image of the animal by dragging and dropping using hand gestures. The user is trained to sharpen their ability to read visual images of animals and to develop their gesture as an interaction process. After the development process, the usability testing of the proposed game-based learning was conducted. The target user ranged from 7–8 years old. Based on the experiments, the results of the usability testing to the young learners concluded that the proposed game-based learning helps them studying the various animals from different ecosystems in an easier manner, and in a more interactive way. Statistically, this result was derived from the average value of the central tendency of the usability aspects that is 4.12.