Abstract:

This study investigates the effects of using dynamic and interactive animations based on POE (Predict, observe, explain) as a presentation tool on 6th grade (Age 12) students’ understanding of the static electricity concepts. The participants of the study were 57 sixth grade students enrolled in a middle-class urban primary school in İzmir, Turkey. A semi-experimental pre-test/post-test control group design was utilized in this study. The experiment group consisted of 30 students and the control group of 27 students. The control group received normal instruction in which the teacher provided instruction by means of lecture, experiment, discussion and homework. Whereas in the experiment group, dynamic and interactive animations were used as a presentation tool in addition to the methods used in the control group. Data collection tools used in the study were Static Electricity Concept Test, open-ended questions, Attitude Scale toward Science as a School Subject, and Attitude Scale Toward Computers. All data collection tools (instruments) except for the open ended questions were used as pre-test before the implementation, as post-test at the end of the implementation, and as delay test approximately 6 months after the implementation. Open-ended questions were used at the end of the implementation and approximately 6 months after the implementation. Results indicated that dynamic and interactive animations used as presentation tools were more effective on 6th grade students’ understanding of static electricity concepts compared to normal instruction. Furthermore, the instruction conducted in the experiment group had a positive effect on students’ attitudes towards computers

Keywords:

Dynamic and interactive animation, Static electricity, Science teaching.