, R . Joiner , R . Hull , & J . Reid Designing Educational Experiences Using Ubiquitous and Pervasive Technology

The aim of the study was to explore the design of situated educational and compelling experiences using SoundScape technology – which is a ubiquitous and pervasive technology. The design of these SoundScapes was informed by two theories of what makes an experience compelling. We designed two experiences: one that had a goal and the other that did not. Twenty six children then explored both experiences. After exploration, the children completed a semi-structured questionnaire asking them which experience was the more compelling. The children found that the SoundScape with a goal was more interesting and were more likely to want to have another go than the non-goal version. They also made more positive comments concerning the goal version. Mentioning the presence of a goal as important factor in determining why they liked the game. More negative comments were made concerning the non-goal version and the children mentioned the lack of a goal as negative aspect of the non-goal version. One improvement they suggested for the non-goal version was to add a goal and to include more sensory stimulation. They overwhelmingly preferred the goal version compared to the nongoal version and when asked by far the most popular reason was the presence of a goal. So in sum the goal version was found to more interesting and preferred more by the children than the non-goal version.