| Abstract [eng] |
Education without information technology in a modern school is unimaginable. By applying information technologies, learning opportunities are expanded: it is possible to present a more diverse curriculum, optimize processes, and make the educational process more inclusive, simpler, and more diverse. The main activity of preschool children is play. While playing, children learn to communicate, solve problems, and imitate everyday life situations. Gamification is an increasingly important educational solution in the field of education to solve the problems of students' involvement and motivation. Gamification is not a game, but children accept gamified activities as a game because they use computer game design elements that encourage engagement and activate action. The project analyses the use of mobile technologies in preschool education. The aim is to activate preschool children to learn and improve their engagement in the educational process by applying the methodology of preschool gamification using the mobile technology and create the tool to implement this methodology. To achieve this goal, the concept of gamification, its elements most often used in the field of education, and the possibilities of using mobile technologies for pre-school education to play were reviewed. The attitude of pre-school educators towards play, the application of its elements in the educational process, the use of mobile technologies and its possibilities were studied. Based on the research data, a methodology was developed, functional and non-functional requirements were identified, the tool designed based on them was implemented in the content management system Wordpress, and the necessary technical solutions were selected. The developed methodology and the website for its implementation “Žaidybinam!” were tested, a quantitative study was conducted, during which it became clear that the teachers participating in the study positively evaluate the methodology and its interactive activities, notice increased children's motivation, involvement, and activity. Based on the observations of the study participants, steps were taken to improve the methodology and to ensure continuity. The methodology was implemented in the pre-school education groups of Vilnius and Kaunas branches of UAB Erudito licėjus in the 2021-2022 school year. |
