Development of AR Comic Book with PWIM Technique for Reading Competence of Primary School Students

Abstract

The objectives of this study were 1) to review related literature and explore students’ opinions, 2) to develop an AR comic book with the PWIM technique, and 3) to examine the effects of the AR comic book on primary school students’ reading competence. The design of the study was the Research and Development comprising three phases. The first phase was the literature review and the exploration of students’ opinions. The second phase was the development of the AR comic book with PWIM technique. and the third phase was to examine the effects of the AR comic book to improve primary school students’ reading competence. The sample of the study included grade 2 primary students who were studying in the second semester of the academic year 2021. One was an experimental group of 30 students and the other was a control group of 30 students. The samples were randomly selected using cluster random sampling method. The research instruments consisted of 1) a pre-test and a post-test, 2) the AR comic book with PWIM technique, 3) a reading competence scoring sheet. The quantitative data were analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation, and T-test (dependent sample (Paired t-test) and independent sample).

The findings of the study suggested that: In the first phase, the study found that most students prefer colorful and good-looking cartoons. The characters should be cute or smart. The drawing lines are clear. On the other hand, the students did not favor light, dim, or dark-colored cartoons, as well as the characters with unhappy faces and blurred drawing lines. In addition to the students’ opinion, the literature review also suggested that PWIM technique is composed of four principles including 1) looking at pictures and identifying words, 2) reading aloud to make connections between words and pictures, 3) practicing inductive thinking, and 4) applying the words in contexts. In the second phase, the study found that the AR comic book should be composed of five major components including 1) 2D cartoon animations and illustrated cartoons, 2) Thai language indicators, 3) a story, 4) characters, and 5) augmented reality. The processes of using the AR comic book should consist of four steps as follows: 1) looking at pictures and identifying words, 2) reading aloud to make a connection between words and pictures, 3) practicing inductive thinking, and 4) applying the words in contexts. The quality of AR comic book using PWIM technique is good (=4.36 S.D.=0.72). In the third phase, the findings indicated that all experimental groups have improved their reading competence after the implementation of the book with a statistical significance at a level of .05. Moreover, the post-test mean scores of the low, average, and high groups of students in the experimental group were higher than the post-test mean scores of those in the control group with a statistical significance at a level of .05.