The ScavengAR Hunt: An Augmented Reality Teacher Training Case Study Using Mobile Devices

Introduction

This chapter focuses on the design process of an activity utilizing mobile devices and mobile applications in an advanced instructional technology course informed by research on Augmented Reality (AR), game design, mobile device usage in the classroom, and instructional design. The ScavengAR Hunt sought to incorporate multiple mobile devices and mobile applications into a collaborative group activity, where each group member contributed to group success by completing specific tasks at four different on-campus locations requiring the use of mobile devices and mobile applications.

Content for the ScavengAR Hunt revolved around target images for multiple AR mobile applications, a technology unfamiliar to the pre-service teachers. The ScavengAR Hunt was intended to serve as a model for pre-service teachers to potentially duplicate in the future, adjusting the specifications of the activity to meet the needs of the content and audience. For most pre-service teachers, this meant elementary school students. Five different sections of pre-service teachers in an advanced instructional technology course participated in the ScavengAR Hunt over the course of one academic year. The ScavengAR Hunt was designed as an instructional game, focusing on the ability of pre-service teachers to use mobile devices effectively in a socially interactive context. Its design incorporates three basic elements: rules of a game, the use of mobile devices (iPads and smartphones) and mobile applications to complete the game, and a collaborative activity allowing the instructor and peers to provide feedback to each other during the activity.