Augmented Reality in informal learning environments

Augmented Reality in informal learning environments: A Music History Exhibition José Duarte Cardoso Gomes Centro de Investigação em Artes e Comunicação, Universidade do Algarve, Universidade Aberta, [email protected], Portugal Mauro Jorge Guerreiro Figueiredo Centro de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Centro de Investigação em Artes e Comunicação, Instituto Superior de Engenharia, Universidade do Algarve, [email protected], Portugal Lúcia da Graça Cruz Domingues Amante Laboratório de Educação a Distância e Elearning, Universidade Aberta, [email protected], Portugal Cristina Maria Cardoso Gomes Centro de Investigação em Artes e Comunicação, Universidade do Algarve, Universidade Aberta, [email protected], Portugal

ABSTRACT Augmented Reality (AR) allows computer-generated imagery information to be overlaid onto a live real world environment in real-time. Technological advances in mobile computing devices such as smartphones and tablets (internet access, built-in cameras and GPS) made a greater number of AR applications available. This paper presents the Augmented Reality Musical Gallery (ARMG) exhibition, enhanced by AR. ARMG focuses the twentieth century music history and it is aimed to students from the 2nd Cycle of Basic Education in Portuguese public schools. In this paper, we will introduce the AR technology and address topics as constructivism, art education, student motivation, and informal learning environment. We conclude by presenting the first part of the ongoing research conducted among a sample group of students contemplating the experiment in educational context. Keywords: Augmented Reality, music history, constructivism, motivation, informal learning environments. INTRODUCTION New and advanced technologies continue to change every aspect of home, life and work: the way we communicate, learn and socialize. Computer technologies are changing the ways we think and make sense of our world (Collins & Halverson, 2009). While educators may legitimately debate strategies and methods of education, all agree that participation in the world of the 21st century will demand technology competence. Technology is essential in teaching, communications, mathematics and science, and it is no less important in the arts. Technology is an important tool that can improve the educational system, but the challenge of integrating technology into the delivery of content remains. Digital technologies, in all areas, can enhance student achievement by addressing introductory and advanced skills, assessment of student progress and student motivation (Assey, 1999). Presently, Information Technology (IT) has become a ubiquitous component of undergraduate

education. The use of computers, and mobile computing devices in educational context are commonplace in terms of usefulness and acceptance over the past few years and technology has found its place inside and outside the classroom for academic purposes (Sandler, 2010). These devices have increased processing power and usability, and are accessible on a large scale, which has significantly contributed to their ease of use and at implementing innovative educational processes in numerous educational institutions and universities (Figueiredo, Gomes, Gomes, & Lopes, 2014). AR is a technology that combines real-world objects and digital information in real-time. AR, according to Azuma (1997), is a system that features three main characteristics: First, it combines the real and the virtual world; second, allows interaction and third, it incorporates the possibility of visualizing three dimensional (3-D) digital objects. Early AR experiments date back to the late 1960’s and to Ivan Sutherland’s work. At present, AR is widely available through mobile computing devices such as smartphones and tablets. According to the 2012 Horizon Report, AR was identified as an emerging technology with high relevance for teaching and learning and predicted to have a large adoption by 2015 (“NMC Horizon Report: 2012 higher education edition,” 2012). Constructivist pedagogical approaches are inherent in most performance-based music courses. Students can apply new knowledge and receive synchronous feedback from teachers. However, knowledge-based courses such as music appreciation, theory and music history have historically relied on direct instruction and the lecture-model. Technology offers new opportunities to bring constructivist pedagogy to knowledge-based music courses, adding the possibility of autonomous exploration of interactive multimedia content (Keast, 2009) into the teaching-learning process in music history. This paper introduces the concept and development of ARMG, focusing an audience of 2nd Cycle of Basic Education students at Portuguese public schools. ARMG is an interactive exhibition that aims to provide a constructivist pedagogical approach to the music history teaching-learning process and to promote AR technology as a means to deliver educational multimedia content to young students in an informal learning environment. The ultimate exhibition goals are to enhance student motivation towards music history learning and to improve their educational outcomes in music classes. The paper is organized as follows: Section II introduces AR technology and how it has been used for educational purposes. Section III introduces the concept of the constructivist pedagogic model and the topics of art, motivation and informal learning environments. Section IV describes the concept and development of the AR Musical Gallery. Section V present the first part of the ongoing research conducted among students and focusing their experience with the exhibition. The study hereby presented surveys the current usage of mobile computing devices (MCD) by the target-audience. Section VI presents conclusions and further work. II - AUGMENTED REALITY The first AR prototypes appeared in the late 1960’s as a result from Ivan Sutherland´s and his students work in Harvard and Utah Universities. AR is a variation of the Virtual Environments, also known as Virtual Worlds or Virtual Reality (VR). Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that allows computer-generated virtual imagery information to be overlaid onto a live direct or indirect real-world environment in real-time. AR differs from virtual reality (VR) in that VR user experience a computer-generated virtual environment, whereas in AR, the environment is real, but extended with information and imagery from the system (Lee, 2017). AR is also defined as a technique that allows interacting and visualizing virtual graphics on top of the real-world view (Jaramillo, Quiroz, Cartagena, Vivares, & Branch, 2010). Milgram’s continuum (Milgram & Kishino, 1994) proposes that AR is a mixed reality environment, with one part belonging to the real-world, and other purely virtual. However, the real environment predominates (figure 1). This mixed-reality environment presents large possibilities for human-computer interaction (HCI) and it has been used in different areas, namely medicine, architecture, education,

training, military, astronomy, chemistry, biology, mathematics, geometry, amongst many others. AR can contain various functions, namely, interaction or display. A good example of this can be a museum, where the visitor uses a given application to scan a bar code on the base of a statue and the application shows a picture of the statue with a fully interactive description (Ward, 2012). In comparison to VR, aimed to immerse the user in a synthetic environment, AR supplements the user perception of the real world by adding computer-generated content

Figure 1 - Milgram's Reality-Virtuality Continuum

registered to real-world locations. A significant part of the AR environment consists of realworld objects, for which it is not necessary to create detailed 3-D models, while offering a high level of reality (Wojciechowski & Cellary, 2013). The field of learning and training, both in academic and corporate settings, has seen in the last few decades a growing interest by researchers focusing on the potential of AR to enhance the learning and training efficiency of students and employees. Concerning the educational uses of AR in school contexts, AR has not been much adopted into academic settings due to the insufficient funding by the government and lack of awareness regarding the needs for AR in academic settings (Lee, 2017) and this is particularly true in Portugal regarding the academic environment of Basic Education. The use of AR as a means to enhance the teaching-learning processes, apparently, has been addressed only by a minority of Portuguese researchers. However, although AR technology is not new, its potential in education is just beginning to be explored. Woods et al. (2004), enumerated benefits driven by AR technology, such as improvement of the interpretation of spatial, temporal and contextual content; Freitas and Campos (2008), have confirmed that AR enhances student learning; Seo, Kim and Kim (2006) state that a number of authors have suggested that AR technology improves kinesthetic learning because students interact directly with the educational material, associating the content with body movements and sensations; Lin, Hsieh, Wang, Sie, and Chang (2011) used AR and a touchscreen to enhance the educational resources about fish conservation in Taiwan and their results were focused on system usability; Ibáñez, Delgado, Leony, García, and Maroto (2011), developed a multi-user AR platform for learning Spanish as a second language. Results showed that AR has a positive effect on student motivation and improves the language learning process; Connolly, Stansfield, and Hainey (2011) developed an AR game for learning English to study how motivation could be improved through collaborative methods. In general, all of the above research studies evaluated system usability and student’s results in order to show improvement in learning processes (Pérez-López & Contero, 2013). III - AR Musical Gallery (ARMG): A constructivist approach At present, many educational institutions in developed countries are facing a lack of interest and motivation in students towards academic practices. The growing distance between teaching procedures and student’s technological way of life contribute to widen the gap. Recent research shows that the relation between learning and motivation goes beyond any pre-established condition, it is mutual, and in that sense, motivation can induce changes in

student learning and performance, as the learning itself can interfere with the motivation. In educational contexts, student motivation remains an important challenge to overcome, and has direct influence in the teaching-learning processes. Piaget stated that education cannot succeed without recognizing, using and extending the “authentic” activity with which a child is “endowed”. Piaget was an early adopter of the constructivist pedagogy, and in this view of learning, the meaning that is constructed by an individual is dependent on the situation itself, the individual’s purposes and active construction of meaning. Constructivism also recognizes that prior experiences and knowledge influence perception and interpretation (Jain, Tedman, & Tedman, 2007). The theory of constructivism stems from the field of cognitive science, particularly of the works of Jean Piaget, Lev Vigotsky, Jerome Bruner, Howard Gardner and Nelson Goodman and describes the construction of knowledge through learning as a process of active meaning construction in relation to the environment in which the learning takes place (Nunes & McPherson, 2007). The most important feature of constructivism resides in focusing activities and environments, rather than learning objects. The constructivist approach effectively motivates students, allowing active learning processes, based on exploration and interaction. This means that students build their own knowledge (Tomei, 2009). ARMG aims to deliver a constructivist learning environment by providing students an experience where the following characteristics are present and valued, namely: The role of previous knowledge; the role of context and concrete learning experience; the interactive and cooperative character of learning; the importance of the concept change that must occur to deliver effective learning; the new roles assumed by teachers and students; the importance on the reflection of the students over the undertaken process: It’s this reflection that will empower the competence to “learn to learn” (Lebrun, 2002). It is also possible to enhance and strengthen student motivation for learning through the use of AR by adding realism-based practices. “AR has the potential to further engage and motivate learners in discovering resources and applying them to the real world from a variety of diverse perspectives that have never been implemented in the real world” (Lee, 2017). Motivation is directly linked to learning achievements, and AR applications, which are interactive and visually attractive seem more appealing and motivating than traditional tools (Pérez-López & Contero, 2013). Music and other forms of art are known to develop discipline, higher order of thinking skills, creativity and to engage students in a variety of different learning styles. Technology applied to arts education can be thought as an applied science (anything that uses science to achieve a desired result) and can act as the extension of student capabilities and as a way to expand their ability to learn (Assey, 1999). The use of technology can accelerate the learning of the arts, and this is also true in the music history field (and in many others), where the comprehension of a given aesthetic period characteristics requires students to listen the musical works of that period, to read about composer biographies and works, and to analyze musical instruments, imagery, paintings or photography, depicting historical backgrounds and environments. Different types of media are essential to comprehend the evolution of music in time and how it relates and influences different cultures. Portuguese students extensively use traditional schoolbooks and printed materials to support the learning process. AR can deliver digital multimedia content (audio, video, image, 3-D models) overlapping real-world educational resources (books, schoolbooks, posters, images, and so on), improving the quality of these educational resources both in formal or informal environments. In Portugal, currently, Musical Education is part of the Arts and Expressions Curriculum defined by the Ministry of Science and Education and educational goals are clearly defined concerning students from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Cycles of Basic Education. However, in 1st cycle, Music Education is only offered as complementary activity and music history, it is not relevant to younger students. In the 2nd cycle, Musical Education it is part of the curriculum, but weekly class hours are insufficient to convey the extensive program to the 5th and 6th grades. 3rd Cycle Music Education has gradually become an optional educational

area, as the official entities tend to neglect and undervalue the importance of music education in public schools. Technology in musical education is addressed in the official programs, mostly as a mean to create music, but it’s clearly outdated. AR can contribute to improve this situation, by delivering rich-media, music related educational content in both formal and informal learning environments by exploring the native young student’s motivation towards technology and technological devices. ARMG delivers digital interactive educational music history related content supported by AR technology in an informal learning environment. ARMG aims:  Offer a constructivist educational approach in the field of music history;  Provide alternative strategies to the teaching-learning process by using informal learning environments;  Promote motivation to learn and effective educational outcomes;  Explore the potential of the ubiquitous MCD, as smartphones and tablets, to deliver interactive educational content;  Explore the potential of AR technology in educational context. IV - AR Musical Gallery: Concept The AR Musical Gallery exhibition aimed to promote music history learning and motivate students to autonomous learning in a constructivist-based approach, by using mobile computing devices, such as smartphones and tablets to access multimedia content through AR technology. The exhibition was presented in sixteen A3 size posters featuring imagery and text information, namely the composer image and biography, and the musical instruments images and main characteristics. In order to enhance the information available on the exhibition posters, allowing students to deepen their knowledge on the given subject, additional digital content and interaction was delivered through AR technology, namely video, sound, 3-D musical instrument models, diagrams and quiz games. For research purposes, only eight posters had AR content which was identified to users by the Aurasma logo (figure 2).

Figure 2 - Information of AR content location to users (Aurasma logo)

The posters were placed on vertical panels, at the school’s library exhibit area, allowing individual and group exploration (figure 3).

Figure 3 - AR Virtual Gallery exhibition

The exhibition was organized according to the following sequence: The first two posters included information about AR technology and instructions concerning the proper configuration of student mobile computing devices. The remaining posters presented educational content focusing the twentieth century music history. Poster sequence, realworld/digital content and interactivity are depicted in table 1. Table 1 - AR Musical Gallery: Real-world content/digital content and interactivity

Exhibit printed poster (A3) theme

Educational printed content

Educational digital content supported by AR

Poster 1 – Introduction to the AR technology

Text is presenting AR technology

Poster 2- Information

Poster 3 - Violin

Text and images (QRcodes) explaining how to install and configure the app Aurasma Text and violin image

Poster 4 - Cello Poster 5 – Upright

Text and cello image Text and upright

3-D animation intended to demonstrate AR capabilities Hyperlinks to Aurasma installation tutorial and to the aura channel. The hyperlinks were presented by QRcodes. Three dimensional (3-D) model of the violin, a diagram featuring the instrument principal components, three audio excerpts, and a quiz game Not available A 3-D model of an upright

Interactivity supported by AR and touch No interactivity available No interactivity available

Interaction available (touch buttons)

Not available Interaction available

piano

piano image

Poster 6 - Oboe Poster 7 - Trumpet

Text and oboe image Text and trumpet image

Poster 8 - Trombone

Text and trombone image Text and image

Poster 9 – Twentieth century composers timeline

piano and three audio excerpts, piano diagram, hyperlinks to piano playing technique videos and a quiz game Not available A 3-D model of a trumpet, three audio excerpts, trumpet diagram, hyperlinks to trumpet playing technique and a quiz game Not available

(touch buttons)

The video presents the most important composers of the twentieth century, featuring subtitles and audio narration, the author biography and works, audio excerpts and a quiz game.


Not available Interaction available (touch buttons)

Not available

Poster 10 – Arnold Schoenberg (18741951) Poster 11 – Carl Orff (1895-1982)

Text and image

Not available

Not available

Text and image


Poster 12 – George Gershwin (1898-1937) Poster 13 – Manuel de Falla (1876-1946)

Text and image

Vídeo on the author’s biography featuring subtitles, audio narration, musical excerpts and a quiz game Not available


Poster 14 – Igor Stravinsky (18821971) Poster 15 – Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)

Text and image



Poster 16 – Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

Text and image


Text and image

Text and image

Not available

Not available

Not available

ARMG was held in the school’s library and featured an introductory session attended by all classes from the fifth and sixth grades. These sessions focused the gallery educational contents, research objectives, the AR technology and the configuration of student mobile computing devices. Students received a brochure concerning major aspects of the exhibition and a book marker featuring AR content. This book marker included the hyperlink to an online survey, concerning usage of mobile devices and perceptions related to the activity. Students were also briefed on the main poster areas, namely the poster information structure and the identification of the images designed to trigger the AR digital content. Figure 4 depicts the brochure, book marker and poster main areas, namely: A-brochure; B-book marker; C-training image; D-textual information.

Figure 4 - ARMG brochure, book marker and poster areas

Students explored the gallery using their own mobile computing devices, or by requesting the library pre-configured tablet. To develop and implement the AR content displayed in the gallery we have used the AR engine Aurasma, the online tool Aurasma Studio and the Aurasma app, available for Android and iOS platforms. These tools are free and are easy to use, both relevant issues in educational context. Digital multimedia content, namely video, sound excerpts, diagrams and 3-D models were produced by using open-source and free programs. Interactive quiz games were developed with Educaplay1 and delivered in HTML5 format. Music history content was adapted from the CD-ROM Musicalis, published by Porto Editora in 2005. The gallery was on exhibition in October 2014, at basic School Maria Manuela de Sá and January 2015 at basic school Dr. Costa Matos, in the school’s library. The exhibition intended to promote student motivation and engagement towards the educational content presented focusing the twentieth century music history. To better perceive the students' reactions a case-study was conducted among the participants. V - Case study research 5.1 Objectives and research questions 1

http://www.educaplay.com/

Since the AR Virtual Gallery exhibition relies on AR technology and therefore on mobile computing devices, it is of relevance to know the actual type of usage students make of these portable artifacts, their perceptions, reactions and eventual learning outcomes driven by this educational activity carried out in an informal learning environment. We have found these possible research questions: 1. What is the current usage 2nd cycle basic education students make of mobile computing devices such as smartphones and tablets? 2. How they perceive the gallery in terms of motivation/satisfaction and usability? 3. Which are the contributions from this AR based exhibition to improve the learning outcomes of music history? Question one and two were answered using case-study methodology and by implementing direct observation and questionnaire techniques. For answering question three we have designed an experimental study involving pre/post-tests and experimental and control groups (Kumar, 2011). In this paper, we will address research question one. The remaining research questions are currently underway. To answer question one, we randomly selected a sample of participants deemed representative of the target audience, namely one class from the fifth and another from the sixth grade. The sample was constituted by 25 students from the fifth grade and 25 students from the sixth grade. Data was collected by an online questionnaire hosted by the Google Forms tool and by direct observation grid concerning student reactions and behavior at the exhibit. The questionnaire tool focused the following parameters:  Demographic data: Age, gender and school grade;  Access to MCD (smartphone/tablet or hybrid);  Availability of the MCD to students and principal usage locations;  Type of MCD most frequently used, ownership and characteristics;  Activities conducted in MCD and time spent in each;  Frequency of use for school related tasks;  Frequency of use for non-school related tasks; The direct observation grid focused usability parameters concerning the use and visualization of the AR content and how the students interacted with the exhibition and with each other. Data was statistically treated with Microsoft Excel. 5.2 Why this study is needed The AR Virtual Gallery exhibition relies on AR technology. AR content developed for this interactive exhibition is accessed using MCD, namely smartphones and tablets running Android or iOS platforms. Thus, student access and use of these devices are key to enable further learning experiences/environments based on AR technology. The ease of use, concerning the comprehensibility of the menus and interactions, the AR technology and user interaction are key parameters to improve the exhibition in further development iterations. 5.3 Sample Participants were chosen among fifth and sixth grade students that attended to the exhibition. The sample was selected from students of the basic school Dr. Costa Matos (formerly named Teixeira Lopes) – Vila Nova de Gaia. From all the participating classes we randomly selected two classes, one from the fifth and one from the sixth grade. From these classes, all students participated in the study. 5.4 How the data was collected It was fully explained to the participants the goal and the procedures to answer the online questionnaire. All students received information concerning important details asked, such as devices characteristics and screen dimensions. The questionnaires were filled in the subsequent week from visiting the exhibition. The questionnaire used closed questions, range questions, multiple choice questions, multiple selection questions and ranking

questions. The direct observation grid was filled by the researcher during the exhibition period and represent the interactions observed concerning these two classes. The statistical data treatment was achieved with Microsoft Excel. 5.5 Survey results and conclusions Question one – Demographic data Concerning the students age, collected data shows that most student ages are, as expected from fifth and sixth grade classes, between eleven and twelve years old. The majority of the participants has eleven years old (45,7%). Gender reveals a majority of male students (58,7%) versus female students (41,3%). Students were balanced between fifth and sixth graders, but the sixth grade class had more students. The charts concerning age, gender and school level are depicted in figure 5.

Figure 5 - Students age, gender, and grade

Question two – Access to Mobile Computing Devices Data concerning question 2.1 - Have you access to a mobile computing device (smartphone/tablet/hybrid)? - Shows that all the participants have access to at least one of these devices (100%). Question 2.2 - Is the mobile device always with you? – Reveals that the majority of students have their mobile devices always at hand (67,4%). Some of the participants have access to a mobile device (32,6%) elsewhere. When questioned on the places they could access one of these devices, answers pointed to home (87,5%); school (43,8%); on family or friends houses (50%) and other situations (25%), namely at the local cafe, ATL or in the family’s car. Charts are depicted in figure 6.

Figure 6 - Students access to mobile computing devices

Question three – Most frequently used mobile computing device, ownership and specifications Question 3.1 - Which are the mobile computing devices you use more frequently, at home, school or elsewhere? - Focused on how frequently students used different MCDs, since they have access to more than one. Answers show that the smartphone is the most frequently used device (76,1%), followed by tablets (63%) and hybrid devices (10,9%). Question 3.2 Identify the mobile computing device (or devices) you own, and if so, identify their principal characteristics - revealed that 84,8% owns a smartphone, 73,9% owns a tablet and

Figure 7 - Most frequently used mobile computing device, ownership and specifications

that 8,8% owns a hybrid device. Question 3.2.1 – Identify your smartphone main characteristics – shows that 17,1% of these devices have screens bigger than five inches and 82,9% have screens equal or smaller than five inches. From these, the majority relies on

Android OS (87,8%), only 4.9% use the iOS platform. Question 3.2.2 – Identify your tablet main characteristics – 41% stated to have tablets with screens bigger than 10 inches, 41% tablets with screens between 8 and 10 inches and 10,3% stated they have tablets with screens smaller than 8 inches. Concerning tablets operating systems, Android OS is the most used (61,5%) followed by iOS (35,9%). Charts regarding these data are depicted in figure 7. Question four – Activities conducted on mobile computing devices and time spent in each Sub-question 4.1 - List all the activities you conduct using your MCD - intended to survey how students use their MCD. Gaming (93,5%) and listening to music or videos (87%) are the principal activities. Internet browsing and communications (76,1%) are followed by email (56,5%) and social media (52,2%). Only 37% stated to use their MCD for homework and study. Sub-question 4.2 – Time spent on your favorite activity - focused the time spent on these activities. Data shows that listening to music and watching videos (37%) and gaming (30,4%) are the most time consuming activities. Charts are depicted in figure 8.

Figure 8 - Activities conducted on mobile computing devices and time spent in each

Question five – MCD usage frequency for school and non-school related activities Sub-question 5.1 – How frequently do you use your mobile computing device to study or study related activities? - Intended to know how frequently students used their devices for this purpose. Most of the students use their MCD for study or study related activities rarely or never (32,6%). Sub-question 5.2 - How frequently do you use your mobile computing device for non-school activities? – Revealed that 69,6% use their MCD on a daily basis (figure 9).

Figure 9 - MCD usage frequency for school and non-school related activities

Direct observation surveyed three items. Item one related to student installation of the app Aurasma on their MCD. Item two focused how students interacted with the AR content and item three studied how they interacted with the exhibition and with each other. Concerning item one – procedure for installation of the app Aurasma -, all students easily and successfully performed the steps of moving to the AppStore/Playstore and install the app. The only problem declared to be the slow internet connection provided by the wireless network available in the school’s library.

On item two – Interaction with the exhibition -, direct observation record analysis shows that the participants tended to flock around the posters marked with the AR logo. This was a predictable behavior and arise from the student curiosity towards the novelty of the experience. Non interactive posters received far less attention from the audience. Observation concerning the interaction with each other revealed that the more technology savvy students were happy to help colleagues in either properly configure their devices or interacting with the educational content. Game quiz promoted an immediate competition to achieve the high scores, since user names and scores are registered in the Educaplay platform. Other visitors to the exhibition, teachers mostly, revealed high levels of interest in AR, posed a number of questions concerning its major affordances, and declared their interest in the technology as a support to formal and informal learning activities in the near future, regarding their fields of expertise. CONCLUSION In this paper, we described the concept and use of an interactive exhibition supported by AR – Augmented Reality Musical Gallery (ARMG). The exhibition focus the twentieth century Music History and it’s aimed at an audience of students from the 2nd Cycle of Basic Education in Portugal. We also introduced the AR technology and its use in educational contexts. At present, this technology is effectively being used in several fields of knowledge to support and improve teaching and training processes, making learning much more attractive to students (Gomes, Figueiredo, & Amante, 2014). AR reveals undisclosed potential to effectively enhance factors as student motivation and educational outcomes. However, how to deliver educational contents with AR technology remains a challenge to be addressed by educators, researchers, developers and education officials. AR, by combining real-world elements and computer generated content is usually addressed as a mixed-reality environment, where the real-world element is prevalent. This characteristic is key to enhance traditional educational environments where most of the educational resources are based on traditional printed materials, books and manuals. ARMG proposes a constructivist pedagogical approach applied to a traditional lecture-based course – Music History – by mixing autonomous exploration, informal learning environment, and interactive multimedia educational resources delivered by the AR. The constructivist approach can enhance motivation, leading to active learning processes based on exploration and interaction, helping students to build their own knowledge. We have addressed the relation between art education, motivation and informal learning environments, and stated that: 

Art education is known to develop discipline, higher order of thinking skills, creativity and the ability to engage students in a variety of different learning techniques;



Constructivist pedagogical approaches and informal learning environments can enhance student motivation and engagement toward learning;



Learning and motivation are connected: Motivated students actively seek new knowledge showing engagement towards learning;



Technology, in general, is a motivation factor to the current “native digital” students (Prensky, 2001), and can accelerate learning and contribute to improve educational outcomes;



AR technology has the potential to engage and motivate students in a variety of

pedagogical approaches and perspectives. Finally, we presented the first part of an undergoing study concerning this experience, conducted among a sample group of students from the fifth and sixth grade of Portuguese public schools, surveying what is the present usage of mobile computing devices (MCD) among this student sample. The overall results from this study, revealed that students have wide access to a number of MCD. However, these devices are mostly used for non-school related tasks. The accessibility, ubiquity, portability, computational power and unique features of these devices, reinforced by the natural interest of younger generations towards technology, can be harnessed to improve student motivation and engagement towards the complex learning process and eventually lead to improvements in educational outcomes. How students perceived parameters of usefulness, satisfaction and usability related to the experience and the AR technology, and as which are the effective educational outcomes concerning knowledge retention will be addressed in further work.

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