Educating the Millennial Learner: A Case of Collaborative Learning With Augmented Reality

Educators are urged to think outside the culture of standardized education to better prepare students for the world, starting at the ground level. At the same time, millennial learners are principally enthusiastic about learning, but not necessarily affectionate towards schools. The purpose of this study is to explore how schools can offer a more dynamic experience with hands-on learning and collaboration through the use of augmented reality. This study was motivated by the views that augmented reality could provide students with more interactive experiences. It can enhance the understanding of content through a livelier and more engaging experience and acknowledges the reality of the millennial learner by bridging the gap between their virtual and physical worlds. This study adopts the Hedonic-Motivation System Adoption Model (HMSAM) via the Agile User Story method. HMSAM emanates from the traditional Technology Acceptance Model with the aim of improving the understanding of Hedonic-Motivation Systems (HMS) adoption. These are systems which are designed to mainly satisfy users' intrinsic motivations. This includes online gaming, virtual worlds, education, gamified systems, etc. The empirical phase of this study involved focused interviews with 11 stakeholders in the education system. They would be exposed to conceptual ideas via a user story as well as prototypes of a particular augmented reality mobile app that could be utilised in education. The main findings are consistent with the existing body of knowledge that suggests that there is educational potential in implementing an augmented reality mobile app, particularly by way of its location-based technology. The stakeholders indicated that learners might show greater eagerness to learn; and there might be improved interaction and collaboration and improved absorption of knowledge. Yet, they revealed a concern that learners would focus on the hype of the technology at the expense of the subject-matter that needs to be covered. Access to mobile phones and the associated data costs are further concerns. The value-add of this study is that stakeholders in education should understand that technology has changed over the last couple of decades. Augmented reality enables educators to offer a more dynamic educational experience with hands-on learning and collaboration in which learners can meaningfully solve real-world problems.