Akasha: Custom Application to Support Elementary Geometry Learning First-Grade Children in Colombia

Ramos Marroquin, Alexandra; Sommer Henao, Karen; Sandoval Albarracín, Javier; Parra, Carlos; Carrillo-Ramos, Angela; Arenas, Juan Jesus; Brijaldo, Mónica; Curiel H., Mariela J.; Pavlich-Mariscal, Jaime A.; Gómez-Morantes, Juan E.; Sabogal, Martha

doi:10.1007/s10758-021-09497-3

Original research
Published: 06 February 2021

Akasha: Custom Application to Support Elementary Geometry Learning First-Grade Children in Colombia

Alexandra Ramos Marroquin¹,
Karen Sommer Henao¹,
Javier Sandoval Albarracín¹,
Carlos Parra ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-9695-3775¹,
Angela Carrillo-Ramos¹,
Juan Jesus Arenas¹,
Mónica Brijaldo²,
Mariela J. Curiel H.¹,
Jaime A. Pavlich-Mariscal¹,
Juan E. Gómez-Morantes¹ &
Martha Sabogal²

Technology, Knowledge and Learning volume 26, pages 733–762 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Geometry teaching in elementary schools in Colombia is a challenging task. Students’ problems with this topic have led to below-average performances in the Program of International Student Assessment. To face this challenge, this paper presents Akasha, a personalized software application to reinforce geometry teaching to elementary school children between 5 and 7 years old. Akasha provides ludic activities to identify and characterize polyhedra, polygons, and shape attributes. To further improve the experience, Akasha uses information about users to adjust the difficulty level, and to customize the look and feel of the application. To validate the approach, this study assessed student performance before and after using Akasha in three different schools (public and private) of Bogotá (Colombia). The results suggest that the use of Akasha may have a positive impact on students’ learning, regardless of their social, economic, or technological background.

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Fig. 21

Notes

Unity Framework: https://unity.com/.
Django: https://www.djangoproject.com/.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the three schools that supported the validation of Akasha, their teachers for their participation and valuable feedback, and the students, for utilizing the system during these tests. We also thank Catherine Dousdebes, graphic designer for her work creating the visuals assets of Akasha.

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Authors and Affiliations

Department of Systems Engineering, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
Alexandra Ramos Marroquin, Karen Sommer Henao, Javier Sandoval Albarracín, Carlos Parra, Angela Carrillo-Ramos, Juan Jesus Arenas, Mariela J. Curiel H., Jaime A. Pavlich-Mariscal & Juan E. Gómez-Morantes
Faculty of Education, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
Mónica Brijaldo & Martha Sabogal

Authors

Alexandra Ramos Marroquin
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Karen Sommer Henao
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Javier Sandoval Albarracín
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Carlos Parra
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Angela Carrillo-Ramos
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Juan Jesus Arenas
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Mónica Brijaldo
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Mariela J. Curiel H.
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Jaime A. Pavlich-Mariscal
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Juan E. Gómez-Morantes
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Martha Sabogal
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Correspondence to Carlos Parra.

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Ramos Marroquin, A., Sommer Henao, K., Sandoval Albarracín, J. et al. Akasha: Custom Application to Support Elementary Geometry Learning First-Grade Children in Colombia. Tech Know Learn 26, 733–762 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-021-09497-3

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Accepted: 15 January 2021
Published: 06 February 2021
Issue Date: December 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-021-09497-3

Keywords

Geometry
Education
Personalization
Adaptation
Ludic activities