English abstract
This study aimed to investigate the impact of using augmented reality on improving spatial thinking improvement and acquisition of scientific concepts of 5th grade students at Muscat Governorate in Sultanate of Oman. The study used quasi experimental method were composed of (77) five-grade students of Jawharat Muscat School (5-6) at Muscat Governorate and divided into two groups; (39) students as experimental group and (38) students as a control group. The study was applied over a six-week period during the second semester of the academic year 2017/2018. To achieve the aims of the study, the augmented reality technology was designed on tablet devises supplemented by a teacher's guide book which were both validated by specialized examiners. The augmented reality technology consisted of an interactive application on earth exploration unit and some supplementary applications. The Ramful, Lowrie, & Logan spatial thinking scale (r = 0.79) were used after its translation. In addition, an acquisition of scientific concepts test for earth exploration' unit in science course was developed as a data collection tool. The test consisted of (20) items, in which the reliability coefficient was found (0.81). The results showed that there was a statistically significant difference between scores of both experimental and control groups in spatial thinking scale and in the test of the acquisition of scientific concepts in favour of the experimental group (a= 0.05). In the light of the above findings, the study recommended to include techniques and strategies in the curriculum that help to develop spatial thinking skills and to design Augmented Reality applications for teaching abstract scientific concepts in science.
