Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Preschoolers Favour Teachable Agent’s Action over Distraction

Axelsson, Anton LU (2013) KOGM20 20131
Cognitive Science
Abstract
Studies on teachable agents (TA) have repeatedly demonstrated their benefits in primary school pupils’ learning, but no study has yet been devised to investigate whether the same effects can be observed in preschoolers. Preschool age is an important time for development of executive functions (EF) and theory of mind (ToM), and it can be argued that preschoolers might not be able to pay enough attention to a TA due to underdevelopment of these cognitive abilities. In this study, visual distractions in the form of animated objects were incorporated into a mathematics game for preschoolers which utilises a TA. 65 preschoolers participated in the
study which investigated whether they were able to ignore these distractions in favour of... (More)
Studies on teachable agents (TA) have repeatedly demonstrated their benefits in primary school pupils’ learning, but no study has yet been devised to investigate whether the same effects can be observed in preschoolers. Preschool age is an important time for development of executive functions (EF) and theory of mind (ToM), and it can be argued that preschoolers might not be able to pay enough attention to a TA due to underdevelopment of these cognitive abilities. In this study, visual distractions in the form of animated objects were incorporated into a mathematics game for preschoolers which utilises a TA. 65 preschoolers participated in the
study which investigated whether they were able to ignore these distractions in favour of focusing on the TA’s actions. The results showed a statistically significant difference in preschoolers visual attention to the animations played during the TA’s action to those played after the TA’s action. This result is a crucial step forward in further development of TA-based games for preschoolers. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Axelsson, Anton LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
Förskolebarn klarar att fokusera på en digial elevs handling trots distraktioner
course
KOGM20 20131
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
teachable agent, attention, executive functions, theory of mind, preschooler, distractibility, eyetracking
language
English
additional info
This study has been approved by the Regional Ethical Review Board of Lund (ref. 2013/111).
id
4131475
date added to LUP
2013-11-19 10:08:25
date last changed
2013-11-19 10:08:25
@misc{4131475,
  abstract     = {{Studies on teachable agents (TA) have repeatedly demonstrated their benefits in primary school pupils’ learning, but no study has yet been devised to investigate whether the same effects can be observed in preschoolers. Preschool age is an important time for development of executive functions (EF) and theory of mind (ToM), and it can be argued that preschoolers might not be able to pay enough attention to a TA due to underdevelopment of these cognitive abilities. In this study, visual distractions in the form of animated objects were incorporated into a mathematics game for preschoolers which utilises a TA. 65 preschoolers participated in the
study which investigated whether they were able to ignore these distractions in favour of focusing on the TA’s actions. The results showed a statistically significant difference in preschoolers visual attention to the animations played during the TA’s action to those played after the TA’s action. This result is a crucial step forward in further development of TA-based games for preschoolers.}},
  author       = {{Axelsson, Anton}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Preschoolers Favour Teachable Agent’s Action over Distraction}},
  year         = {{2013}},
}