Augmented reality interactive experiences for multi-level chemistry understanding

Children's early perception of chemistry as a complex and daunting subject can affect their achievements and future career choices. Augmented Reality (AR) and games can successfully engage students with learning content perceived to be less interesting or challenging. However, in chemistry, the vast majority of AR educational tools are designed for older students and are mainly focused on the visualisation of scientific phenomena, thus failing to engage a younger population. In this paper, we propose designing and implementing three AR game-based learning experiences that provide chemistry content at three levels: macroscopic, microscopic, and symbolic. We evaluated our experiences with 66 children (11–13 years old) with significant results: higher learning gains, an increase in the positive affect and a decrease in the negative affect. The results encouraged us to keep evaluating this technology as a tool to motivate and encourage children's interest in chemistry.