A Systematic Review on Augmented Reality Applications in Informal Learning Environments

In recent years more and more people use their mobile phones daily for work or entertainment. The increasing use of mobile devices has led researchers to seek new ways of learning with their support, beyond the confines of formal education. The increasing computing power of mobile devices has contributed to the emergence of new, rapidly evolving technologies, with augmented reality (AR) applications being at the forefront of these developments. This article provides a literature review of AR applications for mobile devices related to informal education. It analyses their structural elements to examine if they exploit powerful features such as collaboration and content modification, as well as storytelling potentials. The findings show that most of these applications use those learning affordances only to a very limited extent, as they are mainly designed for individual usage, do not allow user-originated contribution to the digital material, and do not incorporate elements of any storytelling model.