Understanding the effectiveness of teaching Chinese characters using wiimote interactive whiteboard on primary school students

This study examines the effectiveness of teaching Chinese characters using Wiimote interactive whiteboard on primary school students. The objectives of this study were to investigate the differences in students’ achievement and motivation in learning Chinese characters between Wiimote Interactive Whiteboard (Wiimote IWB) and traditional pedagogical practice, and to determine the level and factor of acceptance to use Wiimote IWB to teach and learn Chinese characters based on teachers’ perspective. Six teachers and forty-six Year-2 students were chosen as samples for this experiment, who were split into two groups, where the treatment group used the Wiimote IWB in the lesson, while the control group used traditional pedagogy. Pre-tests and post-tests of “listen and write” were conducted and compared using the t-test to investigate the difference in terms of students’ achievement between the groups. The students also answered the Motivated Strategies of Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) to investigate the difference in students’ motivation between the groups. Teachers also answered the Interactive Whiteboard Acceptance Scale (IWBAS) questionnaire to find out the level and factor of acceptance of use of Wiimote IWB and interviewed to understand its strengths and weaknesses. The result showed there has no significant difference in the students’ achievement and level of motivation between the groups. However, the treatment group’s achievement did show significant. Teachers also have a moderate level of acceptance of use of Wiimote IWB, where effort expectancy and social influence are the main factors that affect their acceptance. In conclusion, Wiimote IWB may help to improve certain students’ achievement in learning to write Chinese characters. Findings in this research weren’t showing Wiimote IWB has significant strength over the traditional method, more samples and further study may unveil more potentials of Wiimote IWB in instructional practice in other subjects. The implication of the study showed teachers should learn to integrate the IWB into the lesson to boost its potential in improving pedagogy.