MOBILE GAME-BASED LEARNING WITH DYNAMIC DIFFICULTY ADJUSTMENT USING FACIAL EMOTION RECOGNITION TO ENHANCE PRESCHOOLERS' LEARNING MOTIVATION AND FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS AGE 3-6 YEARS

• Main Author: Eka Arifandhi, Lukman
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/84841
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

The golden age period is a crucial phase in child development, characterized by rapid cognitive development. Research indicates that 50% of a child's cognitive development occurs between the ages of 0-4 years. Environmental factors play a significant role, and preschool education institutions can optimize this development. However, many preschool education have yet to achieve optimal educational goals due to teacher-centered teaching methods and a lack of innovative learning media, leading to low student motivation. Innovation in early childhood education, such as the implementation of technology, has become a necessary solution. Game-Based Learning (GBL), which utilizes game technology for learning, has been proven to increase children's motivation and abilities. Therefore, this study aims to develop an Android and iOS-based learning application called Tiny Town, which uses Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment (DDA) based on Facial Emotion Recognition (FER) to create an enjoyable and interactive learning experience for young children. An evaluation was conducted through a field test on 60 preschool children aged 3-6 years, divided into two groups: with and without DDA. Analysis of learning outcomes involved paired sample tests, independent sample tests, and N-Gain tests. The evaluation results showed a significant difference between pretest and posttest scores (Asymp. Sig. 0.000), but no significant difference in posttest results between the two groups (Asymp. Sig. 0.636). In the paired sample, the N-Gain test showed an effectiveness level of the application in improving basic skills of 57.5% in the group without DDA and 60.6% in the group with DDA, suggesting that the developed learning application is quite effective in supporting the learning of preschool children aged 3-6 years.