Abstract:

The aim of this study which has a control-group pre-test-post-test design is to develop students’ spatial perception skills through animations and digital maps that students should basically gain at the end of the unit in the 6th grade social studies called “Life on Earth”. The population of this study consisted of 6th graders while the sample was composed of students studying in 6B and 6D in Ataturk Primary School, Afyonkarahisar in the 2011-12 academic year. The data were collected through a valid and reliable 24-item achievement test developed by the researchers. Non-parametric tests were used to analyze the data due to non-normal distribution of the data and smaller sample size. According to the results, students in the experimental group who were exposed to the use of animations and digital maps had higher academic performance than those did in the control group.

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