Journal of Childhood Development
Vol. 6 No. 2 (2026): Journal of Childhood Development

The Effectiveness of Augmented Reality Based Movement Learning in Improving Locomotor Abilities in 5-6 Year Old Children

Andi Amry Yahya (STKIP YPUP Makassar, Indonesia)
Ilham Kamarudin (Universitas Negeri Makassar, Indonesia)
Muh. Ali Akbar (Universitas Sembilanbelas November Kolaka, Indonesia)



Article Info

Publish Date
31 Jul 2026

Abstract

Locomotor skills are an important part of children's motor development because they support participation in physical activity and readiness for later learning. In many early childhood education settings, movement activities are still delivered through conventional instruction with limited use of interactive learning media. This study investigated whether an Augmented Reality (AR)-based movement learning model could improve the locomotor skills of children aged 5-6 years. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest control group design was conducted involving 60 children from three kindergartens in Makassar, Indonesia. Thirty children participated in the AR-MoveKids program, while thirty others received conventional movement learning. The intervention was carried out three times a week for eight weeks. Locomotor performance was measured using the locomotor subtest of the Test of Gross Motor Development-Third Edition (TGMD-3). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired-sample t-tests, independent-sample t-tests, and effect size analysis. The independent-sample t-test revealed a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups after the intervention (t(58) = -13.148, p < .001), with the experimental group achieving a mean posttest score that was 13.233 points higher than the control group. These findings indicate that integrating Augmented Reality into movement learning provides a practical and engaging approach to significantly improving locomotor development in early childhood education.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

jcd

Publisher

Subject

Description

Journal of Childhood Devlopment includes prenatal and birth development, physical, cognitive, psychosocial, moral and religious values, physical motor development, social emotional development, language development, artistic and creative development, assessment of early childhood development, ...