Teaching color theory to children with three-dimensional computer animation

Abstract

Advances in computer technology have made it possible for educators to design and develop their own multimedia instructional materials using visuals such as animation. Although it is generally believed that the new attribute of computer animation facilitates student's learning, there is still relatively little research regarding the way in which students benefit from multimedia instruction using 3-D animation. The purpose of this research was to examine and determine whether the use of 3-D computer generated images is an effective teaching device for helping children to understand color theory, and enhancing the traditional methods. In this study, a 3-D computer generated presentation was created and it demonstrated the mixing of primary colors to obtain secondary colors. Three research hypotheses were developed in this research. The first hypothesis stated that 3-D computer generated presentation will be an effective device for teaching color theory. The second was that the presentation will be eye-catching and it will hold the children's attention. The third was presentation would enhance the children's memory of color. Results of this study show that visualization technology and the use of 3-D graphics tools can be employed in the field of art education to increases a child's understanding of color theory. Also, it was proved that teaching children through 3-D graphic is an highly effective teaching tool. Thus this research is a contribution to both children's art education and the relatively new field of computer animation.