Educational and technical evaluation of mobile virtual reality applications

The aim of this study is to evaluate educational mobile virtual reality applications in terms of educational dimension and virtual reality suitability. In this direction, educational mobile virtual reality applications that are available in all languages on the Google Play Store, that have free or free trial versions, appeal to the general target audience, and that have educational/educational explanations have been selected. As a result, a total of 30 applications were reached, 25 of which appealed to all age groups and 5 of them to specific age groups. The evaluation of the applications was made by the researcher and a graduate of Computer and Instructional Technologies Education Department. In this study, which was prepared with the thought whether it is necessary to evaluate the quality of mobile applications, which increase with the rise in the use of mobile devices, and to understand which application is suitable for the purpose, this study focuses on determining which application is suitable for the purpose, the educational value of educational applications are focused on determining its suitability for virtual reality. The mobile applications selected within the scope of the study were evaluated using the ÇEMUDER and SGEKDR scales. The data obtained were evaluated by content analysis and the results were explained in tables. According to the results of the Pearson correlation analysis for the reliability of the two raters who made the evaluation, it was determined that there was a significant and positive relationship between the raters of ÇEMUDER and SGEKDR. Due to the nature of the research, mixed integrated design based on the collection and interpretation of qualitative and quantitative data was used. While the evaluators collected quantitative data by scoring the practices, they also collected qualitative data through document review. While collecting the qualitative data, the grades of the raters while scoring the applications were used. These notes guided the researcher in interpreting the findings. In the research findings; It has been seen that about half of the evaluated educational mobile virtual reality applications are suitable for the purpose. None of the evaluated applications could be defined as fully educational or fully suitable for virtual reality use. As a result, the researcher created a framework by determining the common points in the scales used in the study. It is thought that this framework will give an idea to the developers of educational mobile virtual reality applications in the future about what features should be present in order to be suitable for their purposes while developing educational mobile applications. For parents, educators and students; Before using an application, it is recommended to evaluate whether it is suitable for its purpose and use this way, and for developpers, suggestions were made for the important points that should be considered while developing an educational mobile virtual reality application. Keywords: Educational mobile virtual reality applications, Mobile application evaluation