The effect of using Plickers application in teaching the unit of our body systems and health on students' academic success and motivation

In this study, the unit "Systems in Our Body and Health" in the science course was taught to 6th-grade students through formative assessment using the Plickers application. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of the Plickers application on students' academic achievement and their motivation toward science lessons. The sample of the research consisted of a total of 50 students selected from among 6th-grade students studying at a public middle school in the Ergani district of Diyarbakır during the spring semester of the 2023–2024 academic year, including 25 students in the experimental group and 25 students in the control group. A quantitative research approach was employed in the study, using a quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest control group model. The research was conducted with two classes: one class formed the control group, in which the lessons were taught using the methods and techniques required by the current curriculum; the other class formed the experimental group, in which the lessons were taught using the Plickers application. The implementation was carried out within the unit "Systems in Our Body and Health" and lasted for five weeks. Two measurement tools were used as data collection instruments during the research process: an academic achievement test developed by the researcher specifically for the unit "Systems in Our Body and Health," and the Motivation Scale Towards Science Learning. These tools were administered to both the experimental and control groups at the beginning and at the end of the process. The data obtained in the study were analyzed using the SPSS 20 software. At the beginning of the research process, no significant difference was observed between the academic achievement scores of the experimental and control group students. After the implementation of the Plickers application, although the average academic achievement score of the experimental group was higher than that of the control group, no statistically significant difference was found. At the end of the study, the Plickers application did not have a general effect on students' overall motivation; however, a significant difference in favor of the experimental group was found only in the sub-dimension of "Value of Science Learning."