Pre-service teachers’ responses to MathGo: an Android-based application for learning set theory

Abstrak

This study aims to design and develop MathGo, an Android-based learning tool created using MIT App Inventor 2, focused on the topic of sets. This is a development study incorporating a descriptive-quantitative usability evaluation, consisting of two phases: application design and usability testing. The application was designed in alignment with the established learning outcomes and objectives for the topic of sets and comprises three components: a learning objective sequence (Learning Objective Flow), instructional content with example problems, and a five-question quiz. The testing involved 24 pre-service teacher students at a private university in Yogyakarta. Participants used the application on their Android smartphones and subsequently completed a 30-item usability questionnaire (the USE Questionnaire) based on a 4-point Likert scale, covering the aspects of usefulness, ease of use, ease of learning, and satisfaction. Data were analyzed by calculating the mean scores and categorizing them according to ideal mean and standard deviation criteria. The results indicate an overall mean score of 105 (the sum of the four aspect means; possible range 30–120; “Very Good” threshold > 102), which falls into the "Very Good" category; all four individual aspects were also rated as "Very Good." Consequently, MathGo is considered usable and is well-received by the pre-service teacher students. As this study did not employ a control group or pre- and post-usage assessments, it does not demonstrate an improvement in learning outcomes; therefore, the effectiveness of the application should be examined in future research.