EXPLORING THE POTENTIAL OF EDUCATIONAL ANDROID GAMES FOR PROSPECTIVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS: A RESPONSE

This research aims to explore the responses of prospective elementary school teachers to training in developing Android-based educational games as an innovative learning tool. By distributing questionnaires to 121 prospective elementary school teachers in NTB, this research identified the needs, interests, motivations and challenges faced in participating in the training. The research results show that prospective elementary school teachers show a high interest in using educational games as a learning tool, but prospective elementary school teachers face challenges related to technical skills and integration in the curriculum. These findings provide important insights for training providers in designing programs that better suit the needs of prospective teachers, as well as highlighting the importance of continued support for the development of skills in using technology in education


INTRODUCTION
Education in the 21st century faces unique challenges amidst the dynamics of technological development and rapid social transformation.21st Century education requires education to not only produce individuals who are academically skilled, but also who are able to adapt to change, think critically, collaborate, and solve problems creatively (Chalkiadaki, 2018;Care et al., 2018;Zahroh et al., 2023).In addition, globalization broadens educational horizons by introducing new challenges and opportunities, such as cultural integration and cross-border cooperation (Malik, 2018;Erfan et al., 2024;Bahtiar et al., 2023).
In line with these demands, 21st century education requires an innovative approach, where technology plays an important role (Bahtiar et al., 2022;Abesadze & Nozadze, 2020).Technology-based learning is becoming increasingly relevant in this context, as it enables wider access to information, provides a platform for interactive and personalized learning, and facilitates the development of crucial digital skills (Loderer, 2020).With the integration of technology, education can become more inclusive, dynamic and adaptive, preparing future generations to face complex challenges in the digital era (Maulidia et al., 2023).
Learning in the digital era marks a fundamental shift in the educational paradigm, driven by rapid advances in information and communication technology.The digital era has dramatically changed the way we access, present and interact with information.The emergence of the internet, mobile devices, and online learning platforms has opened the door to easier and faster access to knowledge from various sources.
The presence of technology has also changed the demands and expectations of education.It is no longer enough for students as prospective teachers to only master basic knowledge.must also have digital skills, information literacy, and the ability to think critically and creatively in navigating a world that continues to develop digitally.Therefore, education in the digital era is not only about transferring information, but also about preparing students to become independent learners and skilled problem solvers in an increasingly connected and complex environment.

Prospective elementary school teachers
Educational game development training for prospective teachers is becoming increasingly important in the era of digital education that continues to develop.Based on data and research conducted by Yu et al., (2021), it appears that the use of games in learning can increase students' motivation, involvement and understanding of the subject matter.Apart from that, educational games also have the potential to develop students' cognitive, social and emotional skills, such as problem solving skills, cooperation and creativity (Mayasari et al., 2024;Hung et al., 2019).
However, although educational games offer a variety of benefits, the development and implementation of games in an educational context often requires special skills and technical knowledge that not all prospective elementary school teachers possess (Partovi & Razavi, 2019)

RESEARCH METHODS
This research is a descriptive research.Descriptive research aims to describe observed characteristics and phenomena without producing causal inferences or conclusions (Remler & Van-Ryzin, 2021).In the context of this research, a descriptive approach is used to describe the responses of prospective elementary school teachers to Androidbased educational games.The respondents in this study were 121 prospective elementary school teachers in NTB.The complete data on respondents in this study is presented in Figure 1 below.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
This research aims to explore the response of prospective elementary school teachers in NTB regarding the development of Android-based educational games.In this study, researchers distributed a questionnaire to all prospective elementary school teachers in NTB to fill out the questionnaire.Distribution of the questionnaire begins on December 7, 2023 and ends on December 10, 2023.The questionnaire distributed consists of 9 questions.The first and second questions were to find out whether the respondent had ever participated in or had experience in creating or developing educational games that could be accessed via the Android platform.The responses of prospective elementary school teachers to the first and second questions are presented in Figure 2       Figure 5 shows that there are 34 (28.1%)prospective elementary school teachers who are very prepared and very confident in using Android-based educational games in learning contexts.Furthermore, there were 39 (32.2%) prospective elementary school teachers ready and confident in using Androidbased educational games in learning contexts.As many as 33 (27.3%) prospective elementary school teachers were less prepared and less confident in using Android-based educational games in learning contexts.As many as 7 (5.8%)prospective elementary school teachers were not ready and unsure about using Android-based educational games in learning contexts.A total of 8 (6.6%) prospective elementary school teachers were very unprepared and very unsure about using Android-based educational games in learning contexts.
Interpretation of this data shows that there is significant variation in the level of readiness and confidence of prospective elementary school teachers in using Android-based educational games.This highlights the importance of efforts to provide the necessary training, support, and resources for prospective elementary teachers to feel more prepared and confident in integrating technology into the learning process.(2) prospective elementary school teachers also hopetraining that is easy to understand to broaden your knowledge with education via Android-based media; (3) prospective elementary school teachers also hopetraining that enables teachers to develop educational games in detail, both offline and online so that they can be used in learning; (4) In Android-based educational game development training, prospective elementary school teachers expect an in-depth discussion of educational game design concepts, technical implementation using the Android platform, and strategies for integrating educational material into games.Also, focus on a user experience that is friendly and effective for learning.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Origin of Prospective Teacher Institutions In NTB The data collection technique uses a questionnaire in the form of Google form.This questionnaire was below.

FigureFigure 2
Figure 2. Responses of Prospective Teachers to Experience and Involvement Figure 2 above shows that as many as 81 prospective elementary school teachers (66.9%) have never been involved and have no experience in developing Android-based educational games.This indicates that the majority of respondents do not have direct experience in the game development process.Most prospective teachers have never been involved in the development stage, either as lead developers or as team members.This can be caused by a lack of opportunities or opportunities to engage in educational game development, limited knowledge or technical skills in software development, or a lack of interest or motivation to engage in such activities.A study Lampropoulos et al., (2022) found that in some educational settings, students and teachers may not have adequate access or opportunities to engage in educational game development due to limited resources, both technological resources and support from educational institutions.

Figure 2
Figure 2 also shows that as many as 40 prospective elementary school teachers (33.1%) have been involved and have experience in developing Android-based educational games.This shows that a small number of respondents have direct experience in the process of developing Android-based educational games.There are variations in the level of involvement of

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Figure 3. Response of Prospective Elementary School Teachers to Training

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Figure 4.Primary School Teacher Candidate Responses to the Concept

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Figure 5.Primary School Teacher Candidate Respondents RegardingReadiness Level related to "To what extent do you believe you can effectively integrate Android-based educational games into your learning activities?"This questionaims to assess the level of confidence of prospective elementary school teachers in their ability to use Android-based educational games effectively in learning contexts.The results of prospective elementary school teacher responses are presented in Figure 6 below.

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Figure 6.Responses of Prospective Elementary School Teachers to the Level of Confidence

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Figure 7. Response of Prospective Elementary School Teachers to Training Figure 7 shows that of the total respondents of 121 prospective elementary school teachers, there were 115 (95%) prospective elementary school Received on: 08 March 2024 Approved at : 27 March 2024 Published at : 29 March 2024