Developing and Evaluating of Non-Realistic Three-Dimensional (3d-Nr) And Two-Dimensional (2d) Talking-Head Animation Courseware

Abstract

The talking-head animation is an instructional animation capable of improving the communication skills through enhancing the pronunciation skills; whereby a word is pronounced correctly and accurately. This had been proven by several researches, which indicate that learning with interactive animation is much more advantageous than conventional learning. Hence, the mistake in choosing the realistic level of an animated character at a particular condition has negative effect on students’ learning performance. Therefore, this study would focus on the Uncanny Valley phenomenon, which is understood to have an effect on the students’ emotions. This phenomenon is mainly attributed to the animated character design which is almost similar to real humans. To overcome these problems, the non-realistic three-dimensional and two-dimensional talking-head animation courseware has been developed to ensure that students get the maximum learning from the point of emotional reaction and learning performance. In this regard, the focus of this study was mainly on developing non-realistic three-dimensional talking-head animation. The courseware was developed based on theories, principles and literature review conducted. The paper also reports the evaluation of usability and user satisfaction (PSSUQ) test carried out. One hundred students from Teluk Intan Community College in Malaysia were involved in this study. Overall, the findings of this study show that the students agreed on the level of usability and satisfaction of using the non-realistic three- dimensional and two-dimensional talking-head animation courseware and that it meets the standards of an animated instruction, specifically for learning to pronounce English words.