Developing spatial visualization and mental rotation with a digital puzzle game at primary school level

• The jigsaw puzzle has a positive impact on the promotion of the spatial abilities.
• Games designed on the basis of spatial theory can improve the spatial abilities.
• Training with puzzle games in a short time can improve spatial abilities ably.
• The package puzzle games well improve spatial visualization and mental rotation.

Spatial ability has been recognized as a significant human skill involving the retrieval, retention, and transformation of visual information in a special context. The enhancement of the spatial ability and the effective method of training are rarely considered as an area of study in the education field. This study focuses on the enhancement of spatial visualization and mental rotation, which are two major components of spatial ability, through the practice of puzzle games. This study adopts an experimental approach to test whether the game is effective in facilitating student's development of spatial visualization and mental rotation. 79 primary school students in Taiwan are included to be volunteer participants. Two instruments are adopted to measure the participants' performance of spatial visualization and mental rotation. The research findings show that the designed puzzle games effectively improve the participants' abilities in spatial visualization and mental rotation and that the traditional puzzle games can only enhance participants' mental rotation. This study suggests that the theory-based design of multimedia games can offer a more effective learning environment for developing and improving cognitive skills.