In my previous post about use cases of VR I briefly touched on its educational aspect. In this next post I will further elaborate on this specific sector, and what VR can mean for the education of the future.
What has always been a topic and also in this case ends up being the most important factor for VR is immersion. When using VR glasses, anything is done while being fully immersed into the digital environment, and when it comes to learning, that also has a positive impact. Especially since the pandemic, teaching remotely has struggled with retention rates of students. This is where VR appliations can be used to deliver content to students in a much more engaging manner, as visual learning is proven to be more effective for most students, when compared to traditional teaching methods. This was proven in a study at 3M Corporation, where humans were found to process visual information 6000 times faster than plain text.1
Virtual reality classrooms foster active learning by enabling students to participate directly, enabling them to learn by doing. This approach requires full attention and participation from students, which is presented in a fun way. Through the use of such methods, VR can help students develop critical thinking and technological skills, which are sure to be useful in their later careers leading into an ever-evolving technological future.2
On top of that, VR engages more of the users senses, which again lends itself to be more engaging and less boring: An important factor concering young students. These virtual experiences can transform classrooms or even the students homes into a laboratory or a museum, even going back in time for history classes. Through VR, access to scenarios that used to be cumbersome is easier than ever before, be it just a day trip to a foreign country without leaving the room, or a visit to distant planets in physics class. The result stays the same: VR removes physical limitations.3
Of course, this level of technology and teaching comes with its own set of challenges. The first of these is certainly the cost of acquiring enough VR glasses for an entire classroom, as it can get quite costly very quickly. Another issue is the steep learning curve for teachers, as they need to be well-versed and trained in this area, to be able to properly deliver educational VR content.4
Seeing how fast VR has developed in recent years, however, these problems are being tackled and realising the benefits of incorporating VR in classrooms can lead to proper steps being taken. In the same way students used to get excited about being shown a movie in class, in the not so distant future, students can be excited to be taken on an educational, virtual journey to anywhere imaginable.
Sources
1. Spilka, Dmytro. “How VR And AR Are Revolutionizing eLearning For Learners Of All Ages” eLearning Industry. Published May 18, 2023. https://elearningindustry.com/how-vr-and-ar-are-revolutionizing-elearning-for-learners-of-all-ages
2. Intel Corporation. “Active Learning Fosters Technical and Innovative Learning” Intel. n.d. https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/education/teaching-strategy/active-learning.html
3. Intel Corporation. “Virtual Reality (VR) in Education” Intel. n.d. https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/education/transforming-education/vr-in-education.html
4. Siddiqui, Wahaj. “Virtual Reality (VR) in Education: The Future of Learning” LinkedIn. Published September 12, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/virtual-reality-vr-education-future-learning-wahaj-siddiqui
