Headsets On: Exploring the New Virtual and Augmented Classroom

Headsets On: Exploring the New Virtual and Augmented Classroom

According to a 2023 survey by education researchers at Stanford University, nearly three-quarters of K-12 teachers now regularly leverage some form of VR or AR technology to augment their standard curriculum, lessons and classroom. 

The rationale is clear

The rationale is clear – by transforming abstract theories into visualized experiences students can directly observe and manipulate, these technologies possess unparalleled potential for inspiring engagement and fostering true comprehension.

“These solutions absolutely spark something primal in young curious minds,” says Jill Leclair

an elementary school science teacher in Ottawa. “Textbooks and lectures only go so far in painting a vivid enough picture. But when you can actually provide a model students can hold in their hands and disassemble or a virtual environment they can move through and interact within, suddenly these concepts come ablaze and stick with them far more viscerally.”  

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Leclair is among a growing legion of educators who have fully embraced VR field trips

AR learning applications, and other immersive visual aids as indispensable teaching tools. And the benefits extend well beyond just sparking engagement and attention. Evidence is mounting that this firsthand, collaborative learning facilitates higher-order thinking skills, stokes creativity, and more effectively caters to diverse learning styles in the classroom.

A Blossoming Extended Reality Ecosystem 

For teachers, the process of integrating VR and AR often starts by leveraging widely available commercial applications built specifically for education. Google’s immersive Expeditions VR app provides a catalog of annotated virtual tours exploring cultural sites, museums, and natural wonders across over 800 destinations. 

SideKick

Meanwhile, SideKick provides an augmented reality injection to printed workbooks and textbooks, seamlessly overlaying 3D models, instructional videos, and assessment exercises viewable through a standard tablet or smartphone camera. 

Other increasingly popular AR/VR solutions include:

 

• zSpace – Interactive AR/VR lessons and lab simulations spanning anatomy, engineering, physics, geology and more high school/college subjects.
• BodyViz – Library of customizable 3D anatomical models for visualizing the human body’s inner workings in augmented detail. 
• Moxie Brain Simulator – Award-winning platform allowing students to explore a hyperrealistic 3D brain environment using VR headsets.

While standalone commercial applications deliver invaluable supplemental resources

Teachers like Nick Fehlinger have found fulfillment in developing fully customized lessons around VR and AR for their classrooms. Fehlinger, who teaches 6th grade science in Atlanta, spearheaded an initiative at his school to embrace a VR creation suite called CoSpaces for building bespoke educational experiences tailored specifically to his curriculum and students.

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Full VR immersion

“I’ll have students construct scale model diagrams explaining the layers of the atmosphere or the periodic table,” Fehlinger describes. “They’ll build everything in this awesome 3D design space and then publish it so their classmates can fire up Google Cardboard and check out their work in full VR immersion. It’s hands-on learning through a collaborative process combined with the sheer awesomeness of virtual environments to create truly lasting connections.”

VR and AR

As a result of such whole-hearted classroom adoption, analysts project VR and AR will rapidly become ubiquitous educational resources. 

According to market intelligence firm OmniVirtual, North American education spending on extended reality platforms will soar from around $850 million in 2022 to over $9.2 billion by 2027 as implementation continues ramping up across grade levels.

Overcoming the Implementation Obstacles

Of course, seamlessly integrating these advanced technologies into daily classroom routines is not without its obstacles. Concerns around limited IT budgets, complicated setup and maintenance demands, and general skepticism around adopting new instructional methods persist.

Virtual field trips and VR experiences

Leclair admits experiencing initial trepidation around introducing Google’s Expeditions virtual field trips and VR experiences to her students for the first time. “We had some expected growing pains around helping students adjust to using the headsets comfortably,” she recalls. “And honestly, there was a bit of initial pushback and eye-rolling from parents who wondered whether these were just distracting virtual toys or truly valid academic tools.”

Setting a standard protocol for sharing headsets and sanitizing devices between users,

Establishing smart time limits avoiding eyestrain or motion sickness, and providing guidance to help. Acclimate students and address concerns proved crucial in Leclair’s implementation and acceptance journey.

Just like any new classroom resource

There’s definitely a learning curve for everyone. But educators are nothing if not adaptable,” she continues. “And once parents saw how deeply engaged students were in virtual archaeological digs or swimming with marine life. Those initial skepticisms gave way to excitement.”