3 Ways to Use Virtual Reality for Learning
What is VR?
Over the past several years, new gaming tools have been developed. Virtual Reality (VR) caused a significant shift in the gaming world. What if I told you that VR could be used for educational purposes? Let’s look at a few ways VR can be used for learning purposes in your organization.
VR is not to be confused with Augmented Reality (AR). VR replaces the visual world with a computer-generated reality through a headset. Users are fully immersed in a virtual environment while physically in the real world. When appropriately implemented, virtual reality can facilitate high-stakes training in a low-stakes environment. Medical schools have traditionally used cadavers to teach surgery.
3 Examples of VR in Learning
Immersive Field Trips
VR enables learners to take virtual field trips to places that may be inaccessible due to logistical constraints. Learners can go to national museums, the depths of the ocean, and even outer space!
Simulations
VR simulations enable learners to participate in hands-on learning experiences in the sciences, engineering, and even customer service training. Organizations with employees who work in settings with dangerous materials, like firefighters or electricians, can safely learn without working in hazardous environments.
Virtual Laboratories
Organizations where people interact with potentially hazardous substances, like chemists or biologists, can use VR labs to experiment without needing physical materials. They can observe reactions, manipulate variables, and analyze results in a virtual setting.
Considerations
Of course, there are cost considerations for using VR as a learning tool. You will need to obtain VR goggles to enable the VR environment. A fully functioning VR headset could be incredibly costly if you choose to use more complex VR simulations. There are less expensive VR goggles that are compatible with smartphones. This option allows you to access VR experiences at a more affordable capacity.
From a design perspective, a fully immersive learning experience must be designed for the virtual world. The more customized and interactive the learning experience, the more it would cost to design and develop it. Remember that readily available resources are available online, depending on your learning needs.
VR is a welcome and disruptive innovation that will continue to evolve. There are endless possibilities in the virtual world. How could you use VR to support learning in your organization?
Sources
Hill, Z., B. (2016). Virtual Reality: Advances in Research and Applications. Hauppauge, New York: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Porter, M. E. & Heppelmann, J.E. (2017). Why every organization needs an augmented reality strategy. Harvard Business Review retrieved from https://hbr.org/2017/11/a-managers-guide-to-augmented-reality
Steffen, J. H., Gaskin, J. E., Meservy, T. O., Jenkins, J. L., & Wolman, I. (2019). Framework of Affordances for Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Journal of Management Information Systems, 36(3), 683–729.
