Towards Routinely Using Virtual Reality in Higher Education

Abstract

Virtual reality promises to be a tool that can improve higher education. Immersive virtual environments offer the chance to enrich courses with experiential learning experiences. The technological possibilities evolve rapidly and more and more researchers report on adopting virtual reality for learning -albeit such work often has a more or less experimental character. However, the base of knowledge on using virtual reality in higher education is growing; educators who want to employ virtual reality to amend courses, to extend the curriculum with experiential learning, or who want to offer new content enabled through virtual reality, find increasingly rich advice. With this article, we contribute to this advice by providing insights from three research cases. Although these were experimental, their embedding into a larger project enables us to propose recommendations for educators. The ultimate aim of our work is the routine use of virtual reality in higher education.

Welcome, How Can I Help You? Design Considerations for a Virtual Reality Environment to Support the Orientation of Online Initial Teacher Education Students

“…The application of VR in educational contexts is evolving, with research to date indicating that there is potential to better engage and empower students in their learning [42]. It is also noted that online education is arguably best positioned to benefit from and grow through the use of VR technologies [43], which could contribute to bridging the divide between on-campus and online learning experiences [44], and to pursue VR was a step towards a mode of orientation that could be more experiential, immersive and interactive [44,45]. This was at the forefront of considerations throughout the design process.…”

“…It charts the design principles [39] and design process [21] that resulted in the creation of a 3D and 2D VR environment of the School of Education reception area and attached meeting rooms with two learning support pathways. In doing so, this paper contributes to the guidance available to educators seeking to pursue VR innovations, which can mitigate challenges faced when navigating new and experimental approaches [45]. The created application aims to bring a sense of belonging and presence for online ITE students while they access and receive key study information.…”