As we slowly tiptoe towards 2023, it becomes increasingly clear that virtual reality technology is taking the world by storm! Virtual reality (VR) and Augmented reality (AR) have gained immense popularity not only in the gaming industry but also the education industry as well. AR-VR are finding ample scope in academia, especially because students claim to find the AR-VR experience transformative. Here are three ways in which virtual reality technology enriches a learning experience:
1. Gamified learning: The biggest advantage of using VR technology in classrooms is that it can gamify even the most mundane of lessons. VR makes the learning experience mimic a gaming experience and thus, makes lessons extremely interesting and exciting for students. VR technology isn’t something students are used to, on a regular basis, so lessons curated with VR gives them something new to look forward to during classes.
2. Engaging classes: Student-engagement is still a huge challenge in academics and VR learning has a pivotal role to play in engaging students, especially the fickle ones. VR creates a fully immersive learning experience for students that stimulates their mind and fans their imagination in ways that traditional books, videos or pictures are unable to do. Moreover, students get to live through exciting experiences or traverse stimulating landscapes – all from the safety of their classrooms.
3. Enhanced academic performances: Surveys reveal that students perform better when lessons are virtual reality and augmented reality assisted. The reason for this is that VR learning engages all of the sensory receptors at the same time, thus making the lesson an unforgettable experience. We generally tend to remember only 10-20% of what we read but we retain almost 85-90% of the things we experience. Therefore, VR assisted lessons improve lesson-retention among students which leads to better overall academic performance. Apart from engaging students and improving their cognitive abilities, incorporating virtual reality technology into lessons ensures the classroom becomes a fun and inviting place for students.