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How AR and VR Can Play a Role in Bringing Enriching Experiences into the Classroom

From displays to mobile computing, technology has revolutionized many aspects, including interactive displays, science fiction, and 3D models. Buzzwords like Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR) are commonplace with many tech-savvy and not-so-tech-savvy folks.

Role of AR & VR in classrooms
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While Augmented Reality primarily involves the addition of digital elements to a particular live view by using a smartphone’s camera, Virtual Reality consists of an immersion experience where you use a device that takes you to a virtual world, imaginary world, or a real world. Mixed reality is where both aspects of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality converge.

Through ed-tech, AR and VR can play essential roles in bringing enriching experiences into the classroom. Teachers and instructors can leverage these technologies to enhance learning and simplify understanding among students.

Virtual Tours and Field Trips

It is highly important to appreciate the fact that not all students can learn properly under the typical teacher-student environment that involves the use of boards and markers. Some students can do well under such settings, while some can excel in visualized environments.

Noteworthy is the fact that visual learning is compatible with a majority of students as it is interactive and makes the whole learning process seamless. Rather than having students learn complex concepts, functions, equations, or mechanisms in the c lassroom under a teacher environment setting up smart boards for schools or providing AR and VR can come in handy to simplify the process.

Teachers can introduce AR and VR to the classroom, allow students to use visualization when learning various concepts that may be well or easily comprehended visually. Through virtual tours and field trips, students can ‘go’ to various places, albeit virtually, and experience how these places are.

In most cases, teachers use this to allow students to go to other places where they can have a whole new experience and outlook. These virtual field trips also help to improve the body of knowledge as well as imagination of the students, both of which are invaluable when it comes to enriching the experience in the classroom.

AR Used for Science Experiments

Most of what is taught and learned in the classroom is theoretical stuff. Students do not get the optimal portion of practical lessons they are supposed to attend due to insufficiency or lack of capabilities. AR can help to revolutionize the whole scene and help to make things change for the better.

This is possible because AR can help to bring an element of practicality in the classroom. While students might not be able to go for all their practical lessons, AR could help students ‘go’ to those practical areas and get first-hand lessons of whatever topic or subject they are learning.

With these practical lessons that are enabled by AR, students get varying experiences, which can help to further enrich the classroom lessons and sessions in general. This can also help to enhance the learning process and make learning more lively in the classroom.

Virtual Reality
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Kiwi Combines AR and Social Media to Encourage Active and Collaborative Learning Via Schools’ Wireless Networks

Kiwi’s project on AR, Social Media, and collaborative learning all delivered through the wireless networks of schools is an Augmented Reality project that has its sights on education’s future. Kiwi is a mobile application that was built by students at Columbia’s University School of Visual Arts.

Kiwi mainly has a focus on peer-to-peer learning. This is so because the app’s design is in such a way that students can use their smartphones or tablets to scan reading material that is in physical form like textbooks. After scanning these textbooks, students can use the array of learning assistance tools like sharing notes and highlighting, and also use available Augmented Reality guides to make the whole process seamless and peer-to-peer.

In this way, students can learn seamlessly and bring an entire world of experiences to the classroom. Tools like Kiwi coupled with academic writing services can have a tangible effect on the studies of various students regardless of institution. The overall effect is a dynamic classroom that has some relevant practical knowledge.

Enhancement of Creativity

Visualization and imagination are two aspects that go hand in hand. When students get exposure to Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, they get to imagine various scenarios, various circumstances, and various happenings. Visualizations help them to think and create stuff.

The whole essence of the learning process is to equip students with capabilities that allow them to create and build various stuff. Learning is a process that empowers the learner to think further and even provokes them to be creative in various ways. With this in mind, the introduction of AR and VR to the classroom can help to enrich the experiences of the students further.

This is because students get to be in simulated environments – in the case of VR, environments which may influence the thinking of the student in various unimaginable ways. Collectively, in the classroom, VR can have the effect of bringing enriched and diverse experiences, which can help to boost the learning process.

AR and VR Give Students Exposure

Students have different learning curves and also think differently. This means that when exposed to different learning environments, the chances are that students are going to pick up varying aspects from the environments. There won’t be total uniformity from what they are going to learn in such environments.

In this sense, when students use AR and VR in the learning or classroom context, it exposes them to different environments. These environments are fundamentally simulated, but can also offer excellent learning platforms. Therefore, the use of AR and VR can expose students to things they did not know earlier, which could be relevant to their classwork.

Ideally, exposure helps students to think far and wide, imagine more, and even brainstorm. Thus, AR and VR can have the impact of giving students insight and exposure into a whole world of other practical stuff or aspects that could help to bring an enriched experience to the classroom.

Further, students get the opportunity to learn by themselves. The learning process does not have to entirely be a one-way affair where teachers feed the students everything. By inculcating AR and VR in the classroom, students get the opportunity to learn some concepts on their own. This by itself is a way that students can use to get enriching experiences that they can bring to the classroom.

In Conclusion

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality are immersive technologies that can have an impact on various areas, education included. When new technologies come into being, their application determines whether they will survive or fade with time. AR and VR have particularly had interesting applications in the education sector, and they can help to change how people learn as well as shape their experiences.

As technology evolves, so do other aspects of life. Interestingly, these technologies can find applications in various places. As seen, AR and VR in the classroom can have overall positive effects when it comes to enriching the experiences of students.

About the author

Daniela McVicker is an editor for TopWritersReview. She has a master’s degree in English Literature, and she is truly passionate about learning foreign languages and teaching. Daniela works with the students helping them to reveal the writing talent and find one true calling.

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