Virtual Reality (VR) technology offers an immersive and interactive way to replicate real-world environments and experiences. VR comes in various forms, including immersive headsets, 3D simulations, and 2D desktop simulations, each chosen based on available resources and user needs. While immersive headsets provide a highly engaging experience, they can cause cybersickness symptoms such as nausea, dizziness, and headaches and are expensive. Consequently, 3D and 2D desktop simulations are more commonly used, delivering similar educational benefits with less immersion. Many VR software options for laboratory education and hands-on experiences offer institutional or individual licenses, making them accessible without requiring extensive technical expertise.
Within STEM, VR has been increasingly adopted in 21st-century teaching and learning for its interactive, immersive, long-term cost-effectiveness and flexibility. Students find major scientific concepts abstract and experience difficulty understanding and applying them to real-life scenarios. VR bridges this gap by making abstract ideas concrete, enhancing comprehension, and fostering the practical application of theoretical knowledge. Instructors and institutions with limited resources can leverage VR to offer students holistic learning experiences without compromising quality and standards.
Below, I provide five essential tips every instructor, instructional designer, or policymaker should know and consider when incorporating VR into STEM education. These insights are based on personal research within higher education and are necessary pedagogic strategies for offering optimal experiences to students.
Context matters
Have you ever heard of the one-size-fits-all idea? Most of us grew up with this notion. However, recent research has shown that instructional design must cater to diverse individuals and contexts. When implementing VR, consider factors such as the age group, experience level, school environment, and subject difficulty. Have these students used VR applications before? Do they already understand the concept to be taught through VR? Is the subject particularly challenging? Answering these questions will guide your selection of VR software and, if you are designing it in-house, will influence the features and content arrangement. For example, students tackling highly complicated concepts will benefit from enhanced scaffolding and interactivity. Avoid options that use the same flow, features, and question types for multiple topics. Tailor the VR experience to meet the specific needs of your students, ensuring a more effective and engaging learning experience.
Timing
Consider the optimal timing for introducing VR into your classroom, which can depend on student engagement levels or the type of curriculum. Are there periods during the semester when students feel fatigued or stressed due to exams? Avoid introducing VR technology when
students are mentally stressed or disengaged, as their emotions significantly impact their learning experiences in VR. If your course involves multiple complex concepts that need visualization, plan your classroom sessions to cover these concepts sequentially, incorporating VR intermittently. It is important to note that one-time use of VR rarely has long-term benefits. Aim to use VR at least twice within a course for the same set of students, or you can consider a series of courses where VR is used by all students in each course. Consider introducing VR early in students’ academic careers, depending on your educational environment. Early exposure can help students develop proficiency and appreciation for VR, enhancing their learning experiences throughout their education.
Strategic preparation
Emphasis on strategic. Think of using VR when planning events: you must cross your t’s and dot your i’s. Randomly throwing VR into your teaching or training sessions risks losing your students’ interest and wasting valuable time. VR should be intentional, unlike regular technologies like clickers, interactive whiteboards, or slide shows. Create a project document, especially for your first use of VR. As you prepare your document, consider the following questions:
- Why are you using VR?
- What resources are guiding your usage?
- What are your goals for its use in your teaching and students’ learning?
- Are you designing in-house or subscribing to commercially available software?
- What will you need from other stakeholders?
- Is there a cost implication for students?
Identifying these factors early on will help you create a clear roadmap for implementing VR. Additionally, you stand a higher chance of gaining support from colleagues and organizations when you demonstrate intentionality in your VR implementation plan. Without this strategic preparation, you may end up using VR as ineffectively as an instructor who copies and pastes all classroom notes into PowerPoint without applying careful design principles.
Accessibility
Accessibility in VR is multi-faceted, encompassing the need to cater to diverse learners and ensure a safe, inclusive environment. When adopting VR applications, avoid requiring specific operating systems that might be inaccessible to every student. If schools can provide software support, consider those learners who wish to purchase the software for home use. Opt for software with broad compatibility options to ensure all students can participate. Moreover, consider the application’s tone, text, and visual clarity when using VR. Choose applications that represent diverse skin colours and genders to avoid reinforcing stereotypes. For instructional designers, applying universal design learning principles is an excellent starting point for creating accessible environments that meet the needs of diverse learners. These principles help ensure that all students, regardless of their background or abilities, can benefit from the VR experience.
Marketing
Yes, you read it right—marketing. I have discovered that when students understand how VR benefits their careers, future classes, or exams, they engage more, acquiring higher learning gains. After all the back-end planning, do not bring VR into the class with only the grand plans you will follow to ensure it matches course content. Market it to your students beforehand. Build excitement and anticipation for its use, just like authors do with book pre-sales by offering abstracts and sneak peeks into a few chapters. Engage in pre-use marketing by communicating VR’s value to your students. Dedicate time to explaining how VR is used in their respective career fields, discussing the gaps it addresses, relating it to their previous experiences, and highlighting the role VR can play in their overall career development. However, be cautious not to overpromise. If you use a 3D simulation version, do not create expectations for an immersive headset experience. Disappointment from unmet expectations can be worse than initial indifference to VR capabilities.
Finally, never assume anything when using VR. Always thoroughly investigate before jumping the gun; your actions have long-term implications for students. I look forward to your experiences using VR in STEM education.
