The covid-19 pandemic has pushed all students to the path of distance learning, but this is not necessarily a scary thing. AR/VR technology has the potential to enhance the distance learning experience beyond the limits of pre-recorded instructional videos, with slow connections. Whether it’s a biology teacher looking to teach anatomy to kids or a business owner looking to train online customer interaction skills, AR/VR can enhance all of those experiences. In this article, Tech Town has compiled the 5 most popular practical applications of AR and VR in distance learning, inviting readers to follow along.

1. Gamification of learning

An online classroom filled with students playing games can be a nightmare for any online instructor. But game-based learning is really helpful. The educational gamification market will reach about $1.5 billion by the end of this year. Gamification studies also show that learners who learn by games score 14% higher on skill-based assessments.

 

Basically, game-based learning is where students complete tasks around a subject or topic, the better the learning, the more rewards the student gets. The more rewards they get, the more they will progress through the levels. That’s how a game works.

 

This works because it removes the side effects that we can see from playing games, such as game addiction or excessive competition, and they are used for learning purposes. VR allows students to immerse themselves in an engaging educational game that promotes teamwork and healthy competition.

 

VR games have the potential to enhance distance learning because it can create authentic social interactions. Due to its versatility, VR can engage students much more than other forms of distance learning. On average in practice, only 15% of students complete their course online (data from research by education and technology researcher Katy Jordan)

 

Research on game-based learning shows that:

•     80% of Americans believe game-based learning is more engaging.
•     Game-based learning apps improve worker productivity by 50%.
•     67% of students say they feel more motivated in gamified courses.

 

Not only that, VR games allow students to take charge and control their learning, which motivates students to follow the game’s story and collect trophies. It also allows students to explore different themes and roles through different avatars or identities. 

One of the most useful aspects of VR game-based learning is getting analytics. These games have the ability to assess students’ strengths and weaknesses quickly and accurately, along with suggesting areas where students can improve. This environment that fosters continuous progress encourages students to form critical thinking – a skill that is sometimes lost during distance learning.

2. Virtual Discovery

If you’re a business owner that offers distance learning to employees or university faculty, exploring VR/AR is a great way to grab any student’s attention. According to a study by Griffith University, Australia, 80% of students highly appreciate the experience of virtual events or trips. 

Of course, the VR version of the Great Pyramids is no substitute for an actual wonder. However, with the pandemic situation and international travel facing many barriers, VR field trips are a great alternative. VR glasses allow students to access everything from icebergs to majestic historical ruins. 

Students don’t even need VR glasses. With AR field trips, they can use their phones to place AR objects like World War II bunkers in the middle of their living room and explore it from a variety of angles.

 

Virtual reality rides are also more accessible than physical ones. The reason is because they cost much less, which means it gets more students involved regardless of their financial capabilities. This becomes especially important when fieldwork is a requirement for academic success, as geoscience courses, for example, need to organize these activities. 

In addition, virtual reality trips do not need staff and chaperones like a field trip. The reason is because there is very little risk, potential risk and cost of insurance. Therefore, there is no limit to the number of students who can attend. This is also useful when ignoring challenges with weather conditions. 

Most importantly, virtual field trips allow students to make mistakes without fear of consequences, which is the essence of a healthy learning environment.

3. Enhance practice

One of the biggest downsides of distance learning is the lack of a hands-on element. VR and AR have the potential to bridge the gap between real-life learning and practice by merging theory and practice. Virtual practice can increase the quality of learning and student interest by up to 90%.

 

Distance learning can also cause constant distraction, especially if the learning is done at home without establishing an optimal home work environment. Tutorial videos can sometimes be helpful, but when students use virtual reality headsets in combination with headsets, they become fully immersed in hands-on lessons. This provides them with a better learning environment. 

AR/VR is really useful whether you are a teacher who wants to demonstrate a chemistry experiment or a computer science student who wants to learn data quality management software development. Pair-programming is also a great way to allow the teacher to share a virtual screen and guide you through the process. 

VR/AR distance learning is not only an alternative to real-life learning, but it can really enhance it. VR can improve any design-related learning. For example, in architecture, students can wear VR glasses to view the models and drawings they have created in the virtual world. If they have designed a hotel, they can go inside, walk around, and make adjustments to the building to improve the potential customer experience.

4. Overcome the language barrier

Almost everyone has been in a situation where they had to communicate with someone who did not speak their language, or spoke very well. This can happen when a foreign tourist calls the helpline and the support agent cannot understand their request.

 

Learning a second language is a big challenge for anyone. Not only do learners have to constantly switch between their mother tongue and new languages, but they also have to retain information they didn’t know before. The Why Axis data shows that 15% of adults in the US speak a language other than English at home.

 

Virtual reality has the potential to provide a seamless education for second language learners. This technology can translate or provide subtitles instantly, allowing these students to learn and understand at a faster rate.

 

Not only does it help international students during their online course, but beyond. The coronavirus pandemic has prevented many social interactions that help international students develop their second language. VR language courses can allow students to safely recreate these interactions from their own homes.

 

Another important aspect of AR/VR is collaboration. International students are often afraid to speak for fear of mispronouncing or making grammatical mistakes. Interactive VR can help mitigate this and encourage more students from all walks of life to be more involved in the community.

5. Special Education

VR has the potential to improve the education and lives of practitioners with disabilities. A key feature of the virtual world is the ability to control any external stimuli such as sounds or images. This means that students with any sensory disturbance can be gradually introduced to these stimuli, so they can have a safe and fulfilling experience.

 

VR has incredible flexibility, as mentioned above, so each virtual distance learning experience can be tailored to the specific conditions of the student. For example, students with visual impairments have more of an audio learning experience, and they can even navigate themselves in the virtual world using audio cues.

 

VR can also assist students with disabilities in learning environments by converting their gestures into voices. This allows students to communicate with each other and can greatly improve their social skills. Not only that, VR can provide anonymity for students with disabilities if required. Avatar VR can also allow students to express themselves beyond the boundaries of their disability.

 

VR is not only useful for helping teachers teach, but it can also help caregivers and even parents better understand certain conditions.

 

Statista statistics show that 97% of students want to learn using some AR/VR apps, which proves that these technologies are present and future. The data also shows that 80% of teachers have access to VR devices, but only about 7% actually use them, with the rest choosing other tools to teach online.

 

Understanding these technologies and making it relevant to educational materials and taking advantage of its benefits is critical to improving distance learning. VR has the potential to bring an active form of gaming into the virtual classroom to help build teams and track progress.

 

Virtual trips and hands-on exercises can enhance distance learning and allow students to fully immerse themselves, thereby developing skills and knowledge for the “real world”. And finally, VR can help reduce language barriers and disabilities.

 

Hopefully the information Tech Town brings above will be useful for businesses. If your business is looking for a reputable AR VR application development company, a team of highly qualified engineers at a reasonable cost, Tech Town is confident to become the right choice for your business.

 

Tech Town is a technology company from Vietnam, with representative offices in the United States, Japan, Canada, the Netherlands,… We provide AR & VR application development services for businesses, optimize content delivery with immersive technologies, enhance the performance of decentralized systems, enhance customer experience, and delight next-generation users. For more than 4 years of operation, Tech Town has become a reputable technology partner trusted by startups and enterprises from many countries around the world such as the US, Canada, the Netherlands, Japan, the UK and other countries. other developers.

 

Contact us if your business has any technological challenges!