XR has proven itself to be a powerful and versatile technology in recent years. Particularly since the pandemic hit, we’ve discovered just how valuable immersive experiences can be when it comes to boosting productivity, creativity, and collaboration.
The educational sector is one of the environments with perhaps the most to gain from extended reality. After all, educators are constantly searching for better ways to enrich the learning experience and improve information recall. XR has the potential to deliver exceptional results in those areas, by giving students hands-on experiences of real-world scenarios like never before.
Whether delivered in the form of MR, AR, or VR interactions, educational experiences in XR connect with students on a deeper level, and pave the way for a better quality of learning. Here are just some of the most significant use cases for XR in education.
1. Safe, Memorable, Hands-on Training
According to some studies, most of us are hands-on, practical learners, acquiring up to 70% of our skills from experiential interactions. Typically, an engineer would learn more by working with a piece of technology or machinery, than they would by looking at a manual. Experiential interactions allow us to develop muscle memories and immerse us within the lesson.
Unfortunately, hands-on training can often be complex, expensive, and even unsafe to offer in certain environments. For instance, training employees how to work with large pieces of complex machinery could put them at risk, while simultaneously forcing companies to shut down certain processes while the lessons were provided.
XR offers an excellent alternative, replicating the hands-on education we need, in a safe and flexible space. Students can learn how to operate complex machinery and deal with difficult challenges without being at risk of any physical threats. At the same time, there’s no need for any downtime in a business environment. Studies have already proven the benefits of this hands-on learning.
One report found using VR for training led to 27.4% better test scores and 15.8% performances from students than using traditional educational methods.
2. Bring Education to the Metaverse
The way we look at schooling and training has changed significantly in the last couple of years. Thanks to the pandemic, we now know that education doesn’t necessarily need to take place in a traditional classroom. However, students still benefit from collaborative and social experiences, which allow them to interact with their peers.
The Metaverse, an environment promising more in-depth digital experiences and community interactions, could be the answer to the future of “remote education”. With metaverse environments and XR technology, universities, training facilities and schools can welcome students into a virtual environment, where they can develop their social skills as they learn.
People can step into the metaverse from anywhere, express themselves with digital avatars, and interact with digital content in a rich and immersive landscape. The metaverse also makes it easy to traverse new environments while learning, allowing students to visit space, interact with team members on a virtual shop floor, or simply sit in a lecture theatre.
3. Improved Retention of Information
The goal of most educational facilities isn’t just to impart knowledge, but to provide students with information they can retain and use in their everyday lives. To make lessons as memorable as possible, educators need to find ways of engaging their students on a deeper level. XR technology can significantly help in this area.
For instance, during the pandemic, Stanford University taught anatomy lessons through VR and AR tools. The immersive solution allowed students to view three-dimensional organs, and listen to real-time commentary from instructions. The hands-on practice allowed students to experiment with different procedures themselves, rather than just reading about it in a book.
XR embodies the constructivist theory of learning, allowing users to engage in experiential interactions. This can lead to better knowledge retention and engagement. According to professors at Stanford, their XR students were far more involved, and more able to grasp complex topics after engaging with AR and VR. Increasingly, we’re discovering that XR technology can significantly improve comprehension, and knowledge retention.
4. Soft Skill Development
According to one poll, 45% of businesses in industries like manufacturing and healthcare consider VR to be critical to their business goals and training needs in the next 2 years. XR technologies can be excellent for helping professionals to develop new technical skills through hands-on interactions. However, it also has the potential to improve soft skills too.
Immersive experiences in a VR environment can prepare employees to deal with more of the challenges they face every day. For instance, Walmart has already used virtual reality as a way of helping employees to develop skills to deal with the madness of the Black Friday sales.
XR can provide users with a safe and comfortable environment where they can practice all manner of soft skills, from leadership techniques to public speaking. In fact, solutions like VirtualSpeech have already been specifically designed to help users practice speaking to a crowd.
By placing people in unique environments and allowing them to really immerse themselves in experiences, we can provide them with more of the soft skills which make them critical to any workplace or professional space.
5. Empower Hybrid Learning
XR is a flexible environment with endless applications across a range of different tools and technologies. For those seeking better training and educational experiences, XR’s benefits don’t have to be limited to dropping into virtual environments. It’s also possible to provide better on-the-job training and student interactions through hybrid learning.
For instance, using AR applications, students in a classroom could scan a QR code to see what an animal looks like in real-life through their smartphone. In the workplace environment, professionals could access MR and AR headsets to get step-by-step instructions on how to use a piece of technology when they’re in the field.
Hybrid learning solutions can provide students with additional information and guidance to ensure the interactions they have with the world are as meaningful as possible. As AR glasses and headsets become more popular, these solutions are likely to grow in popularity.
