Being able to take an entire class on a field trip to South Africa or being able to have a conversation with famed author, Iyanla VanSant right from the comfort of your classroom is an AMAZING thing. Students can now go places of their dreams. Imagine you are a 5th grade student, you walk into the classroom and your teacher says, "Today we are going to walk on the moon boys and girls." You would probably look at him/her like they were crazy, but with the help of VR, walking on the moon during a school day is 100% possible! Making virtual reality a reality in the classroom can enhance your instruction. Seeing the excitement and the anticipation on students faces as they wait to see were they will travel each day can be so fulfilling.
As a child participating in elementary school, it was a good day when we got to go outside during recess and play kickball, or if there was a substitute we got to watch a Disney movie. I never imagined that 30 years later I would be facilitating a classroom discussion with my own students, speaking to one of the directors of Google or taking a "field trip" to Mt. Kilimandjaro, all in the matter of three days. It is truly an amazing experience.
Virtual reality is a low cost and in some cases free way to offer students opportunities to broaden and expand their thinking and knowledge. The school that I service is low income and all students receive free and reduced lunch. These students never have pencils or school supplies when they arrive, so their families would not be able to finance any of the virtual trips we have taken this school year if we were to physically go there. My parents and students appreciate the new and innovative ways that I have been able to introduce a flipped classroom this year.
Science labs, field trips, mathematical expressions, museums, art, international pen pals, and so much more can be experienced through virtual reality in the classroom.
Bringing education to life and seeing students experience this "reality" is such a blessing. Today anything truly is possible in the classroom!
Virtual reality is amazing! I remember a few years ago when I saw one of our history teachers use it in class for the first time. He had gotten a Google cardboard for something around $10, downloaded an app on his smartphone, inserted into the headset, and was all set to go to take his students around the world. VR can be used for so many things, like you said about how you can take a field trip without leaving the classroom. So many times these field trips are too expensive or unrealistic, but VR can take you there as long as you have the setup. Im glad you included this Ted Talk because it also showed me that there are ways to use VR even without the headsets and smartphones. Granted, you will still need laptops and as far as my school goes, the laptops aren't the best. However, the computers in our school library would be more than enough to accomplish an interactive activity to engage the students.
ReplyDelete