Reference01： Literature Review on Immersive Virtual Reality in Education: State Of The Art and Perspectives.
(Introduction to essential VR information / Points to note about VR consoles / Advantages of VR gaming) A literature review on immersive virtual reality education. The current state and future of the art.
Ott, M. and Freina, L. (2015) A LITERATURE REVIEW ON IMMERSIVE VIRTUAL REALITY IN EDUCATION: STATE OF THE ART AND PERSPECTIVES. Available at: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-LITERATURE-REVIEW-ON-IMMERSIVE-VIRTUAL-REALITY-IN-Ott-Freina/e93b38f3892c7357051f39be6b6574f298a3b72a (Accessed: December 24, 2022).
(Ott and Freina, 2015)
Virtual reality is a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional image or environment that can be interacted with using special electronic devices. In the 1960s, a mechanical device called Sensorama1 was used to create immersive VR experiences. It included three-dimensional, full-color movies, sound, smell, and movement sensations.
The Oculus Rift’s ‘Health and Safety Warning’ recommends that children under 13 should not use the device.
Immersive VR can offer enormous advantages for learning: it allows for the direct sensation of objects and events out of our physical reach. It supports training in a safe environment, avoiding potentially real dangers. It helps movement in a safe environment, avoids potentially real risks, and increases learner engagement and motivation thanks to the game-like approach while expanding the range of supported learning styles. It also raises the range of supported learning styles. The results show how most papers report on experiments in high school or adult training Higher education or adult training. Very little was said in the area of younger children and disability disabilities.
VR can bring advantages by allowing the physical exploration of objects inaccessible in reality.
People with disabilities are a population where immersive VR can make a difference. In particular, people with intellectual disabilities, in particular, can make use of this approach. Learning in a virtual environment Reproducing the natural environment minimizes the problems associated with the transfer of learning.
However, the continued emergence of teachers requires teachers to mediate and manage the use of VR tools, and the use of VR systems should be limited.
Summary of the reference：
Introduction to VR
Virtual Reality is a 3D simulated environment generated by computers after extensive calculations, and many special electronic devices have been designed specifically for virtual Reality to experience this 3D equipment in a fully immersive way. As early as the 1960s, scientists invented VR machines to experience the technology.
VR includes 3D images, a full range of stereo sound, and some advanced VR even has simulated smells and simulated visual motion effects.
Critical points of VR gaming machines.
Because the overly realistic and immersive gaming experience has the potential for a range of negative consequences (e.g., bloody violence, psychological trauma, etc.), the safety warnings for the Oculus Rift will even mark that children under the age of 13 are not allowed to use the device.
Advantages of VR consoles.
Its realistic, immersive experience can significantly benefit the learning environment. VR consoles can have a direct sensory impact on the user creating dangerous scenarios when in fact, the user is in a safe environment so that real danger can be avoided.
The realism of VR allows learners to experiment with objects that are inaccessible or difficult to reach in Reality and will enable learners to do so regardless of their limitations. In theory, the disabled community would be the most profitable group.
A playful approach would also increase student motivation and engagement and enhance the variety and range of learning styles.
Reference02：A systematic review of Virtual Reality in education
(Examples of VR application areas/applications in education resource saving/impact. Imperfection points/benefits)
A systematic review of virtual reality technology in education
https://www.learntechlib.org/p/182115/
Kavanagh, S. et al. (2017) [PDF] A systematic review of virtual reality in education: Semantic scholar, [PDF] A systematic review of Virtual Reality in education | Semantic Scholar. Available at: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-systematic-review-of-Virtual-Reality-in-education-Kavanagh-Luxton-Reilly/9e894cda6d4d7b2766b6fc5c7822e5d5d24472c8 (Accessed: December 24, 2022).
（Kavanagh et al, 2017)
Range of VR application areas.
Health-related: medicine, surgical education, physical education
Engineering applications: aviation, architecture, robotics
Potential applications for virtual museums, etc., etc.
Virtual museums:
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6365989
VR can be applied to simulate limited resources, such as laboratories and equipment, for high demand and limited availability.
VR can be used to simulate the interaction of cargo lift patients, to overcome the limited number of cadavers available to students for use in medical education.
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6918271
Examples of VR used in English language education:
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6185131
The integration of virtual reality platforms into English education can be used to enhance learning autonomy for several reasons: language networks provide an excellent incentive for students to learn spontaneously, as they realize that online English is formed from people and events, has a strong sense of connection to reality, is of practical use, and that this type of education is flexible, has a higher level of accessibility and interactivity, as well as a more incredible wealth of language resources. It also allows students to choose their learning methods, which puts the power of learning squarely in the hands of the students.
VR software could be more usable.
Using VR software in the classroom involves the costs associated with the initial purchase of hardware and software and ongoing expenses, including maintenance. And software, but also the costs of care, support, and training (discussed more in the Training section below There is more discussion of this in the Training section below). However, the actual cost of the initial purchase of VR technology is also high. However, the actual cost of initially purchasing VR education technology is also high, and many schools may need help to justify this cost.
Gesture recognition systems are an input method in VR systems. Still, current VR technology needs to be improved to support capturing perfect gesture input, and even gesture capture with high accuracy still has many limitations.
Despite the upcoming range of HMDs, there still lacks a fit-for-all, or even widely used output peripheral for interaction with them. However, the continual development of novel input interaction technologies gives potential for new approaches to interacting within such an interaction paradigm.
Handwritten notes could potentially be displayed within virtual environments in real time. However, users would still encounter issues in orienting themselves with the device, and a noticeable delay between the physical action and the notes being displayed within the virtual environment would detract from the learning experience.
Users could use a capacitive keyboard to physically orient themselves through the virtual environment, solving the issue of blind-typing for users who cannot touch type.
Summary of the reference：
VR technology is used in various fields:
Entertainment, education, healthcare, sports, engineering, art, history, etc. There are even immersive virtual museums explicitly created for this purpose, so it is clear that VR has a wide range of uses. This article looks at the applications and implications of combining VR and gaming for the education sector.
Applications of VR in education resource-saving:
VR can be applied to simulate limited resources. When people are studying and learning something, they are constantly faced with a lack of resources. Sometimes it may just be a seat or a piece of lab equipment. More often than not, this resource is not something humans can make. For example, the corpses that medical students need to study are not artificial resources. Vr even sometimes needs to simulate natural environments that are not readily available. There are also researchers. Some researchers use VR to simulate solar resources for training and learning.
Examples of the impact of VR education:
Incorporating VR into education can also increase the spontaneity of students’ independent learning. In XX’s experiment, they discovered through real immersion that language is formed from people and events, is accurate and usable, and has a solid link to reality. With this flexible approach to education, the students have a higher and more accessible level of interactivity and many language resources. This learning style puts the students in complete control of their learning. However, in this case, the VR software also presents a problem – it is not very usable in the current context. Cost is a deterrent for most schools.
Critical points of imperfection in VR systems.
The imperfection of the gesture recognition system and current VR technology is not enough to support this fantastic idea. Even the gesture capture system with high accuracy still has many problems and limitations in achieving smooth gesture input.
Handwritten notes are one of the most traditional ways of learning. Still, the inability to take notes smoothly and quickly in a VR device with a highly centralized method of use is one of the significant problems with the imperfect VR system, and combined with the poor positioning of the previous gesture recognition system, the handwritten notes function is, therefore, inadequate. The noticeable writing delays can seriously affect the learning experience and quality of learning.
Reference03：Combining Software Games with Education: Evaluation of its Educational Effectiveness
(Positive and negative applications of VR games/positive effects on learning) Integrating software games with education. Assessing their educational effects
https://www.jstor.org/stable/jeductechsoci.8.2.54
Virvou, M., Katsionis, G. and Manos, K. (2005) Combining software games with education: Evaluation of its … – JSTOR, Combining Software Games with Education: Evaluation of its Educational Effectiveness. International Forum of Educational Technology & Society, National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/jeductechsoci.8.2.54 (Accessed: December 24, 2022).
Educational Technology & Society Vol. 8, No. 2 (April 2005), pp. 54-65 (12 pages)
(Virvou, Katsionis and Manos, 2005)
VR-ENGAGE is an Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) that runs through a virtual reality game. It consists of four components: domain knowledge, the student modeling component, the tutoring component, and the user interface.
The game allows students to reason about the domain being taught and provides the environment for a negotiated pedagogical dialogue between the ITS and the students.
Players may also encounter particular objects or animated agents that give hints or direct them to tutorial locations. These objects or animated agents will stimulate students to read and remember essential parts of the taught area.
The evaluation of VR-ENGAGE focuses on assessing the educational effectiveness of the game aspect of the educational software. The evaluation also considered student distraction from the gaming environment, but the authors believe that games should supplement traditional classroom education.
An experiment was conducted to see if ITS games could be motivating and educationally beneficial rather than distracting to students. The game ITS had a virtual reality environment and animated talking agents, whereas the ITS with a traditional user interface did not have a virtual reality environment.
The experiment relates to the basic principle of educational games: to engage students in learning the concepts taught to them in the domain. The investigation also aimed to reveal the degree of the educational effectiveness of students whose performance was considered good, moderate, or poor by their human teachers.
The results showed that VR-ENGAGE users made fewer errors than simple ITS users and that VR-ENGAGE users achieved their learning outcomes at least as effective as traditional educational software.
Improvements in the number of errors were statistically significant for poor, moderate, and excellent learners but not for good students using VR-ENGAGE.
The results showed that the subgroup of previously underperforming students who had used VR-ENGAGE benefited the most from the educational game. At the same time, the subset of once-average performers also helped.
Students who used VR-ENGAGE in-class assignments were fascinated by the idea of a classroom game but were more critical of the game than other commercial games.
(VR games are not mature as educational aids and do not achieve the level of ‘entertainment’ that other entertainment games can achieve)
Teachers were impressed by the game’s impact on formerly underachieving students in geography. These students seemed absorbed by the game environment and worked quietly without talking to anyone or disturbing other students.
(VR games can significantly engage students’ attention and keep them from being distracted while learning, dramatically increasing the motivation of children who dislike traditional teaching methods.)
Students would benefit from educational games in classrooms, and the subgroup of students who used to be poor performers had benefited the most from the game environment.
Students who are not interested in their courses may benefit from extra motivating environments such as VR-educational games, because they are able to attract the attention of students who do not concentrate easily on their assignments due to boredom or other reasons.
Students who had good academic performance did not have any significant difference in their improvement through the use of the VR-environment or the use of the other software.
Students had as much help as they needed from lab instructors during the experiment, and the game environment had to be very competitive with commercial games to attract a high degree of interest from students.
Summary of the reference：
Positive aspects.
The immersive experience of VR games can stimulate students to read and memorize essential parts of the area being taught, allowing students who are not good at the subject to focus on learning, increasing their interest and concentration levels, and making teaching more enjoyable.
Negative aspects.
Because teaching by human tutors is necessary, it only partially replaces the classroom in the traditional sense. Students need to interact with their tutors and peers in their learning. The quality of existing VR teaching games cannot be compared to the level of commercial games, so real-time interactivity could be better and needs to be strengthened to develop real-time interactivity and game quality.
Reference04：Virtual Reality with 360-Video Storytelling in Cultural Heritage: Study of Presence, Engagement, and Immersion
(360° immersive experiences/VR games contribute to the dissemination of knowledge about cultural heritage) Virtual reality and 360 video storytelling in cultural heritage. A study of presence, engagement and immersion
<https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/20/20/5851>
Škola, F. et al. (2020) Virtual reality with 360-video storytelling in Cultural Heritage: Study of Presence, engagement, and Immersion, MDPI. Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/s20205851 (Accessed: December 24, 2022).
(Škola et al, 2020)
The interactive underwater archaeology 360° VR application was evaluated by 15 participants using questionnaires and EEG physiological readings. The results showed that the VR experience was widely accepted by the participants, maintaining a high level of immersion and engagement while showing enhanced cognitive processing in the EEG readings.
Fundamentals of how VR works:
A 360° immersive experience that increases dynamic engagement and realism, the immersive experience can substantially engage the user’s attention, increase interest in the game, and deepen people’s impressions.