scholarly journals Active Learning Through The Use Of Virtual Environments

2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Mayrose
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Learning Engagement ◽  
Military Industry ◽  
Immersive Environment ◽  
The Military

Immersive Virtual Reality (VR) has seen explosive growth over the last decade. Immersive VR attempts to give users the sensation of being fully immersed in a synthetic environment by providing them with 3D hardware, and allowing them to interact with objects in virtual worlds. The technology is extremely effective for learning and exploration, and has been widely adopted by the military, industry and academia. This current study set out to study the effectiveness of 3D interactive environments on learning, engagement, and preference. A total of 180 students took part in the study where significant results were found regarding preference for this new technology over standard educational practices. Students were more motivated when using the immersive environment than with traditional methods which may translate into greater learning and retention. Larger studies will need to be performed in order to quantify the benefits of this new, cutting edge technology, as it relates to understanding and retention of educational content. 

scholarly journals A Postphenomenological Framework for Studying User Experience of Immersive Virtual Reality

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joakim Vindenes ◽  
Barbara Wasson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Philosophy Of Technology ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Or Education ◽  
Cognitive Changes ◽  
Flexible Technology ◽  
Human World

Virtual Reality (VR) is a remarkably flexible technology for interventions as it allows the construction of virtual worlds with ontologies radically different from the real world. By embodying users in avatars situated in these virtual environments, researchers can effectively intervene and instill positive change in the form of therapy or education, as well as affect a variety of cognitive changes. Due to the capabilities of VR to mediate both the environments in which we are immersed, as well as our embodied, situated relation toward those environments, VR has become a powerful technology for “changing the self.” As the virtually mediated experience is what renders these interventions effective, frameworks are needed for describing and analyzing the mediations brought by various virtual world designs. As a step toward a broader understanding of how VR mediates experience, we propose a post-phenomenological framework for describing VR mediation. Postphenomenology is a philosophy of technology concerned with empirical data that understand technologies as mediators of human-world relationships. By addressing how mediations occur within VR as a user-environment relation and outside VR as a human-world relation, the framework addresses the various constituents of the virtually mediated experience. We demonstrate the framework's capability for describing VR mediations by presenting the results of an analysis of a selected variety of studies that use various user-environment relations to mediate various human-world relations.

scholarly journals Virtual Environments for the Treatment of Claustrophobia

1998 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 7-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Botella ◽  
S. Quero ◽  
C. Perpiñá ◽  
R.M. Baños ◽  
M. Alcañiz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Anxiety Disorders ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Special Interest ◽  
Psychological Treatment ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Color Images ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Technical Aspects ◽  
Video Clips

Virtual Reality (VR) is a new technology that is having a great impact on various areas of health science. The use of VR is of special interest in the treatment of psychological disorders. Reasonable data exist on the effectiveness of this technology in the treatment of different anxiety disorders. The present paper explains in detail a psychological program for the treatment of claustrophobia using VR, whose effectiveness has already been demonstrated. (Botella et al.,1998). In addition, we describe the technical aspects of the software and point out several limitations VR still presents in the area of psychological treatment. Color images and video clips are included with the CDROM version.

Virtual Reality as a Tool for Enhancing Learning in At-Risk Students and Increasing School Inclusion

2017 ◽  
pp. 242-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Panzavolta
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Participatory Design ◽  
At Risk Students ◽  
Academic Failure ◽  
School Failure ◽  
Drop Out ◽  
3D Virtual Worlds

The contribution aims at exploring previous and current practices of use of virtual environments, 3d Virtual Worlds also, for inclusion in education. There are many experiences of developing and using virtual environments for the inclusion of disabled and problematic students (autistic student, Asperger Syndrome students, dyslexic students, etc.). The majority of the experimentations gave important beneficial results. In particular, the essential technological characteristics of VR that are beneficial for inclusion are: immersion, presence, interaction, transduction and conceptual change. The design of those environments is sometimes conceived together with the final users, applying participatory design techniques. Virtual environments and Virtual Worlds are being used also in the management of drop-out rates and school failure, by using it for curricular diversification classroom with students in a situation of educational exclusion or academic failure. The contribution will discuss 7 cases of successful use of Virtual Reality at school, ranging from primary to secondary education.

Immersive Virtual Reality as a Non-Pharmacological Analgesic for Pain Management

2018 ◽  
pp. 1176-1199
Author(s):  
Diane Gromala ◽  
Xin Tong ◽  
Chris Shaw ◽  
Weina Jin
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Acute Pain ◽  
Term Treatment ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Effective Form ◽  
Long Term Treatment ◽  
Difficult Challenge

In the 1990s, when immersive Virtual Reality (VR) was first popular, researchers found it to be an effective intervention in reducing acute pain. Since that time, VR technologies have been used for treating acute pain. Although the exact mechanism is unclear, VR is thought to be an especially effective form of pain distraction. While pain-related virtual environments have built upon pain distraction, a handful of researchers have focused on a more difficult challenge: VR for long-term chronic pain. Because the nature of chronic pain is complex, pharmacological analgesics are often insufficient or unsustainable as an ideal long-term treatment. In this chapter, the authors explore how VR can be used as a non-pharmacological adjuvant for chronic pain. Two paradigms for virtual environments built for addressing chronic pain have emerged – Pain Distraction and what we term Pain Self-modulation. We discuss VR's validation for mitigating pain in patients who have acute pain, for those with chronic pain, and for addressing “breakthrough” periods of higher pain in patients with chronic pain.

Embodied well-being through two media technologies: Virtual reality and social media

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 1734-1749 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaylee Payne Kruzan ◽  
Andrea Stevenson Won
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Body ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Media Technologies ◽  
Self Perceptions ◽  
Embodied Experiences

How the body is perceived through media is key to many well-being interventions. Researchers have examined the effects of platforms on users’ self-perceptions, including immersive virtual reality, nonimmersive virtual worlds, and social media such as Facebook. In this article, we use several conceptions of levels of embodiment to compare empirical work on the effects of virtual reality and social media as they relate to perceptions and conceptions of the self and body. We encourage social media researchers to utilize research on embodiment in virtual reality to help frame the effects of social media use on well-being. Similarly, researchers in immersive media should consider the opportunities and risks that may arise as embodied experiences become more social. We conclude our discussion with implications for future applications in mental health.

scholarly journals Cartographic Scale in Immersive Virtual Environments

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Hruby ◽  
Irma Castellanos ◽  
Rainer Ressl
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Short Review ◽  
Temporal Scale ◽  
Level Of Detail ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Conceptual Integration ◽  
Immersive Virtual Environments ◽  
High Level ◽  
Immersive Visualization

Abstract Scale has been a defining criterion of mapmaking for centuries. However, this criterion is fundamentally questioned by highly immersive virtual reality (VR) systems able to represent geographic environments at a high level of detail and, thus, providing the user with a feeling of being present in VR space. In this paper, we will use the concept of scale as a vehicle for discussing some of the main differences between immersive VR and non-immersive geovisualization products. Based on a short review of diverging meanings of scale we will propose possible approaches to the issue of both spatial and temporal scale in immersive VR. Our considerations shall encourage a more detailed treatment of the specific characteristics of immersive geovisualization to facilitate deeper conceptual integration of immersive and non-immersive visualization in the realm of cartography.

Do Technological Advancements Lead to Learning Enhancements?: An Exploration in Virtual Product Dissection

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth M. Starkey ◽  
Cailyn Spencer ◽  
Kevin Lesniak ◽  
Conrad Tucker ◽  
Scarlett R. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Learning Assessment ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
Engineering Programs ◽  
Educational Benefits ◽  
The Impact

Recent shifts into larger class sizes and online learning have caused engineering educators to rethink the way they integrate inductive, or active learning activities into their courses. One way engineering educators have done this is through the integration of new technological environments. However, little is known about how the type of technological environment utilized in active learning exercises impacts student learning and satisfaction. Thus, as a first step to understanding the impact of technological advancements on student learning and satisfaction, a study was conducted with 18 senior level undergraduate engineering students who were asked to perform product dissection, or the systematic disassembly of a product, using three technological interfaces (computer, iPad, immersive virtual reality). Variations in the complexity of the product dissected were also explored. The results of this study indicate that variations in technological interfaces did not impact student learning as assessed by a Student Learning Assessment (SLA). However, the complexity of the product dissected did impact learning, with students scoring significantly lower on the SLA when dissecting the most complex product. The results also indicated that students perceived learning and satisfaction were highest when using the immersive virtual reality system. These results suggest that the costs of investing in more technological advanced systems for product dissection may not yet outweigh the educational benefits. However, the increase in student satisfaction with VR environments has the potential to positively impact student retention in engineering programs.

scholarly journals LOW-COST DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTERACTIVE, IMMERSIVE VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCE OF THE HISTORIC CITY MODEL STADE 1620

2019 ◽  
Vol XLII-2/W17 ◽  
pp. 405-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Walmsley ◽  
T. P. Kersten
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Simple Game ◽  
Texture Mapping ◽  
Immersive Virtual Reality ◽  
City Model ◽  
Virtual City ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Town

Abstract. As virtual reality and 3D documentation and modelling technologies become increasingly powerful and affordable tools for architecture, planning, and cultural heritage preservation and communication, it has become increasingly important to develop low-cost methodologies for the creation of 3D immersive virtual environments and interactive experiences. Doing so makes this technology more viable for institutions such as museums and other cultural institutions, who often work within strict budgets. In this paper, we describe a workflow used to build an interactive, immersive virtual reality experience around a virtual city model of the town of Stade (Germany) in the year 1620. This virtual city model is based on a physical 3D model of the town, exhibited in the Stade town hall. The workflow begins with the digitization of this model using digital photogrammetry, followed by the subsequent low- and high-polygon modelling of the individual architectural assets in Autodesk Maya, texture mapping in Substance Painter and finally visualisation within Unreal Engine 4. The results of this workflow are a detailed 3D historical environment with a high degree of realism and in which interactivity can easily be added. In addition, the workflow takes a highly iterative approach that allows the performance of the virtual environments in the game engine to be monitored at each stage of the process, and that allows adjustments to be made quickly. To increase the potential of the virtual environment as a tool for education and communication, interactive elements and simple game mechanics are currently being integrated.

Fourth VR: Indigenous virtual reality practice

2020 ◽  
pp. 135485652094308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keziah Wallis ◽  
Miriam Ross
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Full Spectrum ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
Cultural Traditions ◽  
Indigenous Activism ◽  
Living Things ◽  
Production And Distribution ◽  
Geographical Locations

Indigenous creators are currently using virtual reality (VR) tools, techniques and workflows in wide-ranging geographical locations and across multiple VR formats. Their radical adaptation of this new technology folds together cultural traditions and VR’s unique audiovisual configurations to resist dominant, particularly colonial, frameworks. Within this context, we ask how VR is being used to create space and capacity for Indigenous creatives to tell their stories and how do Indigenous creatives negotiate Eurocentric modes of production and distribution? To answer these questions, our Fourth VR database provides a snapshot of Indigenous VR works. By drawing on three case studies drawn from the database – The Hunt (2018), Future Dreaming (2019) and Crow: The Legend (2018) – as well as the wider patterns emerging across the database, it is possible to see an Indigenous-centred VR production framework. This framework is diverse but also contains repeated trends such as the ability to use VR to express and realize Indigenous Futurism; foreground native languages in virtual worlds; provide new articulations of Indigenous activism; embody connections between the past, present and future and demonstrate the interconnectivity of all living things. In turn, this growing body of work, engaging with the full spectrum of VR formats and tools, provides a rich contribution to the wider arena of VR practice.

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