Virtual reality in education: a tool for learning in the experience age 论文

摘要

Educators face major challenges as a result of the shift from the Information Age to the Experience Age (Wadhera, 2016). For example, students are passive and disengaged (Capps and Crawford, 2013) and may struggle to see the relevance of what they are learning to their lives (Gee, 2009); also, important skills needed for 21st century learners - such as empathy, systems thinking, creativity, computational literacy, and abstract reasoning - are difficult to teach (Smith and Hu, 2013). Virtual reality, an immersive, hands-on tool for learning, can play a unique role in addressing these educational challenges. In this paper, we present examples of how the affordances of virtual reality lead to new opportunities that support learners. We conclude with a discussion of recommendations and next steps.