AR, VR, and MR Tools

Augmented reality (AR), Virtual reality (VR), and Mixed reality (MR) give an immersive experience to deepen understanding and experiences. There are many ways VR experiences can be used in school to enhance learning, and many tools available. Our school has two HTC Vive headsets available as well as a class set of iPods and Google Cardboard VR Goggles, though we have been unable to have them out for students recently due to Covid. Whether you have VR equipment or not, here are some VR and AR tools that can be useful in the classroom. 

1) Google Expeditions






Type of Learning: Google Expeditions App would fit mainly under Bloom's taxonomy level of understanding. It is there to enhance understanding of a topic or area. It could be used as analysis, but without the ability to create anymore, it does not reach the highest level. 

Participation: When I was a tech coach in our school two years ago, I worked with the 8th grade Language Arts teacher to build a tour creator on Google Expeditions to explore important places of World War II and the Holocaust to correspond with their reading of Anne Frank and Holocaust Museum projects. The picture above shows Ms. Feenstra guiding a group of students through the tour. Since this part was recently deactivated, I didn't have access to the created tour we made. 

I explored the new Google Expeditions by viewing the collection of photographs and media compiled about the Anne Frank house, and also explored dinosaur exhibits at various museums. The dinosaur exhibits allowed for much more of a VR experience where I could look around to see all parts and angles of the skeleton displays. 


2) Tilt Brush


Type of Learning: Tilt Brush would be classified as creating on Bloom's taxonomy of learning. It is a tool that lends itself to creating new ideas and works in a 3D space. 

Participation: At the Ohio Educational Technology Conference (OETC) in 2019, I got to see some VR tools in practice by high school students as their teacher discussed them. I took a short video clip of the student drawing during the session (see embedded Tweet below), and got a chance to try it quickly at the end of the session. While my participation was limited to changing color and tools and getting to try a few quick scribbles, I could see how this tool would be useful in education. 


3) 3D Bear




Type of Learning: 3D Bear would be classified as either understanding or creating on Bloom's taxonomy of learning. It could be used to reinforce topics learned or to create new ideas and videos. 

Participation: After downloading the app, I first spent a few minutes scrolling the homepage "feed" of videos and content published by other users. Then I explored the augmented reality options by clicking the plus button in the middle of the menu. They have 3D objects that can be placed in your camera view and rearranged. Most of them were still 3D placements, but a few, like the dinosaurs, were short looping videos in 3D. These made for a more engaging interaction with the software. I created a few photos and videos by placing some of the AR objects available. This tool would need to have set guidelines to make its use educationally sound. I could see how this could be just a novelty without some structure to its use.


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