Do you want to equip your students with the skills they need to survive?
Today the virtual world is upon us and virtual skills are essential to survival, so you should consider your classroom going virtual.
To provide your students with the skills they will need to navigate today’s world. Their learning experiences in the classroom should mirror what they will encounter outside the classroom in the real world.
How do you enable your students to experience what’s outside the classroom from inside the class itself?
If you look at all the media, or even own a computer, you must realise that your students already live and work in a virtual future. One of the most hyped virtual gadgets is the immersive helmet. Even now we talk of the ‘Internet of Things’ and the ‘Immersive World’ as part of life. This is not in a far-distant future.
You can lead your students to a successful life because your classroom can be this gateway to their future. Today students have access to new learning environments that help them progress and navigate the world through a virtual world.
Virtual learning environments are essential because students relate to them and use them daily to socialise, learn and experience the world around them.
Features of virtual environments include ease of use, low relative cost and simple interface, aiding fast learning with short learning curve.
How can this be done?
Access
Virtual worlds can be accessed through many devices. Computers of all varieties, tablets, phones – and any new device that comes along. Integration is vital in this digital world which benefits the cloud based data storage as the best in interaction for digital content.
Fast Learning
It is said that a picture is a thousand words, imagine the words of virtual modelling where it will even better clarify the picture. The comparative speed of learning takes information and processes it towards the perspective of the student. This visual information is the most natural way the brain absorbs information. Since we learn quickest through our senses, and the eye REM will feed the brain at the speed of light all visual examples is on the highest order of comprehension.
Affordability
The affordability of virtual online courses factors on interest, amount content and implied recommendations of the curriculum. None the less, its will always be available at a fraction of the cost than having a real life education centre, books, travel. Increase affordability in terms of time and resources to teach students complex ideas.
Real world environments for real learning experiences
Education needs to meet virtual reality to provide a fully interactive experience. One that neither student nor teacher can have in a normal classroom. Virtual reality provides a range of learning experiences using different environments and experiences that can involve a computer programming language, logic, art, augmented reality. Military training, safe medical training, hazard waste training, simulated emergency protocol, all will add to the interpretive gains including foreign language learning/translations.
Novel experience
It is next to impossible to lose the attention span offered in Virtual Reality. A special degree of interaction between both instructor and student would include having the instructor offers his course in a state of the arts recordable form of presentation. The instructor or the student taking or giving such a class can perform a series of functions such as mute, group, tags. They also access Web 2.0, perform import/export/downloads, convert, and do so all within a 3d environment. They can offer simulations, develop samples, hold discussions which are all valid experiences with visualisation material.
Repetition and Reinforcement
We as humans can often experience words to have multiple meanings with differences in interpretation. A simple sentence for example; “I am at home”, can mean that you are home, but it might also mean you could be back to the office, or in your most cosy chair, your childhood house, or even your most favourite restaurant. With virtual, the visual will make any statement interpreted one way. Having that repeated visual presented will reinforce an idea or concept needed. Virtual will do exactly this.
Multi-Senses
There are seven senses, each which make up our ways to learn and describe. Use virtual and augmented reality to enhance or single out how we wish to present or define a concept. It is our goal to use our multi-senses to sharpen our skills when interacting with Virtual Reality.
Distance learning virtual reality can provide a dream which would otherwise be inaccessible for many.
What are the benefits?
There are many advantages of having a virtual class.
Firstly the cost of travelling. Getting to a normal learning situation generally means travelling to the learning destination, whether that be a classroom, laboratory, work experience site, car for driving or other learning experience. With virtual worlds, you simply log into your computer and walk in-world directly to the learning experience that is presented straight in front of you.
Secondly, one of the major issues in a learning environment is keeping all students together learning at the same pace, despite their various learning needs and speeds.
Thirdly, learning virtual reality now, can set students up to safely and privately handle controlled study cases. It has been used to prepare their mind to focus and delve into with complex matters quickly and effectively.
Directly benefit the flexibility and independence of a student who might suffer with phobias or have learning difficulties. Remove that feeling where exclusion from peers are common in school situations. Whereas online class puts everyone on the same level of learning and gives people a chance to interact with others and feel part of a class environment which will also give the student more confidence within themselves.
Today’s education processes require strict adherence to the syllabus. Key aspects of any subject are predefined and it is the exceptions of various schools and colleges to maintain this control of what and how class material is given, tested, retained. Virtual reality can be used to monitor this control.
About TVM
The Virtual Mob Limited (TVM) http://www.thevirtualmob.com, has been an ongoing integral part, in virtual world communities since 2006 and a part of the growth in all fields of educational and business operation.
As formal learning environments are normally centred on classrooms, they are restricted in terms or real world experience within a learning opportunity. With virtual world learning these environmental restrictions can be reduced or even removed. A single location such as a classroom provides a single learning environment while a virtual environment can offer a plethora of environments with just the touch of a button.
It is proven that recollection is reinforced and supported by a familiar environment. This is perhaps why, for example, language learning in a classroom allows for easy recall. However, a student who learns in a classroom struggles with using it outside of that room. This is because their experience centres on the classroom. Many recall cues are missing outside, such as learning to buy fruit in a market using a new language.
So, what if the students could experience that lesson actually ‘in the market’?
When they came to buy fruit, their recollection would be supported by their previous experience of buying fruit virtually. Repetition is one of the best tools for comprehension, as is making mistakes (which we will come onto later). Virtual worlds can provide safe learning situations, which can be repeated until the student is competent.
Education and virtual reality meet to provide a fully interactive experience that neither student nor teacher can enter into in a normal classroom. With distance learning virtual reality can provide a dream which would otherwise be inaccessible for many.
As the formal learning environment is normally centred on a classroom, the many restrictions of that environment are reduced or even removed. A single location environment provides a single learning experience. It is proven that recollection is reinforced and supported by a familiar environment.
This is perhaps why, for example, language learning in a classroom allows for easy recall. However, if a student who has learned to buy fruit in a classroom using their new found language skills – then tries to buy fruit in a market, they will struggle. This is because their prior experience of this exchange has been in the classroom. Many of the recall cues are missing in the marketplace.
So, what if they could experience that lesson actually ‘in the market’?
When they came to buy fruit, their recollection would be supported by their previous experience of buying fruit. Repetition is one of the best tools for comprehension, as is making mistakes (which we will come onto later). Virtual worlds can provide these learning situations with no repercussions.
Flexibility to learn at your own pace as we all know in life some learn things quicker than others , so will be less pressure on other peers and gives great opportunity for them to interact and feel part of class environment and also help them organise areas for course documents, assignments, class notes and other information can be readily categorised.
Also having this information on the Internet can provide with a method for quickly updating and revising course content and giving the student extensive attention when they mostly require it without having to deal with any classroom disturbances.
Where is the added value?
The cost off the online courses are much cheaper than college, weigh up all costs of traveling and course itself the time traveling in all weathers , where online course you can study your own pace and in comfort of your own home plus for many students security of their own environment. But student will still get the same support, as they would in college setting, if not more as the tutor will be available online so they will be able to message and get response back.
What makes it different?
TVM makes the friendly environment of talking and communicating with people. All over the world people are ready and willing to sharing their knowledge with others. This act alone has gained through the course building self-confidence and motivation.
Who is it for?
This is for anyone that wishes to gain more knowledge and has a really passion for learning.
Who would benefit?
Everyone and anyone who wishes to learn more and make their life mean something more and hopefully help them on their way to job they will love.
Simple interaction
TVM, its entire backend software, and various selected hardware such as “Plantonics” headgear was designed to make interaction useable. A quick download, run the executable, login and you are in. Menus react exactly in same manner as most video games, mouse, control buttons and or a heads up display that allows a student to walk through. The interaction can be modified to suit the most elementary child all the way to the most advanced user found. One might think of interaction being simple, but it’s a tool being useful.
Next generation teaching now!!
In 2014, nearly 75% (2.1 billion) of all internet users in the world (2.8 billion) live in the top 20 countries. The remaining 25% (0.7 billion) is distributed among the other 178 countries, each representing less than 1% of total users.
With over 300 online colleges worldwide and thousands of various courses, having virtual courses would be the future of now. Most students, already used to online course and undoubtedly computer savvy, are all used to emerging technologies. There is already a wide audience that want to not only teach, but be involved in creating content, learn, each with their own skill level. This insatiable degree of technology surpasses the age of classroom and teacher requiring the need to be immersed in a visual array of subjects and not just looking at flat charts or empty 2d graphics.
What has happened so far?
TVM has been very serious about the aspects of education. Virtually they manifested a way to offer education and with enticing ways to share. TVM built and tested several classrooms, auditoriums, meeting spaces and conference rooms for a variety organizations. The classrooms designed by TVM offers a series of ways to present and teach ideas. There are chalkboards, video presentations, working computer screens, video screens, music backgrounds, the import and export of magazines and books, scripted coded languages, sharable graphics such as art and photography, sounds and 3D models. A mix of different individuals with different backgrounds and diverse native tongues can all be in the same room and interact simultaneously.
TVM offers a method with which instructors can better organise teaching materials using searchable inventories. They can record and reuse what they taught in the past. They have also created boards that will display course when and where in-world.
TVM has used its virtual classroom as an instructing forum for group meetings within a virtual assembly, and members of TVM have attended and made presentations in forum. Subjects include demonstrations in graphic arts, photography, 3D model presentations, slide shows, and classroom situations including question and answer sessions, tests, grading and presentations. Online courses, apparatus such as 3D hardware, virtual suits and more have been tested and developed to augment additional functions. Disabled and struggling have been taught in effective teaching conditions proved otherwise impossible.
Your classroom needs to go virtual – today!
Let it flourish inside an awaiting virtual reality world, so that learning is rewarding.
Authors:
Deborah Butler, Founder and Director at TVM and C. Tito Young, Sr Interaction Design at TVM.
The Virtual Mob (TVM)
http://www.thevirtualmob.com
E-learning is very much the alternative to traditional schooling. With the help of the internet, every student regardless of religion, color, or country from around the world can learn. And with Learning Management Systems (LMS), it can be made possible.
While some conventional educators may deem it as a threat, it does offer a wide range of benefits that regular methods cannot cover. As a result, many reputed institutions from around the world are warming up to it. Here are some of the many benefits that LMS can bring for students everywhere.
