The Impact of Using Virtual Reality Lessons to Teach Online

Donald, C. , Veitch, N. , Edmond, A., Marks, L., Kirkwood, N., Carman, C. , McDonnell, N. and Macpherson, F. (2021) The Impact of Using Virtual Reality Lessons to Teach Online. Evolving Molecular Bioscience Education, 27-28 May 2021.

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) is gaining increasing interest as an educational technology which can be integrated within Higher Education (HE) teaching. The University of Glasgow has been working with immersive technology company, Sublime Digital, to create project ‘Edify’, which allows teachers to lead classes within immersive 3D environments remotely via Zoom. A VR laboratory was implemented within a Junior Honours Molecular Methods course enabling the 500 students undertaking the course that year to experience a laboratory environment despite COVID-19 restrictions. The purpose of our study was to understand the impact of VR on learning outcomes which we investigated by comparing VR delivered by-proxy to less immersive online teaching methodologies. Our results indicate that although most students had never used VR technology prior to the lesson, students who took part in the VR session found the experience provided them with a form of educational escapism and that they were more confident in their understanding of the material covered. In addition, their confidence in their ability to carry out the experiments covered in the future was also improved compared to those who worked through an online lab book. This area is currently in its relative infancy and so examining the effectiveness of VR within HE is an important and timely topic that will not only inform future practice but further the frontiers of an evolving field of research.

• Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item
• Keywords: Virtual reality, disease diagnostics, digital education.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Carman, Professor Christopher and Macpherson, Professor Fiona and Donald, Dr Claire and McDonnell, Professor Neil and Marks, Dr Leah and Veitch, Dr Nicola and Kirkwood, Mr Nathan
• Authors: Donald, C., Veitch, N., Edmond, A., Marks, L., Kirkwood, N., Carman, C., McDonnell, N., and Macpherson, F.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > Philosophy; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Life Sciences; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing; College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity