Unit 4: Developing Learning Activities Using VR

4.1 Picking a Topic

The materials covered in the last unit should provide you with a solid foundation for understanding how learning theories and the specific qualities of immersive VR can be used to support student learning. It is now time to start applying this knowledge to your specific educational area. If you have not done so already, it may be helpful to pull up the Using Immersive VR in Education Worksheet.

The first step in the process is to identify a subject area within your course or field setting that you would like your students to learn more about. This topic area should be a good fit for either Experiential, Situational or Social Learning. The previous unit focused on several good examples of this; conducting virtual community tours; learning about how to modify the physical aspects of an agency to include principles of Trauma Informed Care; and our sample teaching plan, which has students experience VR for self-care and consider how it may be used for their practice. Unit 1 also provided some good examples that you might want to build off of or modify for your own use.

Take some time to reflect on the topics that you are teaching. Is there one that you think would benefit by incorporating immersive VR to allow for situational, experiential, or social learning activities? When you have an area that you think would work, write it on your worksheet.

If you cannot find an area that you think would benefit from situational, experiential, or social learning then VR may not be a good fit for your course and that is OK. It is good to remember that learning outcomes and objectives should drive your learning activities, we don't want to be using technology just for technologies sake.

< Unit 4 Overview 4.2 Defining you Learning Activities >