For the purpose of this chapter, Cross Reality or XR refers to technologies and applications that involve combinations of mixed reality (MR), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and virtual worlds (VWs). These are technologies that connect computer technology (such as informational overlays) to the physical world for the purposes of augmenting or extending experiences beyond the real. Especially relevant to the definition of XR is the fact that this term encompasses a wide range of options for delivering learning experiences, from minimal technology and episodic experiences to deep immersion and persistent platforms. The preponderance of different terms for slightly different technologies indicate that this is a growth area within the field. Here we provide a few definitions of these technologies.
MR—Mixed reality refers to a blend of technologies used to influence the human perception of an experience. Motion sensors, body tracking, and eye tracking interplay with overlaid technology to give a rich and full version of reality displayed to the user. For example, technology could add sound or additional graphics to an experience in real time. Examples include the Magic Leap One and Microsoft HoloLens 2.0. MR and XR are often used interchangeably.
AR—Augmented reality refers to technology systems that overlay information onto the real world, but the technology might not allow for real-time feedback. As such, AR experiences can move or animate, but they might not interact with changes in depth of view or external light conditions. Currently, AR is considered the first generation of the newer and more interactive MR experiences.
VR—Virtual reality, as a technological product, traces its history to approximately 1960 and tends to encompass user experiences that are visually and auditorily different from the real world. Indeed, the real world is often blocked from interacting with the virtual one. Headsets, headphones, haptics, and haptic clothing might purposely cut off all input except that which is virtual. In general, VR is a widely recognizable term, often found in gaming and workplace training, where learners need to be transported to a different time and place. VR experiences in STEM often consist of virtual labs or short virtual field trips.
VW—Virtual worlds are frequently considered a subset of VR with the difference that VWs are inherently social and collaborative; VWs frequently contain multiple simultaneous users, while VRs are often solo experiences. Another discrimination between virtual reality and virtual worlds is the persistence of the virtual space. VR tends to be episodic, with the learner in the virtual experience for a few minutes and the reality created within the experience ends when the learner experience ends. VWs are persistent in that the worlds continue to exist on computer servers whether or not there are active avatars within the virtual space (Bell 2008). This discrimination between VR and VW, however, is dissolving. VR experiences can be created to exist for days, and some users have been known to wear headsets for extended periods of time. Additionally, more and more VR experiences are being designed to be for game play, socialization, or mental relaxation. The IEEE VR 2020 online conference and the Educators in VR International Summit 2020 offered participants opportunities to experience conference presentations in virtual rooms as avatars while interacting with presenters and conference attendees (see Sect. 2.5 for more information).
CVEs—Collaborative virtual environments are communication systems in which multiple interactants share the same three-dimensional digital space despite occupying remote physical locations (Yee and Bailenson 2006).
Embodiment—Embodiment is defined by Lindgren and Johnson-Glenberg (2013) as the enactment of knowledge and concepts through the activity of our bodies within an MR (mixed reality) and physical environment
Human-Centered Design philosophy that involves putting human needs, capabilities, and behavior first (Jerald 2018: 15). XR provides the opportunity to experience just-in-time immersive, experiential learning that uses concrete yet exploratory experiences involving senses that result in lasting memories. Here we discuss opportunities for social applications with XR.
XR learner activities are usually created for individual use, which may or may not need to be simultaneously experienced as a class together at the same time or place with the instructor. Activities can be designed into instruction with VR headsets, high-resolution screens, smartphones, or other solo technological devices for use inside and outside of the classroom.
Do we address the challenges in the grant proposal?
some learners will be held back from full XR activity by visual, physical, and social abilities such as stroke, vertigo, epilepsy, or age-related reaction time. It should also be noted that the encompassing nature of VR headsets might create some discomfort or danger for any learners as they can no longer fully see and control their body and body space.
The terms ‘extended reality’ or ‘cross reality’ refer to “technologies and applications that involve combinations of mixed reality (MR), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and virtual worlds (VWs)” (Ziker, Truman, & Dodds, 2021, p. 56). Immersive learning definitions draw from Milgram and Kishino’s key taxonomy (1994) emphasizing the continuum of experiences that range from where a computer adds to a learner’s reality with overlays of information, or a computer experientially transports a learner to a different place and time by manipulating sight and sound.
VR Design Model
three different design models (see Figure 3): the ADDIE Design Model (Branson, 1978), Design Thinking (Brown & Wyatt, 2010) from user experience (UX), and the 3D Learning Experience Design Model (Kapp & O’Driscoll, 2009).
Serrat (2008) defines storytelling as “the vivid description of ideas, beliefs, personal experiences, and life-lessons through stories or narratives that evoke powerful emotions and insights” (p.1).
The foundational theory for most XR experiences is experiential learning theory. In cases where users create within XR, constructivist learning theory also applies.
XR experiences can include a story arc (See Appendix D), a tutorial of user affordances, intentional user actions, and place the user into first or third person experiences (Spillers, 2020).
Is it worth investing in education with the use of virtual reality?
Yes, we would like to encourage you to find and learn more applications thanks to which you can increase your knowledge. Even if you do not have special equipment in the form of a powerful PC and the entire VR set, maybe your phone supports virtual reality. You can check it using such an application for android phones – link at mazerspace.com.
To sum up – VR can be interesting and useful at the same time. It all depends on how you use the potential of virtual reality.
Research conducted by scientists from the University of Maryland shows that the use of VR goggles allows you to absorb as much as 90 percent. information, and learning by means of a computer – only 78 percent. (https://cmns.umd.edu/news-events/features/4155)
According to analysts from MarketsandMarkets, the value of the global virtual reality market in 2018 amounted to USD 7.9 billion. It is expected to rise to $ 55.7 by 2024. with an average annual growth rate of 33.5 percent.
The use of AR/VR in educational settings is on the rise, paving the way for new careers and a workforce trained to embrace technology.
If projections stay on track, the global spending on educational AR/VR is expected to rise from $1.8 billion to $12.6 billion over the next four years.
the International Data Corporation (IDC) released a report indicating that the pandemic has fueled an impressive forecast of worldwide expenditures on AR/VR, which are expected to grow from $12 billion in 2020 to $72.8 billion by 2024.
rom completing spinal surgery to training at a high-tech facility, such as the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Davis Global Center, which has AR/VR and holographic technologies among its many offerings.
Among a myriad of other definitions, Noor (2016) describes Virtual Reality (VR) as “a computer generated environment that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world or imagined worlds. The user wears a headset and through specialized software and sensors is immersed in 360-degree views of simulated worlds” (p. 34).
Noor, Ahmed. 2016. “The Hololens Revolution.” Mechanical Engineering 138(10):30-35.
Weiss and colleagues wrote that “Virtual reality typically refers to the use of interactive simulations created with computer hardware and software to present users with opportunities to engage in environments that appear to be and feel similar to real-world objects and events”
Weiss, P. L., Rand, D., Katz, N., & Kizony, R. (2004). Video capture virtual reality as a flexible and effective rehabilitation tool. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 1(1), 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-0003-1-12
Henderson defined virtual reality as a “computer based, interactive, multisensory environment that occurs in real time”
Rubin, 2018, p. 28. Virtual reality is an 1. artificial environment that’s 2. immersive enough to convince you that you are 3. actually inside it. ”artificialenvironment ” could mean just about anything. The photograph is an artificial environment of video game is an artificial environment a Pixar movie is an artificial environment the only thing that matters is that it’s not where are you physically are. p. 46 “VR is potentially going to become a direct interface to the subconscious”
p. 225 Virtual reality: the illusion of an all-enveloping artificial world, created by wearing an opaque display in front of your eyes.
From: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2018/11/07/can-xr-help-students-learn/ : p. 10 “there is not universal agreement on the definitions of these terms or on the scope of these technologies. Also, all of these technologies currently exist in an active marketplace and, as in many rapidly changing markets, there is a tendency for companies to invent neologisms around 3D technology.” p. 11 Virtual reality means that the wearer is completely immersed in a computer simulation.
There is no necessary distinction between AR and VR; indeed, much research
on the subject is based on a conception of a “virtuality continuum” from entirely
real to entirely virtual, where AR lies somewhere between those ends of the
spectrum. Paul Milgram and Fumio Kishino, “A Taxonomy of Mixed Reality Visual Displays,” IEICE Transactions on Information Systems, vol. E77-D, no. 12 (1994); Steve Mann, “Through the Glass, Lightly,” IEEE Technology and Society Magazine 31, no. 3 (2012): 10–14.
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Among a myriad of other definitions, Noor (2016) describes Virtual Reality (VR) as “a computer generated environment that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world or imagined worlds. The user wears a headset and through specialized software and sensors is immersed in 360-degree views of simulated worlds” (p. 34). Weiss and colleagues wrote that “Virtual reality typically refers to the use of interactive simulations created with computer hardware and software to present users with opportunities to engage in environments that appear to be and feel similar to real-world objects and events.” Rubin takes a rather broad approach ascribing to VR: 1. artificial environment that’s 2. immersive enough to convince you that you are 3. actually inside it. (p. 28) and further asserts “VR is potentially going to become a direct interface to the subconscious” (p. 46). Most importantly, as Pomeranz (2018) asserts, “there is not universal agreement on the definitions of these terms or on the scope of these technologies. Also, all of these technologies currently exist in an active marketplace and, as in many rapidly changing markets, there is a tendency for companies to invent neologisms.” (p. 10)
Noor, Ahmed. 2016. “The Hololens Revolution.” Mechanical Engineering 138(10):30-35.
Rubin, P. (2018). Future Presence: How Virtual Reality Is Changing Human Connection, Intimacy, and the Limits of Ordinary Life (Illustrated edition). HarperOne.
Weiss, P. L., Rand, D., Katz, N., & Kizony, R. (2004). Video capture virtual reality as a flexible and effective rehabilitation tool. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 1(1), 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-0003-1-12
Zolfaghari, M., Austin, C. K., Kosko, K. W., & Ferdig, R. E. (2020). Creating Asynchronous Virtual Field Experiences with 360 Video. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 28(2), 315–320.
The global COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted normal face-to-face classes across institutions. This has significantly impacted methods courses where preservice teachers (PSTs) practice pedagogy in the field (e.g., in the PreK-12 classroom). In this paper, we describe efforts to adapt an assignment originally situated in a face-to-face school placement into a virtual version. By utilizing multi-perspective 360 video, preliminary results suggest virtual field experiences can provide PSTs with similar experiences for observation-based assignments. Acknowledging that immersive virtual experiences are not a complete replacement for face-to-face field-based experiences, we suggest virtual field assignments can be a useful supplement or a viable alternative during a time of pandemic.
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Klippel, A., Zhao, J., Oprean, D., Wallgrün, J. O., & Chang, J. (2019). Research Framework for Immersive Virtual Field Trips (p. 1617). https://doi.org/10.1109/VR.2019.8798153
Klippel, A., Zhao, J., Sajjadi, P., Wallgrun, J. O., Bagher, M. M., & Oprean, D. (2020). Immersive Place-based Learning – An Extended Research Framework. 2020 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops (VRW), 449–454. https://doi.org/10.1109/VRW50115.2020.00095
reading this short article, what are the questions, VR poses to IDs (e.g. SCORM for things like learner picked up the correct tool.)
why do you think creating higher order thinking learning objectives for a virtual reality training
In this conversation between Monica Price and David Cleverdon, what is the most striking idea, you gathered?
Do you think Monica is right when she says that only “see and hear” is not that potent to let us learn?
Can you elaborate on Monica’s thoughts regrading the connection between simulation and retention (e.g. Imo’s group final project can argue that their project for new employees training is superior to the current training with the ability for the employee to repeat the simulation until they think, it is retained)
Allen claims that traditional ID does not translate to VR ID. Do you agree and why?
VR is supposed to be more engaging then 2D. Why?
Which of the six steps do you find important and why?
3 Instructional Design Strategies For Virtual Reality Learning
Blended Reality, a cross-curricular applied research program through which they create interactive experiences using virtual reality, augmented reality and 3D printing tools. Yale is one of about 20 colleges participating in the HP/Educause Campus of the Future project investigating the use of this technology in higher education.
Interdisciplinary student and professor teams at Yale have developed projects that include using motion capture and artificial intelligence to generate dance choreography, converting museum exhibits into detailed digital replicas, and making an app that uses augmented reality to simulate injuries on the mannequins medical students use for training.
The perspectives and skills of art and humanities students have been critical to the success of these efforts, says Justin Berry, faculty member at the Yale Center for Collaborative Arts and Media and principal investigator for the HP Blended Reality grant.
