Immersive Learning experiences - A game-changer for Teachers and Online Tutors.

INTRODUCTION

Sandy Plain, a Teacher with over 15 years online teaching experience, tells her story about how she became aware of the potential of Immersive Learning. Sandy recounts being in awe of what she experienced. Not only is she a passionate Teacher, but she is also very enthusiastic about embracing new and innovative ways to keep her students even more engaged.

Sandy's enthusiasm and passion goes beyond just being an advocate for Immersive Learning. Sandy is also active and at the forefront, developing Immersive learning environments and products. Read on to learn about Sandy Plain's journey into Immersive Learning.

2009 -ITALY - MY ONLINE LEARNING EXPERIENCE

I embraced online learning when I moved overseas in 2009 during the economic crisis. I decided that I was going to live in Italy and complete my last two years of school in the online space.

At that time, the class consisted of a discussion forum, watching videos and answering questions; readings were available to download, and the students submitted all assignments through the an online platform. 

It was incredible that I could complete part of my degree online. When I graduated, I became a proponent of online learning and felt it should be part of how students learn.

2013 -VIETNAM

In 2013, life took me to Vietnam, where I had the opportunity to teach English online to students from across the globe. One of the things I liked about teaching online was that students could practice communicating with peers from diverse cultures, backgrounds, ages, and professions. 

My class featured a PowerPoint presentation with approximately 6-7 slides that I utilized for a 40-minute lesson. The slides included images, exercises, readings, and discussion questions. The company provided the material; however, the teacher focused on making the class engaging and interactive. 

FROM TEACHING WITH POWERPOINT TO ZOOM

Teaching online at that time had challenges but improved when COVID hit. When online learning became mandatory, platforms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet became essential for conducting classes. These modalities were a step up from PowerPoint slides, and I found it beneficial to share my screen with students and play videos during lessons. The break-out room feature helped facilitate group work and discussions.

LIMITATIONS OF VIDEO CONFERENCING

I have always been aware that it was the teacher's responsibility to make classes interactive, engaging, and lively all in one session. The problem still remained: How was online learning meant to stimulate students? 

While I used all the tools to make the class interactive, engaging, and lively, I encountered many issues. Other teachers were also experiencing the same problems. 

❌Cameras remained off, so it felt like teachers were talking to a wall.

❌Students seemed to disengage even when the teacher tried to create meaningful interaction.

❌Once the class ended, students could not return to the class and review the material. 

Computing and online teaching were clearly making inroads and were showing great signs of potential. However there were still issues as mentioned earlier. Even though learning and teaching online had and still has its challenges, I was still a proponent of virtual education, so when a fellow educator, Angela Magill Immerse-edu.com messaged me about an immersive virtual education project, I was excited to hear more. 

THE IMMERSE-EDU PROJECT

The project aims to create a virtual reality learning environment for teachers and students. This innovative approach, developed in collaboration with Danielle McConnell from the Virtway.com company seeks to transform the online learning experience into an engaging and interactive one that enhances engagement and learning. Our collective passion and synergistic collaboration is propelling us forward with exciting projects.

By integrating virtual reality into lessons, we aim to address the challenges of online learning and make lessons more engaging and interactive for the students. 

Here are the key features of our immersive learning spaces 

AVATARS

Since students were turning off their cameras, this virtual classroom allowed students to choose their avatars to wander and explore the classroom. The best part is that the teacher can see what students are doing, opening up a world of possibilities for interactive learning. In addition, using avatars aids in overcoming shyness, social anxiety, or physical insecurities. 

AVATAR ASSISTANT

Another asset and feature in a virtual classroom is a conversational Avatar Assistant Teacher, as it takes the pressure off a teacher or tutor, especially if they have a large group of students. The avatar can speak to numerous students simultaneously, which a teacher cannot do. 

They are also incredibly beneficial to the more introverted students who are usually too shy to ask human questions, often miss things, and move forward in the lesson without comprehension. 

ENGAGING

Creating meaningful interaction over a computer is challenging. Still, with this virtual learning space teachers can incorporate sounds and music, videos with or without links, scavenger hunts, and virtual field trips. 

Features like these allow students to choose from different activities according to their preferences and needs. 

ACCESSIBILITY

After class ends, classroom activities remain so that students can return without the teacher to redo the exercise or activities as many times as they would like. 

Thus, students who miss a class can quickly go into the virtual classroom and catch up on missed work. When the students return, teachers can place an AI bot in the virtual classroom where students can ask questions and get immediate feedback. 

When I tell people I work in immersive virtual education, they usually respond with a “WOW “and an impressive look. Virtual education has come a long way, from learning with slides to screen sharing, and now, it is a virtual space for teachers to conduct lessons. 

Once teachers, students, and parents experience immersive learning in interactive and engaging virtual scenes, everyone will see that virtual immersive learning creates a win- win situation for teachers, students, and parents.