Learning activities that incorporate extended reality – virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) and 360-degree videos – are becoming more popular in higher education, opening up new possibilities for practical learning. But for these to be successful, they must be designed thoughtfully and educators must ensure that all students have the confidence and knowledge to take part.
Get to know your students
Students often enter the classroom with varying levels of knowledge, so before you start designing your activity, assess their familiarity with the topic of focus. If knowledge gaps emerge, create a short video review or an infographic to fill them. Next, find out if the students have experience of extended reality to help you decide whether to offer an additional resource, such as a tutorial, before the activity.
Define your objectives, assessment method and format
Define your course objectives and the skills and knowledge that you want your students to gain, then align the design of your extended reality activity with them. Next, define how you will assess them, considering the following:
- Will you assess students in real time?
- Could you record the activity and assess it later?
- Could you invite other teachers to evaluate students?
- Will you assess students’ capability with the extended reality tools?
- Will assessment be based on academic performance alone?
- Will you enable automated feedback to guide the student during the activity?
Consider whether the activity will be a solo endeavour or whether it will be team-based. Decide whether it will happen in real time or whether to offer asynchronous options in the VR lab or at home. Decide what level of support you will provide – will you be there to offer real-time feedback, could you run orientation sessions, offer follow-up feedback or digital guides to support independent work?
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Move learning from theory to practice
A well-designed challenge sparks curiosity, provokes questions and establishes a direct link to the course content. Select a situation that your students might encounter in their careers. Keep them engaged by weaving in moments of intrigue, plot twists or challenges that invite exploration and sustain interest with milestones that mark progress.
For example, a biology teacher might want to teach students about the structure and function of a cell by using a three-dimensional representation of its components. The assessment and feedback method could be a report with observational challenges that tests an individual’s comprehension of the cell, and a checklist that the teacher uses to track the student’s understanding of the function of the cell. The 3D model would move concepts from abstract to tangible.
Or perhaps the teacher designs an activity that uses VR to shrink students to microscopic size, allowing them to enter the large intestine, where a sudden change in environment endangers the intestinal ecosystem. To counter the threat, students must manipulate factors affecting the microbiota, observing in real time which forces restore balance or trigger collapse.
An engineering teacher could create in VR a digital twin of a production line where students must identify critical operational scenarios and assess safety protocols in real time. In this example, extended reality allows students to observe and make decisions in realistic environments, building key skills for future careers.
Create engaging and motivating stories
Create a story to humanise the experience and turn every interaction into a meaningful learning opportunity. This involves visualising the learner journey from start to finish, then creating an initial version using storyboards or a map. This initial design serves as a blueprint that you can adjust as you progress.
Think about other characters you can incorporate into your scenario, such as a mentor who guides students’ decisions, a colleague they must negotiate with or any other professional they might encounter in the workplace. This helps students feel like protagonists in the learning activity.
A well-planned activity prevents the novelty of a technological tool from overshadowing learning.
Make the activity a positive and accessible experience
Students’ well-being is an essential part of the design of any extended reality experience. Before they enter the immersive environment, prepare a clear briefing that explains what they will be doing, how they will be using the technology and what sensations they might experience, from unexpected movements to possible dizziness or eye strain. This will allow them to proceed with confidence. Remember that not all participants have the same equipment or physical conditions, so offer alternatives to ensure that everyone can participate.
Extended reality tackles real-world problems, consequences and responsibilities, moving learning from abstract to concrete. When we design these experiences with clear pedagogical intent, classrooms become laboratories where students feel safe to make mistakes and learn from others’ perspectives without the risk involved in a real-life scenario. In this environment, students do not simply observe content but inhabit it and test it, building their decision-making skills and preparing them for the world of work.
Graciela González Valdepeña and Lorena Quilantán García are learning solutions design leaders at Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico.
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