1) VIRTUAL REALITY
virtual-reality-kids-issue/
- Playstation VR
– Suggested tools: educational programs like Apollo 11 and Titanic.
– PRO’S: Fun, novel, hands on learning, high performance, technology keeps improving.
– CON’S: Software outdates quickly, expensive ($400 for Play Station + $400 for the VR + $120 for remotes, etc), immobile, expensive to start up, motion sickness, etc. - Meta Quest 2 (stand alone device – doesn’t need a Play Station, etc)
– Suggested tools: Librarium (great for studying), Hand Physics Lab (provides great manipulatives opportunities), Nanone (useful for physics), and Star Chart (for space investigation)
– PRO’S: multiple headsets can be joined into the same application, simple setup, fun, portable, affordable ($400), novel, diverse software, more of a computer than a gimmick, software support
– CON’S: motion sickness, lower computing, power supply (the battery can die) unless you tether it to another device, potentially, distracting for students, one student at a time, educational software, still limited, limited support for people with physical limitations.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS: This would be super fun to use in a classroom. The cost and the fact that only one child plays at a time make this unlikely that I would use it very often but it would be a VERY exciting opportunity for the children to use. I’ve been playing around with the idea of having monthly birthday parties for the students who have birthdays that month. How fun would this be for their birthday “gift” – they get to play a game on the VR!
2) Virtual Field Trips
This was my groups presentation. I will highlight this presentation in an individual post; please look for it under the “Educational Technology Presentation.”