The Reality of an Extended Reality
The world of technology is expanding at a rate like no one has ever seen. There are countless new devices and systems being created every day, each of them with their own exciting tools to explore. One of the newest forms of technology that has been growing immensely over the past decade is extended reality. According to 2020 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report, “Extended reality (XR) is a comprehensive term for the environments that either blend the physical with the virtual or provide fully immersive virtual experiences. The two most common technologies are augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Whereas AR overlays physical objects and places with virtual content, VR is typically a more immersive experience, involving manipulations of and interactions with virtual objects within an entirely virtual environment.” This technology has evolved exponentially within the 2000’s. With creation dating back to the 1960’s, people are finally starting to figure out an extremely realistic, and semi cheap versions of this for all citizens to buy and enjoy. There are many things that I have learned about XR within the readings for the week that I was never aware of, and that I think are extremely important considering I am going into the field of education.
Something that I was unaware of when it came to XR that I feel is extremely important to note is how many years they have been working on the concept and how long it took them to get to a point where they would make a successful version of it for education and the general public. The original idea actually came from a short story written in the 1930’s titled “Pygmalion’s Spectacles”, written by Stanley G. Weinbaum. I think that this makes the concept of XR even cooler, because it was written decades ago as just an imaginary idea, which eventually came to reality. An actual XR machine was then created in the form of a booth, fitting multiple people at a time and exposing them to the potentials of what a virtual reality might feel like. The 1960’s were then a huge decade for XR, having a large milestone be made in almost every year. The first headset was made, they made improvements on displays, a flight simulator was created, and 3D computer generated models were introduced. Basically, for the years to follow, XR creators just kept building off of these same ideas. Eventually, XR would branch off into VR and AR, immersing people both in their real and fictional worlds. As technology grew, so did this product, which would eventually hold the potential to bring any world imaginable to life. The 2000’s were the major take-off point for XR systems, with the company Facebook purchasing the major company Oculous VR in 2014 for 2 billion dollars. All major companies started creating their version of XR that was both affordable and comfortable, which eventually made its ways into educational facilities for learning purposes, and family homes for entertainment purposes.
Since XR systems are now on their way to being light, high resolution, comfortable, and more affordable, people and companies are starting to purchase them at a faster rate. Being a future teacher, one of the most important pieces of knowledge I have acquired when learning about XR is how it has been used for educational purposes. Even though there is not a lot of scientific evidence on the correlation of XR and improved learning and engagement, many colleges are taking test runs to see how their students are learning with it and enjoying it. A few ways that XR has been used in the classroom are conducting a VR orchestra to minimize anxiety when students first step on the stage, exploring VR museums, and practicing high intensity medical procedures. VR introduces these high-stakes situations to them in a way where they are able to make an error, so that they can build confidence going into their real life situations. Even though many of the research so far has been done in college classrooms, I think it would be very interesting to see what could be done with this in elementary-middle school aged classrooms as well. I could picture educators teaching a history lesson, and having students immerse themselves into that specific historical situation to facilitate deeper understanding and engagement. I could also picture them readings students a book, and creating the fantasy reality of the book for students to explore as well. I think the possibilities of XR when it comes to education are limitless and exciting, and as a future educator I cannot wait to see what is to be produced within the following years.
