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Virtual Reality Environments (VREs) for Training and Learning

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Learning in a Digital World

Part of the book series: Smart Computing and Intelligence ((SMCOMINT))

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Abstract

VR technologies are gaining momentum in the field of education and particularly in the use of Virtual Reality (VR)-based learning. Within Virtual Reality Environments (VREs) realistic world situations are simulated, facilitating the transfer of the knowledge and skills gained within the virtual world to the real one. In this chapter, we provide a review of several advantages of using VR technology in education and training. In addition, we examine different challenges and potential problems that need to be considered in order to successfully integrate VR in training activities. We also exemplify the promising prospect of this technology in education by describing two novel VR applications. The first one aims to support educators in improving their teaching practice. Using VR technology, the teacher is given the opportunity to experience the student’s point of view during a classic room and cultivate their empathy skills. The second one aims to support teachers in creating VR serious games by lowering the difficulty of developing this type of educational artefact through intuitive interaction and eliminating the need for learning new design language.

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Acknowledgements

Authors acknowledge funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Framework Programme through NOTRE Project (H2020-TWINN-2015, Grant Agreement Number: 692058). Partially, this work is part of a project that has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement Nº739578 and the government of the Republic of Cyprus through the Directorate General for European Programmes, Coordination and Development.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cyprus University of Technology, Limassol, Cyprus

    Kalliopi-Evangelia Stavroulia & Maria Christofi

  2. Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Telmo Zarraonandia

  3. Cyprus University of Technology & RISE Research Centre on Interactive Media, Smart Systems and Emerging Technologies, Limassol, Cyprus

    Despina Michael-Grigoriou & Andreas Lanitis

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  1. Kalliopi-Evangelia Stavroulia
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  2. Maria Christofi
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  3. Telmo Zarraonandia
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  4. Despina Michael-Grigoriou
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  5. Andreas Lanitis
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Correspondence to Kalliopi-Evangelia Stavroulia .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Carlos III University of Madrid , Leganés, Spain

    Paloma Díaz

  2. Cyprus University of Technology , Lemesos, Cyprus

    Andri Ioannou

  3. Centre for Educational Technology, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India

    Kaushal Kumar Bhagat

  4. University of North Texas , Denton, TX, USA

    J. Michael Spector

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Stavroulia, KE., Christofi, M., Zarraonandia, T., Michael-Grigoriou, D., Lanitis, A. (2019). Virtual Reality Environments (VREs) for Training and Learning. In: Díaz, P., Ioannou, A., Bhagat, K., Spector, J. (eds) Learning in a Digital World. Smart Computing and Intelligence. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8265-9_10

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