Transforming the Classroom with Augmented and Virtual Reality Apps

Video games are not the only realm benefiting from the latest technological advancements in special effects and graphics. These apps can transform your classroom and transport students to new educational realms.

There is so much discussion of how Augmented and Virtual Reality are transforming education, but it’s not always clear how that is happening. Like with many tech tools, there can be a learning curve and an initial investment, making it seem out of reach for many.

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      string(3021) "support research on ancient Egypt as well as storyboarding and brainstorming techniques, or ‘Plant Survival Challenge’, where students can use Bloxels to learn the anatomy of plants and help gain understanding of plants’ physical needs and environmental factors. Students can also incorporate the game with their history lessons, connecting research on historical figures with design or story features of the games. Teachers are offered lots of support and tutorials and there is a very enthusiastic community of users that offer lots of tips and ideas for how to use the technology in the classroom. Bloxels offer an easy way to create interest, engagement and creativity in students as they learn about game development and coding in a simple way. The main drawback is the cost, which is variable but somewhat substantial, and some users have said that the digital rendering process can be somewhat finicky.Gamestar Mechanic (KS2 – KS3)gamestarmechanic.comGamestar Mechanic uses Manga visuals to create an engaging environment for students to learn how to build games. It consists of tools, games and a community that allows students an accessible approach to video game design with an initial focus on visual design elements as opposed to the coding side. A series of manga cut-scenes and ‘missions’ asks students to play, fix, and make different kinds of games built around specific mechanics, like collecting points or jumping. As they learn design, ‘sprites’, or pieces are unlocked for the games they’ve mastered that can then be used in their own game design workshops. Students can learn the process of coding through the self-directed scaffolding set up in the game or work collaboratively, learning from each other.Through the process of designing their game, students employ various aspects of creativity both in learning and in coming up with their own inputs, including customising their games with their own artwork. The directions are clear and easy to follow and the games that are created are real and playable. Students have to think both mathematically and artistically get the game built and they have true ownership over their work in the end. The accounts have free and paid options and accounts are transferrable, so students can continue to access and develop their game at home once the school year is over. Gamestar Mechanic allows students to learn about how systems work and how they can be modified or changed. Students learn to think analytically and holistically, to experiment and test theories, and to consider other people as part of the systems they create and inhabit. It is a great resource for developing the 21st-century skills associated with game design, including system-based thinking, creative problem solving, art and aesthetics, writing and storytelling, and of course, STEM subject knowledge."
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Gaming it up

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      string(5834) "LiFi is lighting the way to wireless learningWireless technology has become an essential part of educational infrastructure, but the current WiFi bandwidth is coming under increasing strain with the exponential growth of wireless-enabled devices that are connected to the internet and the expansion of digital learning tools such as HD video, e-books or interactive educational games. This is set to continue as e-learning evolves to incorporate emerging technologies, like virtual reality and augmented reality, in the classroom, which require significant bandwidth. 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Two decades ago, pupils used computers in dedicated IT suites, but in the modern school, functioning without wireless is not an option. While there is still a place for the wired-in computer, wireless-enabled devices offer greater versatility through the multi-purpose use of classrooms.In addition to the substantial online educational resources—videos, e-books, podcasts and more—blended learning now offers the opportunity to use digital media alongside traditional teaching methods to provide students with a more personalised learning environment through independent online study and curriculum delivery via a digital platform. The development of virtual reality and artificial intelligence offers further enhancement for education. Virtual reality can enable a student to travel to different continents or time periods and experience different cultures or eras from their desks, while artificial intelligence can be used to help predict a student’s individual learning needs. All of this relies on an increasing number of wireless-enabled devices—from laptops or tablets for students to interactive whiteboards, VR headsets and TVs—with an internet connection offering high bandwidth and low latency.There is also the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) for devices that form part of the wider school environment, such as heating systems controlled by temperature sensors, occupancy sensing for recording attendances and video surveillance monitoring that utilises AI/machine learning to enhance security. All of these devices are connected via the internet.‘We are pleased to support a Scottish-born company whose complementary, emerging technology has the potential to transform delivery of wireless broadband communications. 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Digital Learning

Riding the Light Improving Bandwidth with LiFi

8 Aug 2019

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      string(5791) "National Education Network. To celebrate theconnection of the National Archives video conferencing suite to theeducational broadband network, SEGfL have been running a special VCworkshop based on World War I, which is due to run next in February 2006.The workshop is called ‘All Pals Together: A soldier’s story from the trenches’and is aimed at Year 9 pupils. This is an interactive lesson with an actorplaying Private Henry Fairhurst of the 14th York and Lancaster Battalion(Barnsley Pals).Don’t just do itby the book!When Cambridge-Hitachi (A20)started their i-read project, they gotexperienced literacy expert Pie Corbetton board as a series editor andcommissioned to write motivating newtexts by popular children’s authors andengaging new artwork. i-read is anexciting new reading resource forthese reasons and also (perhapssurprisingly) because it is on CD-ROMfor the interactive whiteboard.The i-read programme is built aroundthe idea of direct teaching of reading –demonstrating different strategies and techniques and then getting thechildren to have a go themselves. Using the screen as a tool for teaching andlearning opens up opportunities for multi-sensory strategies and allows youto meet children at their best vantage point.i-read takes teaching and learning of reading a step forward by makingbest use of whiteboard technology, including music, video clips, sound effects,poetry readings, oral storytelling and dialogues to hone listening skills andhelp children engage with the text. However, i-read isn’t about ‘bells andwhistles’. The children can interact with the software, but the teaching andlearning remains firmly in control of the teacher.i-read Series Editor Pie Corbett says “I have often wondered what it wouldbe like if every child could read . . . it may sound idealistic, but that has to beour aim. i-read could become a dynamic part of your reading repertoireaimed at achieving this goal.”Reaching out in 3-DEducation Interactives Limited (EIL) is a specialist software creator for the education sector and a provider of hardware installations. They havedeveloped interactive content in the areas of science, English, history and technology.EIL’s 3-D system on offer allows 3-D objects to appear out of the screen, ‘hovering’ above your head, giving the illusion that you can ‘reach out’ andtouch it. The system can be tailored to suit the room it is installed in and according to whether you have an interactive or static screenand its size and projector brightness. Using special software, it allows access to thousands of 3-D web-basedmodels which can be instantly viewed in this unique way.The system also enables you to create your own filmsand then play them back in 3-D.It has proven to be successful in providing a funmedium for children to engage with and also has astrong element of learning key points which are linkedto the National Curriculum. As one teacher put it: “Todaywe got to see a preview of the 3-D heart. It fascinated thestudents to see a giant heart in front of them. Even though wecouldn’t touch (and looked stupid when we tried to) we gota good look at the inner workings and how the hearttransfers blood around the entire body.”EIL will also be launching its newMindScene software at the show onstand L51, a state-of-the-art packagethat fuses mind mapping with 3-Dvirtual reality.54InteracTive January 2006Curriculum FocusNEWS ROUNDUPEverything on screen onlineDeveloped by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the lottery New Opportunities Fund, screenonline(www.screenonline.org.uk) is a website devoted to the history of British film andtelevision, and to Britain’s social history as revealed by film and television.The site features hundreds of hours of video clips from the vast collections of theBFI’s National Film and Television Archive, alongside thousands of stills, posters andpress books and several hours of recorded interviews with film and TV personalities.Also included are over 800 biographies of film and television personalities andorganisations. This material is supplemented by rich and authoritative contextualmaterial by expert writers.The site, which you can see on stand P2, is primarily aimed at teachers and studentsin secondary and further education, and lifelong learners in libraries, but it is suitablefor anyone interested in the history of British film and television. It is the single mostextensive publicly available resource devoted to this field, but is entirely free toregistered users in secondary and further education and libraries. People using thesite from home, work or in public Internet access centres can access to all of thematerial presented except for moving image content.Creating thefuture of educationVisit the NESTA Futurelab stand (Y30) and you’ll find a vision of the‘future of education’, with a range of innovative education projectson show created through partnerships to transform the way youngpeople learn.Space Mission is one of their pioneering learning resources, developed inpartnership with the National Space Centre. As a disaster occurs in space,pupils role play as experts in an emergency response team on Earth.Encouraging teamwork, the pupils use video conferencing, web chat andinteractive materials, as well as their skills as scientists, mathematicians,planetary geographers and communicators, to help resolve the disaster.You can also see a demonstration of the exciting audiovisual tool,Jungulator, which enables young people to manipulate sights and sounds tocreate their own"
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The Curriculum Collection

1 Jan 2005

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This is an interactive lesson with an actorplaying Private Henry Fairhurst of the 14th York and Lancaster Battalion(Barnsley Pals).Don’t just do itby the book!When Cambridge-Hitachi (A20)started their i-read project, they gotexperienced literacy expert Pie Corbetton board as a series editor andcommissioned to write motivating newtexts by popular children’s authors andengaging new artwork. i-read is anexciting new reading resource forthese reasons and also (perhapssurprisingly) because it is on CD-ROMfor the interactive whiteboard.The i-read programme is built aroundthe idea of direct teaching of reading –demonstrating different strategies and techniques and then getting thechildren to have a go themselves. 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The children can interact with the software, but the teaching andlearning remains firmly in control of the teacher.i-read Series Editor Pie Corbett says “I have often wondered what it wouldbe like if every child could read . . . it may sound idealistic, but that has to beour aim. i-read could become a dynamic part of your reading repertoireaimed at achieving this goal.”Reaching out in 3-DEducation Interactives Limited (EIL) is a specialist software creator for the education sector and a provider of hardware installations. They havedeveloped interactive content in the areas of science, English, history and technology.EIL’s 3-D system on offer allows 3-D objects to appear out of the screen, ‘hovering’ above your head, giving the illusion that you can ‘reach out’ andtouch it. The system can be tailored to suit the room it is installed in and according to whether you have an interactive or static screenand its size and projector brightness. Using special software, it allows access to thousands of 3-D web-basedmodels which can be instantly viewed in this unique way.The system also enables you to create your own filmsand then play them back in 3-D.It has proven to be successful in providing a funmedium for children to engage with and also has astrong element of learning key points which are linkedto the National Curriculum. As one teacher put it: “Todaywe got to see a preview of the 3-D heart. It fascinated thestudents to see a giant heart in front of them. Even though wecouldn’t touch (and looked stupid when we tried to) we gota good look at the inner workings and how the hearttransfers blood around the entire body.”EIL will also be launching its newMindScene software at the show onstand L51, a state-of-the-art packagethat fuses mind mapping with 3-Dvirtual reality.54InteracTive January 2006Curriculum FocusNEWS ROUNDUPEverything on screen onlineDeveloped by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the lottery New Opportunities Fund, screenonline(www.screenonline.org.uk) is a website devoted to the history of British film andtelevision, and to Britain’s social history as revealed by film and television.The site features hundreds of hours of video clips from the vast collections of theBFI’s National Film and Television Archive, alongside thousands of stills, posters andpress books and several hours of recorded interviews with film and TV personalities.Also included are over 800 biographies of film and television personalities andorganisations. This material is supplemented by rich and authoritative contextualmaterial by expert writers.The site, which you can see on stand P2, is primarily aimed at teachers and studentsin secondary and further education, and lifelong learners in libraries, but it is suitablefor anyone interested in the history of British film and television. It is the single mostextensive publicly available resource devoted to this field, but is entirely free toregistered users in secondary and further education and libraries. People using thesite from home, work or in public Internet access centres can access to all of thematerial presented except for moving image content.Creating thefuture of educationVisit the NESTA Futurelab stand (Y30) and you’ll find a vision of the‘future of education’, with a range of innovative education projectson show created through partnerships to transform the way youngpeople learn.Space Mission is one of their pioneering learning resources, developed inpartnership with the National Space Centre. As a disaster occurs in space,pupils role play as experts in an emergency response team on Earth.Encouraging teamwork, the pupils use video conferencing, web chat andinteractive materials, as well as their skills as scientists, mathematicians,planetary geographers and communicators, to help resolve the disaster.You can also see a demonstration of the exciting audiovisual tool,Jungulator, which enables young people to manipulate sights and sounds tocreate their own"
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Digital Learning

The Curriculum Collection

1 Nov 2006