We are excited about sharing our VR kits with members. (Thank you to the Minnesota Dept of Education, Library Services; and to the IMLS, for the funding for this project!!) Virtual Reality kits are very cool, and we have so many good educational resources for people to share.
These kits are fun, of course – learning is best when it connects with people. And that is the main focus of our VR kits: education and learning.
This week’s article looks at a bunch of different uses for VR in different school settings. And, as you might guess: the potential uses are vast and varied! (The whole article is here: Virtual Reality in Education: An Overview)
This is one of my favorite examples, and I admit to being totally biased in that I really like the Milwaukee Art Museum, and I really like Neil Gaiman! (Click the link for more information on that project.)
“Blue-Fall,” a 1966 painting by Abstract Expressionism pioneer Helen Frankenthaler, is housed in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s permanent collection, but you don’t have to trek to Wisconsin to experience it. Any VR user can virtually zoom in on Frankenthaler’s bold, cobalt monolith — and even listen to author Neil Gaiman play docent as he lends art-historical context and detail.”
And, how very cool is this!
Between 2016 and 2026, the number of STEM occupations in the United States will grow by nearly 11 percent. That’s more than 3.5 percent higher than the rate at which non-STEM jobs will grow, according to forecasts from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
But state-of-the-art labs where so much hands-on STEM learning takes place can be difficult and costly to access. Labster democratizes the process with 30 different virtual lab environments. The labs — which can be accessed on Daydreams, the VR headset built by Labster partner Google — allow students to culture bacteria, track cellular respiration during an exercise routine, even conduct an ultrasound exam on an expectant mother — virtually speaking, of course. More than 250 institutions currently use the technology, a company representative told Built In.”
We have a lot of small schools, and underfunded schools in our community. It would be really great if these kinds of resources could be used, to ensure all students have chances at learning opportunities that may only currently be available in larger, wealthier schools!
There are other examples of how different schools are using VR in education for different areas, so read the whole article here!