What are some of the challenges in Career Technical Education today and how can AR/VR help to address them?

At its core, immersive learning is about giving students the opportunity to experience—in the truest sense of the word—what it’s like to perform certain tasks, whether that’s operating a multi-ton crane hoisting an 800,000-pound piece of equipment or learning on-the-job fundamentals of working at an industrial construction site. This level of immersion can be accomplished through virtual reality headsets, which provide trainees with a 360-degree view in all directions, and advanced simulations that enable learners to feel as though they are in a physical environment.

Immersive technology helps students gain exposure to well-paying, in-demand jobs. Simulations enable students to feel as though they are embedded in a factory, shop floor, or another workplace. With the headsets strapped on, they simulate tasks just as though they are performing real work with their hands, such as operating heavy machinery or using tools. They are seeing with their eyes the same environment they would see in a seven-story manufacturing facility or shop floor, for example, and practicing the same type of visual, physical, and decision-making skills they would be expected to use on the job. In this way, immersive technologies help solve one of the biggest challenges in Career Technical Education: providing learners with real insights into what tasks on the job look like, and understanding whether specific careers could be the right fit for them.

Read the full article about virtual reality in career and technical education by Bharani Rajakumar at Getting Smart.