Virtual Reality & Immersive Technology in Education

Abstract

Virtual reality, also known as VR, is an exciting but ill-defined field of discovery. The question of how technological advances in this field will impact education is difficult to answer at present with any degree of certainty, but is one that must be considered by educational researchers, teachers, and administrators. This position paper presents the foundational definitions and positions of several investigators in this realm, along with thoughts on difficulties and complex issues that currently hinder the application of virtual reality in educational settings. It is recommended that the excitement that VR generates be leveraged into applications research in order to validate both the effectiveness of VR in education and encourage further development of the technology.