Key points:
While virtual field trips are not a new phenomenon, they gained popularity shortly before COVID due in part to their ability to expose students to places and experiences they might not otherwise be able to access due to funding barriers or geographic limitations. .
When COVID imposed hybrid and at-home learning, many educators once again turned to virtual trips to keep students engaged in learning during pandemic-related educational challenges.
Virtual excursions
Simply put, virtual tours are digital experiences and explorations through places like historical monuments, museums, or even outer space. They employ animations, images, videos, sound clips, and 3D technologies to give students the most authentic opportunity possible to explore pyramids, underwater ecosystems, the Grand Canyon, iconic landmarks, and more. Some virtual rides for kids can be accessed with a simple device, while others employ virtual reality headsets for a more immersive experience.
Virtual field trips and STEM learning
It's difficult to teach hands-on STEM subjects when students aren't in the classroom all the time, and student engagement remains a challenge even after COVID. Virtual field trips address both of these persistent obstacles. These trips can help students get a front-row view of STEM outside of the classroom. Where can those engineering concepts you learn in school take you as an adult? Is it possible to be creative in a STEM career? Here's how to boost STEM learning with virtual field trips for students.
Bring real-world problems to the classroom with virtual trips
Climate change is an increasingly important topic in school curricula. Today's students will almost certainly inherit a climate-affected world and will need to understand the mechanisms of global warming if they are to become climate-conscious, civic-minded members of society. However, many students are deterred from pursuing environmental science by mundane textbooks and complex diagrams. This is a serious problem, as students will need a deep understanding of greenhouse gases and ecological damage in the future. Educators can engage students and generate excitement around environmental science using the latest virtual reality (VR) technology. This technology can take students on free interactive virtual field trips, meaning they can virtually visit climate-affected areas from the safety and comfort of the classroom. Make real-world problems more relevant to students.
Virtual field trips through augmented reality
Augmented reality gives educators the opportunity to bring the world to life. But first we need to see the world. For example, educators could enrich students' learning by taking field trips to the heart of their capital city and asking them to draw landmarks, interview tourists, use iPad voice recorders, and make movies using the iPad camera, editing them in iMovie. for those milestones in life. Then, using augmented reality apps, educators can link children's artwork to their videos and embed them all in a Google Map. This means anyone can point their camera at the trigger image and learn more about the landmark she's visiting that day, all narrated by students. Here's how to do it.
Why virtual excursions work
This next generation of students grew up with smart devices connected to the Internet. For them, information comes instantly. Unfortunately, a deluge of apps constantly combats your attention economy and affects your concentration and retention in class. Interactive virtual field trips for elementary students can really help boost engagement. Virtual field trips with technologies like AR and VR provide new learning opportunities that can keep students engaged and make lessons long-lasting.
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