Project implementation During the project’s implementation phase, pre-service teachers (PSTs) used their smartphones to stream several 360-degree videos from YouTube. Once a video was streaming, PSTs paired their smartphones with low-cost UJ-customised VR cardboard headsets to enjoy an immersive experience (see image 1). Throughout the project, students were able to visualise several scientific contents in VR, including the solar system, animal cells and plant cells. In addition, PSTs could take a virtual field trip to Sasol’s Secunda plant to experience the chemistry of refining and extraction of synthetic fuel. Findings from the project From the project, it was observed that 360-degree VR could have a transformative effect on science education through its ability to provide students with an immersive, first-person perspective of whatever content they wish to explore. Spatial visualisation of microscopic organelles, like in the case of the cell, created mental models such that retention and long-term memory were greatly enhanced. For example, one PST said, “I feel like I am literally in the cell, and wow! A textbook diagram could never compete with this. I am amazed at the exact structure of organelles like the mitochondrion and the rough endoplasmic reticulum”. Indeed, from the interviews conducted with participant students, it was clear that traditional textbooks or even three-dimensional physical models could not offer the extent of visualisation experienced in VR (Kim & Jin, 2022). This immersive experience helps students bridge the gap between theoretical and practical scientific knowledge and practical understanding, allowing students to visualise how different components interact in a real-world context. Another profound outcome was that 360-degree VR can take students on virtual field trips to places they would otherwise be unable to visit, such as the Sasol Secunda plant and the solar system. The semi-interactive nature of such experiences allows students to focus on specific areas of interest and explore concepts as if they were physically present in such spaces. This encourages active learning, whereby students take an active role in exploring and discovering new information. Image 1: User Immersed in UJ Customised VR Cardboard Headset Using a Smartphone (Image shared with user permission) Teaching Innovation for the 21st Century | Showcasing UJ Teaching Innovation Projects 2024 91
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