Future schools using the power of Virtual and Augmented Reality for education and training in the classroom Erasmus Project

Project Title

Future schools using the power of Virtual and Augmented Reality for education and training in the classroom

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

In today’s digital world, teachers are struggling in finding new ways to engage students. When home technologies such as mobile phones, tablets and games consoles are highly advanced, widely available and hugely popular with young children, finding educational engagement with technology in the classroom can be even harder, especially if the technology deployed there is less engaging than that of technology children use at home. Currently, the use of ICT in teaching and learning activities in EU is low, with only about 50% of students being taught by teachers, who use ICT in at least 25% of their lessons.
Virtual Reality can become an innovation and an added value in school education, can deliver experiences and interactions for students that are either not practical or not possible in the ‘real world’, provides an unparalleled way to immerse and captivate students of all ages. Virtual Reality can become a teaching methodology which helps students feel immersed in an experience, gripping their imagination and stimulating thought in ways not possible with traditional books, pictures or videos, and facilitates a far higher level of knowledge retention. Enhancing and extending the learning experience is at the heart of what Virtual Reality can offer students, and is possibly one of the most powerful of all technologies that could help change how we learn forever.
Virtual Reality teaching methodology in schools bring a huge impact for different sectors of teachers and students, and we can even more think of how much impact and benefits can bring to the students with lower opportunities, from disadvantages areas/schools, with disabilities, in dropout situations or with poor school performance.

Introducing a new concept in educational technology: Virtual and Augmented Reality, the VR@School project creates a complete different classroom. VR@School is a ground-breaking project offering a student-teacher friendly interface, practical resources and guidelines, embedded educational resources and simple-to-use VR lessons designed to help raise engagement and increase knowledge retention for students.

In the presented context, the project involves the following target groups:
– Teachers (including science teachers)
– Students (secondary school)
– Students with lower opportunities, from disadvantages areas/schools, with disabilities, in dropout situations or with poor school performance
– School principals
– Trainers in school education

Evaluating the target group needs, the project proposes the following objectives:
– Open up teachers to use of new technologies & online educational resources in their classes by offering them a ready-made collection of online tools & platforms to facilitate & the teaching process &attract pupils to become more motivated & involved in learning
– Train teachers with the Virtual &Augmented Reality use in the classroom & motivate them to use this technology in the classroom
– Develop VR lessons for science disciplines & for transversal topics with impact on a student’s development such as: motivation to study/ job orientation/foreign languages/inclusive education/ prevention of school dropout
– Guide school principals & teachers on how to implement the VR School Laboratory in their schools
– Implement VR School Laboratories in the partners’ schools & organize simulation lessons for science & transdisciplinary school disciplines using VR

VR@School project offer the following products:
O1: Teach@School Online Library – Educational Technology and Open Education Resources (50 OER catalogued and 40 lesson plans)
O2: Teachers Guide on Virtual Reality in school education (1 Guide – 6 Modules, available in 5 languages (EN, RO, IT, LT, PT) , 6 video tutorials, 5 national trainings, 124 participants)
O3: VR Educational Resources for science and transdisciplinary school disciplines (1 VR educational resources online App, 41 VR materials, 58 lesson plans in 5 languages, 15 school disciplines reached, over 100 students involved in simulations, 4 VR laboratories in 4 schools)
2 International Learning/Training Activities on Use of VR for teachers and on How to implement VR laboratories in your school, for teachers and school principals (53 participants)
5 Multiplier Events on VR@School – Virtual and Augmented Reality for education and training in the classroom (139 participants)

Project Website

http://vr-school.eu

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 250350 Eur

Project Coordinator

Liceul Teoretic de Informatica “Grigore Moisil” & Country: RO

Project Partners

• UNIQUE MAKE UP SRL
• FUNDATIA EUROED
• PIXEL – ASSOCIAZIONE CULTURALE
• SOROS INTERNATIONAL HOUSE
• INSTITUTO POLITECNICO DE BRAGANCA
• Vilniaus Karoliniskiu Gymnasium
• CIPAT