Augmented reality in the classroom

Turn a smartphone distraction into a powerful learning tool by incorporating augmented reality into your lessons—it’s not as difficult as you might think

  • 1 August 2018

    Discover how one technology teacher is using augmented and virtual reality to help improve student engagement in the classroom.

    As a teacher, at one time or another you’ve probably had to tell a student to put their smartphone away. But what if you could turn that distraction into a tool for learning?

    That’s exactly what Brenden Davidson, from St Mary's Cathedral College, did with his year 10 technology class.

    Excited group of children standing around little girl wearing goggles, while teacher assists

    Davidson explains, "Smartphones can now be turned into a virtual reality device with the right app and low-cost headsets. My aim is to take a tool that can distract in the classroom and turn it into an educational tool."

    "Augmented and virtual reality is one way to get students to engage with technologies that will be impacting them during their life."

    What exactly is augmented reality?

    Remember the rage around Pokémon Go? Well according to Live Science that’s a perfect example of what augmented reality is: "the result of using technology to superimpose information—sounds, images and text—on the world we see." In augmented reality the environment is changed but is mostly real, making it different from virtual reality in which the environment is constructed.

    How can augmented and virtual reality be used in the classroom?

    Davidson and his class started experimenting with augmented reality by viewing their design works in the virtual space. Now he has taken this a step further by introducing virtual reality, which allows his students to create content from scratch.

    How it works is that a student will have sensors on their hands to use motion and hand movements to design in the virtual space. According to Davidson, augmented and virtual reality can be used in the classroom for any number of applications, from building a solar system tour or a design class, through to mathematics and art.

    This experimentation in the world of augmented and virtual reality earned Davidson the Premier's Teachers Mutual Bank New and Emerging Technologies Scholarship in 2017. Throughout 2018, Davidson will be continuing his work in the space of augmented and virtual reality, passing on his findings to other teachers, as well as writing a report on the subject for the NSW Premier’s Department.

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