1. Educational virtual tours can provide an engaging and immersive learning experience for students of all ages.

2. Tours can be used to supplement or replace traditional classroom instruction or traditional field trips.

3. Virtual tours can be customized to meet the specific learning needs of each student.

4. Tours can be used to introduce new concepts, reinforce existing knowledge, or both.

5. Tours can be used to promote student exploration and discovery.

6. Tours can be used to encourage critical thinking and problem-solving.

7. Tours can be used to promote student collaboration and communication.

8. Tours can be used to assess student learning. They can be used to reinforce and review material that has already been taught.

9. Virtual tours can be accessed anytime, anywhere.

10. Educational virtual tours are an emerging trend in education and are likely to become more popular in the years to come. Virtual tours can be a cost-effective alternative to traditional field trips.

It’s no secret that humans have been using technology to help recall information for thousands of years. That technology has evolved from mere paper and pen to a world dominated by digital media, and standing at the pinnacle is virtual reality (VR). Most of us may know VR as a medium to play games or enjoy 3-D video experiences, but the academic community has now recognized its vast educational applications, specifically when discussing the way we recall our information. Over the course of the last few decades, researchers around the world have conducted studies on a wide range of participants to assess the viability of VR as a tool for improved memory recall. To understand the educational and social applications of VR, we need to first understand how our brains normally process and recall information.

Introduction to Memory Recall

The human brain is responsible for a variety of memory recall functions, two of which are recognition and recall. Memory recognition is the sensation you might receive when cramming for a test. Controlled by the visual cortex, it allows us to essentially flag information in our brain so that we recognize it the next time we see it. Recall on the other hand is supported by a different network of synapses in the brain including the temporal lobe and the frontal cortex, which allow us to recreate specific memories. The brain uses a process called “encoding” to store all of this information so that we can have it readily accessible when we need it. The only way for this encoding process to work and move what we’ve learned from short-term memory to long-term memory is to strengthen our neural pathways. We can do that through repetition and the combination of a variety of stimuli such as sight and sound, which is where VR comes in.

Improving Memory Recall

In a study conducted by Eric Krokos, Catherine Plaisant, and Amitabh Varshney, researchers explored the effectiveness of learning in a VR-based environment compared to a traditional platform such as a desktop computer. Participants were fully immersed into a “memory palace”, where they were measured on their ability to recall objects based on the virtual locations. The purpose of this example was to target the way in which the brain spatially organizes memories in an unknown environment. 

It was concluded that participants consistently had 10% higher memory recall ability while using a head mounted display (HMD) in virtual reality. The ability to combine the multiple stimuli in a 3-D space allowed participants to create their own virtual experiences, converting both their recognition and recall of the events into their long-term memory more effectively than those who did not utilize VR. The lived-in experience of a VR environment proved to be a more effective catalyst for encoding as the participants were able to ingest information as if they were experiencing the events in real time.

Due to the fact that younger generations are becoming more accustomed to this virtual world, educators are looking for opportunities to engage with their students and improve their cognitive learning processes. Based on a study from George Papanastasiou, Athanasios Drigas, Charalabos Skianis, Miltiadis Lytras and Effrosyni Papanastasiou, researchers concluded that VR applications provide an effective tool to enhance learning and memory, as they provide immersed multimodal environments enriched by multiple sensory features. Students between K-12 and even through the collegiate level experienced digital-age literacy, improved creative thinking, communication, collaboration and problem solving ability. These are the cornerstone skills identified by a twenty-first century society that helps students analyze and experience their information.

Incorporating the HistoryView VR tours into classrooms have allowed students around the world to experience marvels such as the King Tut Museum and the rainforests of the Amazon. VR simply gives students the opportunity to explore their environments in a way that they have never been able to before. Having a chance to learn about a subject in a classroom setting and then having the ability to physically experience it is an invaluable way to learn. Reading about the battles that took place in the Roman Colosseum and then having a chance to walk through the ancient amphitheater through a VR tour is a way that HistoryView brings these locations to life. Being able to understand where these events took place and having the spatial reference allows students to commit their multi-pronged education to long term memory. This means that instead of having to simply memorize, students are actually able to learn and retain information.

VR tours are not only revolutionizing the educational landscape, the applications for our senior community are groundbreaking. Dementia and Alzheimer’s are two of the most common degenerative brain diseases that cause mild to severe memory impairment. Numerous neuropsychological assessments have been conducted over the years to measure the impact of various learning techniques on memory recall, one of which was done by G. Plancher, A. Tirad, V. Gyselinck, S. Nicolas, and P. Piolino. In their study, researchers targeted patients with moderate amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) diseases such as Alzheimer’s and attempted to determine whether the ability of their cognitive function and memory recall could be influenced by the type of memory exercise (VR vs standard). The study found that there was a direct correlation between a patient’s exposure into an immersive environment and their ability to encode information. Positive performance scores by their patients indicated that VR-based testing could be used for rehabilitation while also providing insight into early diagnosis.

We have been able to make the world a smaller place by bringing the beauty and culture of museums, art exhibits, national parks, and historical sites to users that would otherwise never have the opportunity to experience them. The accessibility of these virtual learning environmentsin a classroom is what makes HistoryView so unique. We allow our users to take interactive and engaging tours of historical landmarks within the comfort and ease of their preferred environment. 

It’s safe to say that scholars, educators, and users all agree that the application of VR in an educational setting are overwhelmingly positive. The question still stands as to whether or not VR does in fact assist with memory recall. If the data has proven anything, the answer is unequivocally yes. The integration of VR into the educational field and for our senior citizens has proven to have widespread applications. We take great pride in being able to help educate and benefit our users through our VR platform.

Citations

Krokos, Eric, et al. “Virtual Memory Palaces: Immersion Aids Recall.” Virtual Reality : the Journal of the Virtual Reality Society, vol. 23, no. 1, Springer London, 2018, pp. 1–15, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10055-018-0346-3.

Papanastasiou, G., Drigas, A., Skianis, C. et al. Virtual and augmented reality effects on K-12, higher and tertiary education students’ twenty-first century skills. Virtual Reality 23, 425–436 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10055-018-0363-2

Plancher, G., et al. “Using Virtual Reality to Characterize Episodic Memory Profiles in Amnestic Mild Cognitive 

​Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease: Influence of Active and Passive Encoding.” Neuropsychologia, 

Pergamon, 13 Jan. 2012, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0028393211005586

Virtual tours are becoming increasingly popular nowadays. Many organizations, as well as companies, are opting for a virtual tour. However, are virtual tours helpful in children’s education as well? Do they add any value to children’s education?

We will answer these questions and justify our answers as well.

Do virtual tours add value to children’s education?

Yes, Virtual tours add good value to children’s education. They do so in multiple ways, as mentioned below: 

1. Interactive experience

Usual classroom teaching can soon become monotonous for children. You need something that grasps their attention and commands it consistently as well.

With virtual tours, there is always something new to explore. That’s why you can gain children’s attention and ensure that they are fully involved throughout the virtual tour.

The interactive experience such virtual tours provide, coupled with the ability to hold children’s interest, make them a necessity rather than an optional tool.

2. High accessibility

There are many field trips that you might want to take your students to. The problem is that the overall procedure to book a field trip and to organize everything is quite cumbersome.

Not only that, the place where you’re taking your students allows you on a particular date and time as well. There are numerous accessibility issues in organizing the field trip. 

However, there are no such issues while creating a virtual tour. That is because the filming, as well as surveying of the premises, is needed just once. Also, the surveying and the filming are done by professionals rather than 50 young students. That is why; gaining access to the premises is undoubtedly easy.

Thus, the high accessibility that virtual tours provide is another reason they can add enormous value to children’s education.

3. Less cost

While organizing a field trip, you have to arrange transportation, food, guides, and so on. You have to do so for every student on the field trip. The cost can quickly scale up, and you might have to pay a hefty amount for the entire field trip.

Comparatively, you need to spend a small amount on creating a virtual tour just once. You can use that virtual tour for as long as you want.

When you go with a company that is the market leader in creating virtual tours like The Red Marker, you can get a virtual tour designed not only at affordable cost but with excellent quality as well. It could save you a lot of time and money as well.

4. No safety concerns

Have you tried managing a crowd of children on a busy floor? If yes, you would know how much of a hassle it is. Not only that, you have to ensure that every child remains safe.

This requires a lot of effort, planning, and constant monitoring. This is what you have to handle when you take children on a field trip.

On the flip side, when you opt for virtual tours, children can have similar experiences from the safety of their classrooms. Not only that, the teacher can focus on explaining the various parts of the tour rather than worrying about the safety of the children.

Isn’t this a great way in which virtual tours can add value to children’s education?

You bet!

5. Time-saving

Even if the field website is just 20 miles away, the entire field trip will still take a day. Moreover, the planning required will be of weeks as well. It means that conducting a field trip is quite time-consuming.

Virtual tours, on the other hand, are created by experts. You have to play them in the classroom. That’s why, if the virtual tour is of 2 hours, you would hardly need 2 hours in total, including planning and preparation.

It means that you can cover multiple such virtual tours in the same amount of time, which will enhance children’s learning experience.

6. Can work as a prep

Did you know that virtual tours and actual field trips can work in conjunction as well? As we have highlighted above, in a real field trip, the teacher has to monitor the children and explain the various parts of the virtual tour. However, due to juggling multiple things at once, the teacher might not cover everything. 

Children might not be able to grasp everything in real-time as well. This is where virtual tours can come in handy. With the help of virtual tours, you can easily explain the basics of the field trip to the children in advance. 

Once they know the basics, they will be more curious to explore the various parts of the site when they get there. In a way, the virtual tour can also work as a prep for the actual field trip for children.

7. More inclusive experience

Even with your best efforts, some children might not be able to participate in the field trip. However, in virtual tours, all the children can easily take part. It means that virtual tours provide a more inclusive experience for children.

8. Wide range of field trips possible

Teachers truly understand the importance of field trips. That is why they try and organize as many of them as they can. However, some sites are simply inaccessible for field trips.

The problem is, what should you do then? The answer is virtual tours. For example, even with the best efforts, it is impossible to get a field trip on the Air force one, is it?

However, History View offers a virtual tour of the Air Force One.

Similarly, History View offers a virtual tour of the Air Ambulance Eurocopter ec135. 

The point is, virtual tours make a wide range of field trips possible right from the comfort of the classroom. This is one of the primary reasons why virtual tours can add enormous value to children’s education.

So, yes, virtual tours do add value to children’s education. They do so in numerous ways. When you understand the potential of virtual tours, you will find they are a necessity rather than an additional tool.

Multicultural Artists Examine Forgiveness, Identity, and Heritage | November 6, 2020

Based in Lower Manhattan, New York, apexart is a non-profit arts organization with a mission to challenge our notions of culture, art, exhibitions, and curation. Featuring emerging and established artists alike, its seasoned curators select some of the most striking and thought-provoking works of today.

This Fall, the “Elongated Shadows” exhibition with work by artists Kei Ito, Migiwa Orimo, Azumi O E, Suzanne Hodes, Andrew Paul Keiper, and Air Beser, winners of apexart’s juried Open Calls program. A poignant multimedia collection examining the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, each piece explores the facets of the horrific event. The work delves in from the view of the Americans who designed and detonated the bombs, the impact on those who fell victim to the attacks, and the trauma inherited by younger generations.

Lisa Vagnoni, web director at apexart, talks a bit about the creation of the Matterport 3D tour of this exhibition, and its role in sharing and educating in a greater context. “Elongated Shadows” is viewable at apexart until October 24, 2020 by private showing, admitting one person or part at a time.

Q: What inspired the 3D capture of the “Elongated Shadows” exhibition?

After the pandemic hit, and it became clear many spaces were going to limit in-person access to their exhibitions, we wanted to find a way to provide a more accessible virtual option, beyond the standard approach many galleries took in placing all the works on a webpage and calling that page an online exhibition. The 3D capture allows a degree of exploration and engagement that is not otherwise possible on a scrolling webpage and feels a bit funkier and more interesting than a fully computer-generated virtual space.

Q: What are the “must-sees” you want visitors to explore and why?

In addition to the actual works captured for the Matterport space, we have included all the supplemental content you would have access to in the real gallery, like the dual-language brochure, checklist, related events, and a donation link; in addition to some that you wouldn’t, like video interviews with the curator and artists. In expanding upon the content included in the exhibition like this, we hope that visitors will be encouraged to take a deep dive into the themes explored. As a non-profit educational arts organization, these tools help us expand upon a robust learning element in our exhibitions.

Q: What’s the one thing you want visitors to take away after exploring “Elongated Shadows”?

The topic of the exhibition may appear to be pretty far removed from what is going on in the world today. We hope that in exploring the myriad viewpoints of artists connected to the development of the bombs, and third-generation survivors of the bombings, visitors will be prompted to reflect on themes of forgiveness, identity, and heritage.

Q: You’ve included some audio clips via Mattertag for some of the pieces. How does this added sensory piece help bring the piece to life in the 3D tour?

The piece Afterimage Requiem by Kei Ito and Andrew Paul Keiper is a combination visual and audio piece, with Ito creating the prints and Keiper creating the audio, and these elements are intended to be experienced in tandem like this, as you would hear its sound while viewing the prints in the real gallery space. Just like in the exhibition space itself, when listening to the audio in the Matterport, one feels transported to the different locations where Keiper did field recordings for the work.

Q: The gallery viewing of this exhibition was delayed due to Covid-19. How did you cope with the uncertainty?

We took it one week at a time and adjusted our public communication as new information for New York City developed. And in line with the city’s reopening plan, we have expanded from online-only to combination online-and-in-person with cautionary measures in place. Initially, it was a question of trusting the shutdown to do its thing and lead to a reduction in cases, and we just had to get creative in adapting the exhibitions and programming to online in order to wait out that period. There was a lot of faith, innovation, and improvisation involved.

Q: Anything else you would like to add?

We encourage all of our Matterport visitors to get the full online experience of Elongated Shadows at apexart.org/faust.php, and anyone interested in applying as a curator for our next season to check out our Open Call at apexart.org/opencalls.html

Admire the Ingenuity that Forever Changed the Way We Move | May 13, 2020

#ImmerseME

There have been many advances in technology that can provide educators with the tools to facilitate deeper learning of complex concepts, and provide students with a more immersive learning experience. To help facilitate a better understanding of these tools and to bring Maine educators to the forefront of innovative education delivery, the Maine Department of Education and the Maine Sate Library have invited organizations that are using virtual reality in education to come and demonstrate their education tools on June 19^th from 10:00am to 4:00pm at the Maine State Library. There will be booths located in the atrium of the Maine State Library, and 30 minute presentations throughout the day by organizations, higher education partners, and local schools that have already begun to integrate virtual reality into their classrooms. The intent of the day is to provide Maine educators with an awareness of these tools and to start encouraging innovative ideas about how virtual reality can be integrated into more Maine classrooms.

HistoryView is working with museums and historical sites to be able to share local historical experiences and bring history to life for classrooms worldwide. In connection with Matterport’s state of the art technology, HistoryView is able to create virtual reality field trips for schools and universities.

We showcased HistoryView Virtual Field Trip Platform at Suffolk University during History Camp 2017

We also made a recording of “A Revolution of Her Own! The True Story of the American Heroine Deborah Samson [Sampson]”

— Judith Kalaora, Founder & Artistic Director of History At Play (on Twitter @HistoryAtPlay, Instagram @HistoryAtPlay, and Facebook @HistoryAtPlay).

Deborah Sampson, the first woman to enlist, to fight, and to be honorably discharged from the American Military, is portrayed in this program chronicling her life.  An indentured servant by age five, Deborah grew up in a man’s world, where women were naught but secondclass citizens.  As a self-educated master-less woman, she felt a higher calling, and on May 20, 1782, Deborah bound her chest, tied back her  hair, and enlisted in the 4th Massachusetts Regiment of the Continental Army as “Robert Shurtlieff.”  The American Heroine takes you back  in  time.

Welcome to HistoryView VR, the educational platform for teachers & students to access 3D Virtual Reality Field Trips powered by Matterport. Working with museums and historical sites, HistoryView is able to share historical experiences and bring history to life for classrooms worldwide. In connection with Matterport’s state of the art technology, HistoryView is able to create virtual reality field trips for education and digitally preserve anthropology. Learn more about the Co-Founders.