Studying the Effects of Virtual Reality on Technician Education

Methods � An email-based recruitment was done to mostly undergraduate and graduate

Clemson students. Some were from other colleges. � Participants had not previously watched the lecture nor seen the simulation. � Compensation was a $20 Amazon gift card, given at the completion of all activities.

� 38 STEM students participated in voluntary research about MCVD Lathe and Fiber Draw Tower.

– Within this group, participants were randomly assigned to either the lecture or lecture with VR group.

� Participants engaged in the following study activities during a one-on-one Zoom call with a researcher:

– Completed a pre-test survey, to assess current knowledge and experience; – Engaged in educational material; – Completed a post-test survey, to assess gained knowledge; – Completed a usability survey, to measure ease of use, motivation,

engagement, satisfaction, opinion, and perceived learning outcomes

Preliminary Results � Data was collected through Qualtrics.

� Excel was used to filter the data by condition (no VR versus VR).

� After filtering, the average scores were calculated for the pre-test and post-test surveys.

� The differences in scores were used to assess learning gains.

Challenges and Lessons LearnedChallenges:

� Our Institutional Review Board approval was pending for two weeks longer than anticipated, shortening our data collection period.

� For the Fiber Draw Tower group the pre-test scores for the Lecture+VR group was decidedly higher than their Lecture-only counterparts. This complicated the comparison between the groups because the entrance baseline of knowledge was different

� Because the research was conducted virtually, we encountered unexpected issues during the testing that could have been controlled during in-person experiments.

� Participants completed survey under observation of researchers, which may have

discouraged honest answers

Lessons Learned: � We learned the importance of scheduling time

to meet (virtually) and discuss our upcoming tasks to delegate responsibilities for our work. This way everyone would be clear about the specific direction of our research.

� We learned that we need to be prepared to improvise solutions to unexpected problems on short notice - and that we should maybe spend more time trying to anticipate potential problems ahead of times

DiscussionThe data shows that the use of VR does result in an increase scores between the pre-test and post-test surveys. The score increase was not statistically significant compared to the lecture only group.

Some types of questions are better answered after incorporating simulations with the learning material.

Based on the usability study, users enjoyed using the VR as a learning method.

� The largest difference in ratings is apparent in Q7, which asks about interactivity.

� This indicates that users perceived the VR as much more interactive than the lecture only.

The sample size in this study was small, so repeating the study with a greater number of participants might yield better data.

AcknowledgmentsThis material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants #2037809 and #1700621 at the NSF ATE Center CA2VES. Special thanks to Nikita Anand and Wasif Johar, who also participated in this internship, and Dr. Jeff Bertrand, Zach Trabookis, and Dave Lee at the Clemson University Center for Workforce Development. We appreciate support from the Clemson University College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences.

Thank you to the many STEM students who volunteered to take part in this study. It would not have been possible without them.

For further information, contact: kshakou@clemson.edu.

References1. Pantelidis, V. S. (2010). Reasons to use virtual reality in education and training courses and a model to

determine when to use virtual reality. Themes in Science and Technology Education, 2(1-2), 59-70.

2. Aziz, E. S., Chang, Y., Esche, S. K., & Chassapis, C. (2014). A multi-user virtual laboratory environment for gear train design. Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 22(4), 788-802.

3. Hamilton, D., McKechnie, J., Edgerton, E., & Wilson, C. (2021). Immersive virtual reality as a pedagogical tool in education: a systematic literature review of quantitative learning outcomes and experimental design. Journal of Computers in Education, 8(1), 1-32.

� Participants rated each statement as strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, or strongly agree.

� Responses were converted to quantitative data on a scale from 1 - 5, where � 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree. � The data was filtered and average scores were found for each question.

Mumin Adhami, Alexandra Popovchak, Emma Katovich, Zoe Kane, Katie Shakour, Rebecca Short, & Kapil Chalil Madathil

Research Question and Goals

IntroductionVirtual reality (VR) has gained significant popularity as an educational tool and/or learning environment, both in academic settings as well as workforce training. VR offers a number of potential advantages over traditional pedagogical methods1, including but not limited to:

� Providing a more immersive, interactive, and novel learning environment; � Giving users more control over their learning process; � Aiding in visualization of abstract concepts; � Offering real-time guidance and feedback; and � Effectively substituting for hands-on activities when the real experience is dangerous

or inconvenient (e.g. surgical training, aviation training).

For these resason, many scholars and instructors believe that VR benefits students by: � Improving learning outcomes;  � Increasing student motivation, engagement, and interest; and  � Enhancing the learning experience2

Educational VR has found expansive application in disciplines ranging from engineering, medicine, computer science, and industrial training to public speaking, business, and history, among many others. The present research explores an application of VR technology in an optical fiber manufacturing course.

Question: How effective are virtual reality-based environments for supporting technician education?

Goals: � To evaluate the impact of incorporating

VR simulations on objective learning outcomes and knowledge acquisition.

� To understand subjective student experiences and attitudes regarding the use of VR simulations in an online learning module

Image 1: Image from pre-recorded lecture for MCVD lathe

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Lecture Only Lecture+VR

Average Learning Assesment Scores

Pre-Test Post-Test

Usability Survey QuestionsQ1. I was satisfied using the learning methods in this module.

Q2. I want to use the learning methods in this module in my own studies.Q3. It would be easy for me to incorporate the learning methods in this module into my own studies.Q4. I feel confident replicating these skills in a real-world setting.

Q5. The learning methods in this module made me motivated to continue learning.Q6. I was engaged with the learning methods in this module.

Q7. I was able to interact with the learning methods in this module.

Q8. The information and instructions provided with this module are clear and helpful.Q9. The mode of instruction made comprehension of the subject easier.Q10. It is easy to use the learning methods in this module.

Image 2: Fiber Draw Tower virtual reality simulation

Figure 1: Project Design Flow Chart

Figure 2: Methods Flow Chart

Figure 3: Preliminary Results Graph

Image 3: The entire experience was conducted remotely due to the COVID-19 crisis.