Wearable technology in the classroom: what's available and what does it do?

https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/jul/28/wearable-technology-classroom-virtual-reality

Section 1:
This article briefly talked about Expeditions. Teachers are using Expeditions, which is a new classroom initiative unveiled by Google in May, 2015. The children used a virtual reality headset to be transported to east China. The article also mentioned that the headset was "literally a folded piece of cardboard with lenses attached – turns a smartphone into a VR viewer". Virtual reality is a great way to have students 'visit' different sites without leaving the classroom. "More than 100 classes have already used it to transport students to places such as Verona in Italy to study Romeo and Juliet and California to explore a coral reef." This is a great way for students to explore different places.

The reason why it is important to look at virtual reality is because this could be a new learning and teaching method that is used in the classroom. Students will be able to see what different cultures celebrate, different foods, etc. Why virtual reality matters is because it could be the next big trend that hits the classroom!

 There has been research that says students are more in engaged with their learning. For example, “The creativity we have seen from teachers, and the engagement from students, has been incredible,” says Google’s Ben Schrom, product manager for Expeditions. The VR head set will help students engage in the topic, which is a struggle for most teachers. This is a great tool that can be used in the classroom.

A takeaway that I came across was that students are more engaged. In most classrooms, engaging the students is difficult task. I think that VR is a great way to keep the students engaged in a topic, but the headset would not be used everyday because it could be a distraction to many of the students. When the students are able to use this tools, they will able to view other countries without leaving the room.

Section 2:

This article also touched on VR wearables and how they are still not a popular tool. The wearables still need to be broken into the costumer market. "VR headsets won’t be available until 2016 – so understanding how they can have an impact in the classroom will take time." Since the headsets were not available, it is hard to say if the VR devices are a great teaching and learning strategy. Some people like the idea of VR devices in the classroom, while others think that it is a distraction from learning. The inventors of the VR devices believe that there is little standing in the way of teachers using these in the classroom.

It is important to make sure that the students are not distracted from their school work. It matters because teachers cannot have students just look at pictures and not be able to explain what they are seeing. There is content behind what they are seeing and without the teacher teaching the content, the students will not learn as much as they should.

There is research that technology can be a distraction. “I do think technology can sometimes be a distraction to learning and I’ve yet to see any real value in wearable technology in school,” says David Andrews, educational consultant and director of Mr. Andrews Online. “I can see real value in Google Expeditions, although I would like to see it in action first. It could potentially be a stimulus for learning, promoting spoken language, leading on to creative writing projects in lots of different subjects — geography, history, science and so on.”  There is a value in VR, but there will be challenges that need to be overcome in the classroom.

A takeaway is that VR technology is a useful tool to study different cultures, but it could be a distraction in the class. Students need to focus on their work, while they find more resources that contain more information. There is a value in VR, but teachers need to make sure that it is used properly, which is to promote student learning.