Learning Log 5: Virtual Reality/Simulation Idea
Find a virtual reality or simulation experience you could implement in your classroom. Make sure it aligns to your standards. Post the experience, the standard(s) the experience teaches or reinforces, and explain how you will implement the experience in your classroom. Do you think implementing this experience will enhance your students’ learning? Why, and how? Or, why not?
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For this learning log I have chosen a virtual reality tour through the Auschwitz concentration camp. The simulation, which is easily accessed through YouTube, features three women who survived the camp as young girls. The women are seen telling their stories along with interactive videos and still frames of different views around Auschwitz. The students that I am working with this semester are in the 6th grade and part of their Social Studies curriculum is to explain the impact of nationalism on global conflicts and genocides in the 20th and 21st centuries. I would teach the student about the Nazis and the political climate leading up to WWII. Part of our discussion would be about the experience of the Jews in concentration camps. During one day of the unit we would talk about some of the first hand accounts of survivors. I give students the opportunity to
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experience the virtual reality simulation using VR goggles if my school has them. If not, the students could also just watch the video on a computer or iPad and use the toggle option to utilize the 360 view. After giving students time to explore Auschwitz, I would bring them back together for a discussion of what they watched. Like the science teachers in Bodakaer's example, I would use a combination of traditional lecture and student exploration in order to maximize my instructional time (2015).
Fischer states that "when students are given an affective outlet in which their feelings are aroused to stimulate learning, we are increasing their opportunities to learn cognitively as well (n.d.). The Holocaust is a tough subject for young people to understand and I believe that this virtual reality would give my students a comprehensive look into Auschwitz in an age appropriate way. The stories the women share are important, but they are greatly enhanced by the students' ability to see the places the women are sharing about. In addition, many students in the United States will never get to see Auschwitz and fully understand the weight of the history that occurred there. Through virtual reality, they are given a glimpse.
Fischer states that "when students are given an affective outlet in which their feelings are aroused to stimulate learning, we are increasing their opportunities to learn cognitively as well (n.d.). The Holocaust is a tough subject for young people to understand and I believe that this virtual reality would give my students a comprehensive look into Auschwitz in an age appropriate way. The stories the women share are important, but they are greatly enhanced by the students' ability to see the places the women are sharing about. In addition, many students in the United States will never get to see Auschwitz and fully understand the weight of the history that occurred there. Through virtual reality, they are given a glimpse.
References
Bodekaer, M. (2015, October). This virtual lab will revolutionize science class. Retrieved September 18, 2019 from https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_bodekaer_this_virtual_lab_will_revolutionize_science_class/up-next
Fischer, M. (n.d.). Simulations engage students in active learning. Education World. Retrieved September 18, 2019 from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr391.shtml
WDR. (2018, January 26). Inside Auschwitz – English version in 360°/VR. Retrieved September 18, 2019 from https://youtu.be/EOM_CxAKB_Y
Fischer, M. (n.d.). Simulations engage students in active learning. Education World. Retrieved September 18, 2019 from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr391.shtml
WDR. (2018, January 26). Inside Auschwitz – English version in 360°/VR. Retrieved September 18, 2019 from https://youtu.be/EOM_CxAKB_Y