Augmented reality apps are a great way to bring learning materials, concepts and activities into your students’ real-world environments. With the growing ubiquity of smartphones, AR has become a convenient tool for bringing digital content onto physical platforms like paper maps or textbooks. With that in mind, let’s explore the benefits of augmented reality in education:

Visual Learning

Virtual and augmented reality can be a fantastic tool for expanding the learning potential of visuals. For example, if you’re teaching a unit on oceans, you could make a VR version of your class’s favorite beach, allowing your students to explore, smell, touch and taste their way through a tropical paradise. You could also create augmented reality visual maps to help students visualize the locations of their favorite museums and landmarks. Augmented reality visual learning can help students process information more easily, allowing them to learn more quickly, retain information longer and feel more connected to the material.

Hands-on Learning

Augmented reality devices are particularly useful when it comes to hands-on learning. This method of instruction aims to make understanding concepts and processes more concrete and real, encouraging students to apply what they’ve learned in practical contexts. For example, with AR you can create a hands-on learning activity where students learn about the properties of batteries by building their own AR lamp. You could also create a hands-on activity where students learn about genetics by creating their own plant seeds. Hands-on learning activities are perfect for encouraging creative thinking and help students cultivate the critical-thinking skills needed to become independent learners.

Multimedia Learning

AR is particularly useful for bringing together visuals, audio and video in interactive learning environments. For example, with AR, you can create a multimedia learning environment where students learn about how to build a website by creating their own website. You could also create an augmented reality course where students learn about the basics of computer programming by building their own apps. As a result, students can learn about new concepts and technologies by creating their own visuals and audio to go along with the information.

Collaborative Learning

AR can also be used to encourage collaborative learning. With AR, you can create a social learning environment where students learn about the basics of business management by creating their own AR workplace. This type of AR environment can help to foster critical-thinking skills by encouraging students to critically analyze and debate the business operations they’re creating. As a result, students can engage in collaborative learning activities while working together in social groups.

Personal and Professional Development

Augmented reality can help to foster personal and professional development in a number of ways. For example, you can use AR to create course-specific assignments where students learn about new topics and skills by applying them in real-world environments. You could also use AR to create AR-based assessments where students are assessed on the specific skills they’re learning. This kind of assessment can be particularly helpful for assessment-converted learning environments.

Conclusion

With technology constantly evolving, the application of augmented reality in education is bound to expand far beyond what we see today. In fact, the true potential of AR will be fully realized once we begin to look beyond the surface at how AR can be used to transform our daily experiences. Given its many benefits, it’s clear that augmented reality is a technology that will only continue to grow in popularity. And for good reason too; it’s a great way to bring digital content into your students’ real-world environments, reinforce learning and make learning more efficient.