Some universities are already developing virtual twins on their campuses as elements of educational innovation.
The usefulness of teaching materials (including free essays examples/books, additional apps, and digital platforms) as an element of educational innovation is one of the most salient lessons learned in recent years in the education sector. Teachers and students worldwide managed to transfer the classroom experience to their homes, adapting and creating new educational resources. Together they opened the door to hybrid education. An unstoppable transition whose next stop could be in the metaverse creating metaverses.
Breaking down walls in education
The truth is that the development of the metaverse, that kind of parallel virtual universe in which we can do a little bit of everything, can revolutionize reality as we know it. Education is no exception to this trend, especially amid the transition to a hybrid model.
Experts hope that the development of EdTech and its contribution to a hybrid model will serve to universalize access to education honestly and that it will do so thanks to its main virtue: it makes it possible to take classrooms beyond a given physical location, be it the walls of a rural school or those of the most elite campus.
The use of technology and teaching materials (be it traditional like books, free essays examples, infographics, or digital – apps, platforms etc.)adapted to the new reality of hybrid education makes it easier for a student to receive a quality education from anywhere and whatever his or her circumstances.
In fact, true hybrid education, which will almost completely break down the physical and virtual classroom barriers, will not come about through video tutorials or Zoom classes. At least, that is the opinion of ten American universities already experimenting with virtual twins of their campuses. Students can access these 3D versions of themselves with virtual reality glasses.
This idea is backed by Meta Immersive Learning, a Meta project collaborating with a virtual reality company to create these ten “metaverses.” In addition to funding, this Meta spin-off provides Quest 2 virtual reality packs to universities. Each virtual campus will be built on a platform called EngageVR.
These live, synchronous virtual campuses are associated with real universities. Among them is Morehouse College, based in Atlanta, Georgia, which already offered nine classes in the metaverse to some 400 students from various disciplines last year. By next fall, 15 courses will be offered across its campus.
Learning about Napoleon at Waterloo
In these classes, didactic materials become elements of educational innovation capable of revolutionizing students’ learning. Beyond the aesthetic aspect or the technological hype they may provoke, the possibilities that open up if neuroeducation concepts are combined with this type of technology are enormous, especially if we consider that elements such as surprise or emotion are crucial to getting the most out of education.
It is still too early to know whether, in the future, we will all be able to send our avatar to class -or to play mus- to any campus in the world. What seems clear is that innovation to develop an effective hybrid education model continues. Metaversities are just one more example of this.
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