Metaverse to Enhance Experimental Learning in Higher Education

• Published in: International Conference on Information Technology Research (Online) pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: Wickramasinghe, M.H.M., Liyanage, S. R.
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 05.12.2024
• Subjects: 21st century skills; Collaboration; Computer crashes; Digital Education; Ecosystems; Education; Electronic learning; Experiential Learning; Games; Metaverse; Snow; Three-dimensional displays; Training
• ISSN: 2831-3399
• DOI: 10.1109/ICITR64794.2024.10857777

The rapid growth of technology has resulted in innovative methods to improve education, and traditional learning has evolved. The purpose of this study is to explore how the education sector can utilise the ecosystem of the metaverse to improve 21st-century skills. It emphasises critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaborative information exchange in immersive and interactive learning spaces. The concept of the Metaverse was first introduced in American writer Neal Stephenson's science fiction novel Snow Crash in 1992. In Snow Crash, the characters build into symbols and interact in the Metaverse, a three-dimensional (3D) virtual world. [1] The metaverse refers to a virtual reality existing beyond reality. It is a compound word of "meta," meaning transcendence and virtuality, and "universe," meaning world and universe. The term "digitized earth" refers to a new world created by digital media like smartphones and the internet. The metaverse is a collection of developing virtual and expanded reality technologies that will provide a more vivid experience than the current internet. [2] The study aims to discover the possibility of using the metaverse to achieve experiential learning in education, to facilitate learning by fostering learners' cognitive, behavioural, and sociocultural engagement with the subject matter in the metaverse, and to explore the readiness of learners, teachers, and stakeholders to integrate this innovative system into the higher education. The literature review forms the basis for developing the methodology's conceptual framework and the hypotheses. This systematic investigation incorporates a mixed research approach, including quantitative and qualitative approaches to develop a model for education ecosystems to create a simulated education platform for a complex subject. A list of questions was given to selected students to find out whether students find out where metaverse has enhanced students' experimental learning and its effect on their learning distributed approach was used as the quantitative approach. Participant observations and focus group interviews have been used as the qualitative approaches. Thematic analysis has been incorporated to analyse qualitative data.