The Benefits of Virtual Reality in Education- A comparision Study

Abstract: In education, new technologies are used to improve the process of learning. Mobile has been one these technologies offerings educators a way to communicate with the students by using suitable applications for learning. Virtual reality (VR) and its use in education has long been discussed, one of the main challenges is that VR was unaffordable for educational institutes. However VR has evolved since then, the technology is up to date, cheaper and more accessible than it has ever been. This paper presents a qualitative study that examines the benefits of VR educational applications in comparison to the same application on the mobile. Xolius, an application for astronomy learning is presented and evaluated by 20 students and 5 educators through interviews. By analysing the results we have found that VR is especially effective in subjects where an interactive environment is needed. VR also offers an immersive experience, involvement and promoting active learning in comparison to the mobile application.