Adding immersive virtual reality to a science lab simulation causes more presence but less learning

Immersive virtual field trips in education: A mixed‐methods study on elementary students' presence and perceived learning

“…This study found that the level of this feeling was higher in all the three subcomponents of presence in immersive VFTs compared to traditional VFTs. This is consistent with previous studies' findings that the use of immersive VR displays increases presence (Makransky et al , ; Makransky & Lilleholt, ; Moreno & Mayer, ). As discussed in the literature review, earlier studies comparing high and low immersive VR mainly focused on virtual simulations; hence, a connection between these studies and the current study should be made with caution.…”

“…The use of HMDs enables students to have more embodied experiences by creating a first‐person perspective within virtual scenes using a 3D inertial sensor that tracks and monitors users' head movements (Xu et al , ). Although the increased presence sometimes enhances students' achievements (eg, Alhalabi, ), it may sometimes have no (Moreno & Mayer, ) or even negative effect (Makransky et al , ) on learning, which is consistent with the current study's results. According to students' responses, while the immediacy of control enabled by HMDs allowed them to change and manipulate the views within VR (Lee et al , ), it also created a feeling of isolation by making them focus solely on the virtual space, which they perceived as unsuitable for learning.…”

“…However, the enhanced presence did not directly predict learning effectiveness. Unlike the evidence showing that HMDs provide a more enhanced level of presence, studies focusing on the relationship between perceived presence and learning have both positive (Alhalabi, ; Passig, Tzuriel, & Eshel‐Kedmi, ) to neutral (Moreno & Mayer, ) and negative (Makransky, Terkildsen, & Mayer, ) results. For example, Makransky et al () found that an immersive VR science simulation with HMDs not only increased learners' presence but also induced a higher cognitive load than the less immersive desktop‐based VR simulation, which, according to them, resulted in lower learning outcomes.…”

A gender matching effect in learning with pedagogical agents in an immersive virtual reality science simulation

“…The fact that boys had higher social presence with Marie but learned less with her suggests that they payed less attention to the learning material in her presence. There are several examples of studies that have investigated learning and presence in immersive VR that suggest that higher presence does not necessarily lead to more learning (e.g., Makransky, Terkildsen, et al, ; R. Moreno & Mayer, ; Parong & Mayer, ). It is possible that the role of presence in developing learning is not simple but depends on a number of other variables and instructional design features.…”

Motivational and cognitive benefits of training in immersive virtual reality based on multiple assessments

“…The use of VR as a platform to deliver educational content is one example of an educational technology that has increasingly been used in education over the last decade (Blascovich & Bailenson, ; Dawley & Dede, ; Makransky, Terkildsen, & Mayer, ; Makransky, Wismer, & Mayer, ; Parong & Mayer, ; Standen & Brown, ; van Ginkel et al, ). The growing availability of commercially available head‐mounted displays (HMDs) means that educational and training applications of VR are now readily accessible to the general public (Buttussi & Chittaro, ).…”