Photo: NetDragon Websoft
Earlier this month, a Bloomberg Article reported on the topic of virtual reality and it's possible entrance into education, especially in China. It explained that many parents in China wanted to "give their kids an edge", which as an immigrant from Hong Kong, I could testify towards. We're interested in using Virtual Reality to acquire this so called advantage. This would make China a perfect testing site for this product. NetDragon wants to perform a variety of tracking tests which could help the release of these products. For example, tracking the pupil activity of the children using these products in the classroom. The program also hopes to be able to evaluate human behavior while using digital products to detect diseases within a person. In terms of education, they hope that virtual reality will be a useful resource in detecting interests in children from a young age as well as their learning abilities.
Yes, there are unlimited benefits involving the implementation of Virtual Reality in education. However, Virtual Reality also has many negatives to the program. An issue which was mentioned in the Bloomberg Article a few times is piracy. As of now, many tech giants have a plethora of knowledge for every person that touches technology. For example, a search engine such as Google basically knows the ins and out of your entire life. From your browsing history to your purchase history, Google collects data about every aspect of your life. That's how they tailor all their ads towards your areas of interest. The issue with Virtual Reality and NetDragon's tracking (such as human behavior and pupil activity) is that it takes knowing a person to another level. Before, it was only knowledge of your personal life, now it has escalated to knowledge of your entire body. Obviously, if this valuable information is used responsibly, it should not be an issue. However, the determining usage will come down to trust, and parents in China sure feel that the rewards of a good quality education outweigh the risks.
Personally, I 've had multiple chances to try virtual reality. It sure is an exhilarating experience, but I do admit that sometimes I feel dizzy from using a VR device. However, in my case, the fun outweighs the dizziness. If you want to try a VR device, you can easily find tech stores such as Microsoft or Best Buy and sometimes they do VR demos at no cost. If you want to buy a VR device, the budget ranges from $10- $800. I recommend the Google Cardboard if you just want to experience Virtual Reality. It is very affordable, while still providing a modest experience. If you haven't tried out Virtual Reality, I really recommend it!
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