VR-Technology in Teaching: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

Use of virtual reality (VR) to teach in upper-secondary schools has become more common during recent years. This article discusses the implementation and testing of VR to teach Swedish in upper-secondary school, a pilot study carried out during the 2020/2021. The purpose of this study is to investigate how VR can be used to teach Swedish, what possibilities and challenges arise from using VR as a learning resource. The method used was inspired by action-based research, where teachers and researchers together, in a symmetrical and complementary approach, explore and evaluate an action. Central theoretical perspectives were TPACK-competences and design principles for gamified learning. The results indicate that students’ motivation increases by possibilities to co-create, co-design and customize their own learning, where the students solve problems and consider and reflect on their own learning. Both students and teachers point out didactical potentials and explain that VR technology offers many opportunities, but cannot exist on its own. It must function in accordance with the curriculum and regulatory documents of the educational institution.