“It’s Like I’m Really There”: Using VR Experiences for STEM Career Development
“It’s Like I’m Really There”: Using VR Experiences for STEM Career Development
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DOI：
10.1007/s10956-021-09926-z
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发表时间：
2021-07
影响因子：
4.4
通讯作者：
Yang Jiang;Vitaliy Popov;Yaoran Li;Perla Myers;O. Dalrymple;Joi A. Spencer
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Yang Jiang;Vitaliy Popov;Yaoran Li;Perla Myers;O. Dalrymple;Joi A. Spencer
研究表明，学生进入科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）职业生涯的可能性可以通过促进和保持学生在中学期间对STEM的兴趣来增加，这是学生兴趣开始巩固的关键发展阶段。吸引学生学习STEM的一种方法是通过技术增强的学习环境和经验，这可以激发和培养追求STEM职业所需的长期兴趣。虚拟现实（VR）可以潜在地增加所有学生获得此类STEM相关体验的机会，因为它具有教育和技术上的优势。目前，对于K-12学生的VR和职业发展之间的交叉点几乎没有探索。因此，这项研究旨在通过探索VR 360视频在STEM职业探索中的使用来解决这一差距。数据收集使用焦点小组访谈39主要是拉丁裔中学生谁参加了夏季充实计划。这些采访是在VR 360视频活动之后立即进行的，该活动以女性角色和/或少数民族角色为特色，以最好地支持在STEM领域代表性不足的学生。研究结果支持VR作为职业发展工具的潜力，只要考虑内容，可能的身体副作用和脚手架。研究和实践的影响进行了讨论。
Research suggests that the likelihood of students entering into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers can be increased by promoting and maintaining students’ interest in STEM during middle school years, a critical developmental stage when students’ interests begin to solidify. One way to attract students to STEM is through technology-enhanced learning environments and experiences, which can spark and cultivate the long-term interest needed to pursue STEM careers. Virtual reality (VR) can potentially increase access to such STEM-related experiences for all students due to its educational and technological affordances. Currently, there has been little exploration of the intersection between VR and career development for K-12 students. This study, therefore, aims to address this gap by exploring the use of VR 360 videos for STEM career exploration. Data were collected using focus group interviews with 39 primarily Latinx middle school students who participated in the summer enrichment program. These interviews were conducted immediately after a VR 360 video activity that featured female characters and/or characters from racial minorities in order to best support students who are underrepresented in STEM fields. The findings support the potential of VR as a tool for career development as long as content, possible physical side effects, and scaffolding are considered. The implications for research and practice are discussed.