Virtual reality presentation held at Sussex Academy

James Wheatley of VRWheatley and the University of Delaware visited Sussex Academy Jan. 17 to demonstrate the educational platforms available through augmented reality systems.

Students in 10th to 12th grades from the elective class Programs, Applications and Media were given the opportunity to explore a variety of virtual reality apps. Students visited a virtual animal anatomy lab that allowed them to view detailed, lifelike models of animal anatomy, an environmental building lab, a career exploration lab that allows users to choose from a variety of jobs they can virtually explore, a museum-like virtual reality encyclopedia and an interactive sportsmanship game. Students also participated in a communication exercise in which the class utilized the technology to collaboratively complete a series of tasks.

Wheatley, a frontrunner in Delaware's evolving virtual reality field, said, "The educational terrain for virtual reality is changing daily, and those with experience in virtual reality will have their pick of the millions of jobs being created in the field. Already, automotive companies are using this technology for their training centers, universities are using it for medical training and labs, and every day a new application is developed for it. It is a new frontier for engineers, designers, artists and computer experts."

Course instructor Andie Davis was thrilled to see how excited the students were about the technology. "I hope to eventually find cost-effective ways to bring aspects of this technology into all of my classes, to offer students a new perspective and a chance to immerse themselves in their learning," Davis said. "Anything that creates excitement in students about learning and trying something new is an asset to their education and in this case, exposes them to a new career field as well."

Sussex Academy is a public charter, tuition-free school in Georgetown. Serving sixth through 12th grades, the school practices a project-based learning approach, and all 11th- and 12th-grade students are enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program. For more information, contact Gina Derrickson at 302-856-3636 or gina.derrickson@saas.k12.de.us. For more information about VRWheatley, go to www.vrwheatley.com.