Srinagar, Sep 15: In a major development, students of at least ten districts of Jammu and Kashmir are all set to experience the benefits of Virtual Reality Labs.
The idea of setting up these Virtual Reality Labs is to develop the scientific temperament among the students.
The Virtual Reality Lab is a unique facility in which you can walk through virtual reality representations of products that are yet to be realized using virtual reality technologies.
The lab enables students and staff to visualize designs, develop immersive VR environments, and to test new VR and AR technologies.
Project Director, Samagra Shiksha, Deep Raj told Rising Kashmir that “The Government of India (GoI) has sanctioned ten Virtual Reality Labs for Jammu and Kashmir to develop a scientific temperament among the students. These labs will give the students a different type of exposure.”
He said that the department will install them in one each in ten districts of Jammu and Kashmir. “The cost of the lab would be Rs 20-25 lakhs. The students would have a Three Dimensional View (3D) to undergo the lectures of different subjects especially of the science and mathematics subject,” Raj added.
“Besides, we have decided to set-up two other types of labs in every educational zone of Jammu and Kashmir. This too is meant to develop the scientific temperament among the students so that they can compete with the students at national level,” Project Director said.
Raj further said, “With these labs, the students would be taught as to how they can learn the different subjects in an easier way. For example, the students of mathematics and science will be given educational kits which would include different tools like telescopes, and other model making equipment.”
What are virtual laboratories?
Virtual laboratories can promote conceptual understanding, especially in microscopic and abstract concepts. This ability to increase the visual impact and experience during an experiment and to visualize what is taking place can really help with student understanding.
Virtual reality (VR), is the use of computer modeling and simulation that enables a person to interact with an artificial three-dimensional (3-D) visual or other sensory environment.
These labs will allow the students to perform experiments on educational fields, such as Physics or Chemistry or biology in 3D multiuser worlds where users are represented by avatars and they are offered a wide range of communication and collaboration on services in order to simulate efficiently a real learning experiment.
Through this lab, students work on a virtual course in a lab setting, while a course facilitator at the school monitors students and provides classroom management. Instruction is provided both synchronously and asynchronously by the Virtual teacher and through the online course.
