The Impact of Augmented Reality In eLearning

Over the years, there has been a phenomenal growth in the eLearning industry. Schools, colleges, universities, and businesses of various sizes are fulfilling their learning and development requirements through eLearning. It is a widely accepted fact that eLearning has the ability to maintain consistency irrespective of how, when or who consumes the information. Besides, an eLearning course content can be modified anytime for integrating new data with ease.

Nowadays, businesses are leveraging the benefits of video-based eLearning to ensure that their employees are learning faster and effectively. With the advent of the latest buzzwords, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), businesses are expecting further to enhance the video-based eLearning experience. They can provide a highly immersive and interactive experience to the learners. In eLearning, augmented reality has a huge potential to be more effective as a training tool as compared to the traditional training methods. Let’s understand what augmented reality is and determine how it can be advantageous for the eLearning industry.

Augmented Reality In eLearning Industry

AR is an interactive experience of a real-world environment. Whatever objects that are present in a real-world environment are enhanced by computer-generated perceptual information. AR brings digital and real-world together and ensures the successful creation of interactive and immersive experience for the learners. With this, they get the opportunity to enjoy the multi-sensory experience. Leading businesses have accumulated top augmented reality companies that provide innovative solutions to clients.

Companies can use AR directly on actual locations instead of using standard classrooms or training environments. For instance, if you are changing a nut of a power generator, the generator can be damaged if you do not use the right set of tools. In such a case, you can use an AR tool to point to the nut, and the AR application will help you in identifying which tool is required to complete the procedure correctly, without any damage to the unit. Similarly, you can use AR to train a multitude of complicated products.

Advantage of Using AR In Education

Augmented reality offers various ways of interacting with the real world. You can experiences that is not possible either in a virtual or a completely real world. Using AR, you can create immersive hybrid learning environments and combine both real and virtual objects. In addition, you can manipulate virtual objects and make a difficult phenomenon easily observable. Delivering this kind of learning experience to the learners can develop thinking skills and enhance conceptual understanding of invisible or difficult phenomena, and rectify any misconceptions.

Learners can more effectively develop the knowledge and skills through AR as compared to through technology-enhanced learning environments. You can integrate multiple sources of information to reduce the cognitive workload. You can engage the learners in various learning activities and improve their motivation to learn with the immersion and interaction features of augmented reality. Also, by delivering a high level of realism, using AR, you can provide highly interactive experiences and can generate appropriate learner activity and interactivity.

In a learning process, interaction with the real world is important and AR is one of the effective ways to facilitate this interaction.

Creation of Simulated Working Environments

The best benefit of online learning for the learners is that they can form an environment where the users can experiment freely. We all learn from our mistakes. So, when the users work in an environment where there is no fear of unpleasant consequences, it is much likely that they remember the right way to do things.

Gamification

With many online learning management systems using gamification, AR can be directly applied to it. With the AR training module, you can reward your employees for showing effective performance at their routine work, which will encourage them to execute their work effectively and improve their performance.

Immersive Learning

Users are usually distracted with emails and notifications from social media channels while using a smartphone or tablet for online training software. To eliminate this issue, you can use eLearning content with interactive multimedia elements to engage your learners/employees. AR enables you to use eLearning courses with 360° video for engaging the users and removing distractions for them.

Motion Tracking

Two of the augmented reality experiences include motion and gesture tracking. Businesses generally use them to choose menus or to engage with video game-based environments. You can use this technology in LMS to track learner’s progress and ensure that they are fulfilling the business requirements without fail. It will not only boost real-time training performance but improve interactivity with instant feedback.

Final Thoughts

To conclude, AR is getting matured day by day and can effectively enhance the entire eLearning experience. With AR, learners or employees of an organization can efficiently promote knowledge creation and transfer in their own way. With a digital context, AR training creates an enhanced environment enabling the learners to practice their skills and make mistakes to learn from them.