Take Your Class on Expeditions!

Expeditions by Google is an Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) app that not only takes students around the world to explore and learn about various places and topics related to the arts, science, history and more, it brings concepts that are abstract to reality through 360° scenes and 3D objects. I have already downloaded the app and, since I do not have access to a VR viewer currently, I am exploring the AR features and it is pretty cool! After my school is done with Spring Break, I plan on using the app with my second graders for virtual field trips and various science and social studies topics.

Expeditions is a free app on Google Play and the App Store. The AR and VR settings are both free to explore, but to engage with the VR, a VR viewer must be used. Google Cardboard is a VR viewer that works for smartphones with screen sizes that are 4 to 7 inches wide and is priced very reasonably (around $15). The Daydream View VR viewer only works with certain phones such as Google, Samsung, Motorola, and a few others, but it is a bit pricey (around $100). There are other VR viewers from Google that are reasonably priced (between $6-$40, although most products are in the $10-$20 range) and work similarly to Google Cardboard. With the AR setting, you use the physical space around you to project objects in 3D and the 360° view. There is not extra gadgets or costs for the AR setting, which may be beneficial for teachers or school librarians as it can be used anywhere you are.

This video shows how Ames Middle School Students used Google Expeditions to visit the Holocaust Museum. The video focuses on the VR aspect of the app but also shows how AR is compatible with students’ learning experience.

On the app, users can select expeditions by topics or by VR/AR capabilities. A search box is also provided for users to search beyond what is provided on the homepage. Expeditions has a library feature that allows users to access tours they have already experienced and to create their very own AR/VR tours. The class feature grants students and teachers access to connect on the same Wi-Fi to take a group tour, lead by the teacher. The teacher can point out specific features on the tour for students to see, click, and learn more about. The teacher can also pause the tour at any moment to have group or partner discussions or independent reflections.

Massis (2015) states, “using such [AR/VR] tools to encourage higher levels of information literacy through all of the combined tools available to them is critical to student success,” because “students are engaged and gain proficient information literacy skills,” (p. 798). Student engagement almost always guarantees student learning, and AR/VR technologies can be a gift for students and teachers who are looking for meaningful learning experiences.

Richard Byrne’s 5 Tips for New Google Expeditions Users gives teachers a great starting point in how to get started with Expeditions in the classroom. Within his post, Byrne includes videos explaining how to use some of Expeditions’ features within the classroom. He also created an excellent video demonstration (below) of how teachers or school librarians can use the class feature to go on an AR/VRtour. This is so amazing because it allows students to go beyond reading information and looking at pictures in a textbook or online. The AR and VR Expeditions “takes” students to the places they are learning about and brings to life objects they are studying.

Expeditions can also be used for quick AR and VR field trips that immerse students in topics they may be learning in social studies or science. Students can “go” on a field trip as a mini-lesson before starting a unit. For example, a science class about to tackle a unit on animal camouflage could view the “Animal Camouflage” and/or “Camouflage” tours on day one of the unit and have partner discussions or write down their observations. Students can be “taken” to over 900 different VR Expeditions and over 100 AR Expeditions.

When thinking about whether or not to purchase VR accessories, I do not think teachers should get in the mindset that student learning is significantly impacted by choosing one or the other. Some may argue that VR is better because it separates you from reality and literally surrounds you in a virtual world that you interact with. It can also be argued that AR is just as meaningful for student learning because they are still learning in a hands-on, descriptive, and interactive way. I do not think that one is better than the other and it depends on each teacher’s classroom needs when deciding whether or not to purchase VR accessories. Goerner (2016) expresses, “AR enhances the information we perceive with our senses…it immerse[s] users into the experience in a way that makes learning more meaningful,” (p. 19). I bought the Merge Cube for my second grade students this school year which, like Expeditions, has both VR and AR capabilities. I chose not to purchase VR accessories this year, but my students (when we were still in school) could not get any more excited to interact with our AR device every day. As long as we, the teachers, make learning fun and meaningful to students, we have been successful in doing our job.

References:

Goerner, P. (2016). Augmented reality. What’s next?. School Library Journal, 62(9), 19-20.

Massis, B. (2015). Using virtual and augmented reality in the library. New Library World, 116(11/12), 796-799.