Comprehensive Guide: How Augmented Reality Is Used in Education

With the evolution of digital education, the tools used for eLearning are also advancing at a rapid pace. Earlier, students used to complain that online education sometimes seemed boring. But, the eLearning companies and service providers have started using Augmented and Virtual Reality to make it engaging! 

Today, Educationcal sectors are one of the most significant users of AR VR technology. In 2018, the market size of Augmented Reality uses in education was valued at $9.3 billion. And by 2023, it is expected to increase even further, and might reach upto $19.6 billion. Thus, augmented reality Used in education is expected to grow at a CAGR of 16.2%.?

And this rapid growth is because of the multiple benefits that it offers. In this blog, we will discuss some innovative applications of Augmented Reality in education. We will also take a look at how they benefit the learning process. So, let?s begin!

Applications of Augmented Reality in Education 

Augmented Reality has a wide range of applications in both online and offline education. It helps to make learning fun, engaging, and efficient. Let?s take a look at some of their major applications. 

AR-Based Learning Apps

Using Augmented Reality, the institutions and eLearning companies can develop interactive learning apps for their learners. These apps can be used by the junior and senior students alike. 

In fact for the younger ones, it is a great mode of having fun while learning. Some eLearning service providers mix gamification with AR VR, and develop interesting learning games for your learners. From writing and speaking a language, to increasing aptitude and math skills, these apps have wide applications in multiple subjects. 

Benefits of AR-Based Learning Apps

• The learners can use these apps anytime, anywhere. 
• They can access these apps through their mobile phones easily. 
• These apps help the juniors to take learning as fun. So, they don?t get bored of studying. 
• Studies have shown that learning through these apps helps to retain the knowledge for a longer period of time.      

There are many more benefits of using AR for eLearning. Want to know about them? Read here.                 

AR In The Classroom!????

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For Classroom based learning, the educational institutions can use AR to make learning interactive. Also, they can implement multimodal learning using AR. 

It has varied applications for different subjects. For example, for the humanities subjects, the instructors can recreate the events, stories, and geographical sceneries within the classroom itself, using Augmented Reality. While for STEM subjects, the instructors can conduct virtual experiments instantly within the classroom. 

Benefits of using AR in the Classroom

• The students can take part in virtual experiments, without any risk of injuries from dangerous tools and chemicals. 
• Also, the students can clearly understand the topics through visual presentation and experiential learning. 
• They can take part in virtual tours to important places anytime. 

AR in Distance Learning

Augmented Reality makes distance education engaging, easier, and interactive for learners. Using augmented reality, the distance learning institutions can make virtual classrooms for their learners.

These virtual classrooms allow the distance learners to have better interaction with their instructors and peers. Also, the instructors can have meaningful conversations with their learners, which will help them understand the learning style of their learners. 

Apart from virtual classrooms, AR is used to develop virtual laboratories too. It is quite significant for technical distance learning courses, as practical learning is an important part of technical education.      

Benefits of AR in Distance Learning

• The distance learning students can virtually do laboratory work in remote environments. 
• They can go on virtual field trips with their distance learning peers. 
• The instructors can interact and access their learners throughout the course using innovative AR-based assessments. 

AR in EdTech Marketing

Augmented Reality has been used for marketing and advertising for years now. And, the EdTech sector is also a part of this loop. The EdTech companies often use AR to present their services in an attractive way to their customers. In this way, they can show their customers how their services would actually look and feel like.    

Even for educational institutions, AR can change the dynamics of marketing. Using Augmented Reality, the educational institutions can generate virtual classrooms and instill them in their website. Any student visiting their website can take a virtual tour of their classrooms, laboratories, libraries, and other facilities. Even the institutions can use these virtual setups for digital marketing as well! 

Benefits of Using AR in EdTech Marketing 

• By using AR, the organizations can present the actual picture of their services to their learners. Hence, the learners can get a better feel of the services. 
• The students can take a tour of the institutions even before visiting the campus. It helps them to make quicker decisions. 
• Augmented Reality attracts the attention of the consumers. Hence, the advertisements and marketing campaigns get greater success. 

AR in Educational Museums

There was a time when real skeletons, preserved dead bodies of animals, plants, and insects were kept in scientific museums for study. But, the new wave of animal protection has forced the scientific community to reduce such practices. So, what?s the way out then? How can our young generation conduct scientific studies without harming any creature? 

The answer is simple. Use Augmented Reality! Using AR, the institutions and museum officials can design virtual setups, where the learners can learn about every aspect of different organisms, scientific processes and experiments, and even, the universe itself!       

Benefits of AR in Educational Museums

• Using AR, the museums can generate spatial environments and showcase the process taking place in the universe. It is otherwise difficult to show in a normal museum. 
• Now, the learners can not only study about the bones and specimens, but they can witness the entire lifecycle of such creatures using AR-based motion graphics. 
• The museums can install shorter versions of their museums online using AR, and reach a wider consumer base.                    

AR in Professional Training

In professional training, especially medical and technical training, different types of instruments and machineries are used. Some of them are dangerous, while some of them are not easily available. So, instead of using the real instruments, institutions often use AR-based virtual training setups. 

In these setups, the instructors can show their learners how to use the tools, without the risk of injuries. Also, certain professional training like aviation training can be made more efficient using Augmented Reality. Using virtual flight simulation, the trainees can gain first hand experience of flying an aircraft before they land into a real cockpit.

Benefits of Using AR in Professional Training           

• Using augmented reality, virtual training setups can be installed anywhere. The institutions do not need to maintain a full-time training infrastructure for this purpose any more. 
• Since the use of AR directly replaces the use of costly instruments, it reduces the cost of training, and makes it affordable for learners. 
• The learners get first-hand training in life-like situations. So, AR enhances the efficiency of training.     

AR in STEM Education

When it comes to STEM, the impact of AR can be ground-breaking. From Engineering to Science, and from Medical to Mathematics, AR has vast applications in STEM education. 

And especially in the pandemic, the need for AR in STEM education was elevated even further. We all know that practical classes form an integral part of STEM education. But, during the lockdown, arranging practical sessions on campus was getting difficult for the institutions. This initiated the use of virtual labs. Using AR and VR, the learners could easily perform the experiments virtually from remote environments. 

Using AR for STEM Education has multiple benefits for both institutions and students. Let?s take a look at some of them. 

Benefits of AR in STEM Education

• Using AR based virtual labs makes STEM education remotely accessible. Students can now get practical training even from their homes. 
• Using virtual modes of STEM education leads to a lot of cost-reduction for the institutions. They don?t need to maintain labs full of equipment. Also, in case of projects, they can generate virtual prototypes, instead of the real ones. 
• The instructors can use AR based teaching modules to make learning interactive and easy. The students can understand the difficult topics easily by seeing the augmented presentation of complex topics. 

Final Words

Augmented Reality plays a vital role in all forms of education. It helps to make learning fun and engaging for the learners. Also, the institutions can reduce the cost of delivering education using virtual setups. But, accurate implementation of augmented reality uses in education need professional expertise. 

That is why, the institutions often need help from professional AR solutions providers. If you are also looking for such service providers, then Acadecraft will definitely help you out! We have certified Augmented Reality experts who develop the best suitable AR education solutions for our clients.