Check out the virtual laboratory at Saimaa's Vocational College Sampo

The development of learning environments utilizing the virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) of process technology at Saimaa Vocational College in Sampo began in autumn 2020. The first VR and AR instructional content is now available. Lecturer Susanna Kankaanranta has developed the introduction to the filter unit in virtual reality. Try VR content through a browser here: https://wvr.li/m05ek1. If you have VR glasses then you can test the VR experience at https://wvr.li/ with code 582-6921.

“The teaching material is easy to gather in the same place in the VR environment, and it is possible to get to know the equipment remotely,” says Susanna. “In an authentic environment, you can experiment with where a part is and see how the equipment works as if it were really there.”

During the coronavirus crisis, VR and AR learning environments have been very useful for both distance and hybrid learning. They can be used to practice work situations using simulation in a virtual environment. However, the virtualization of degrees is still a long way off. Jussi Kajala, Chief Operating Officer of 3DBear, estimates that even at their best, only one percent of degrees have been built in VR and AR environments. “In the Sote sector, e.g. there is already some content in the growth and inclusion part of the degree, even virtual sub-screens, but this work is only just beginning. Crises - as usual - offer significant leaps in technological development, and VR and AR learning environments in vocational education are experiencing this leap right now,” says Jussi.

Lecturer Päivi Lassila from Sampo, on the other hand, has built a laboratory presentation into virtual reality. The VR experience of the day can be tried out here via a web browser: https://wvr.li/vl6dr1. With VR glasses, the laboratory can be accessed at https://wvr.li/ with code 884-3211. Päivi has used various tools in her work in many ways, e.g. integrated Microsoft Forms with VR learning content. Forms allows students to provide open-ended answers to questions in a VR environment.

"It's great to be able to visit the laboratory remotely," commented Päivi. “Even without the coronavirus, this speeds up operations when preparation and demonstrations can be done on a computer. It saves time when the student can visit our laboratory online at any time ”.

In the next phase, Sampo's process teachers will implement a virtual safety walk in Lappeenranta and the Imatra campuses. "We can now build AR / VR content ourselves for the applications we want," say Päivi and Susanna. Aija Kettunen, Annina Lehtonen and Ari Vesterinen are also involved in the project.

Susanna Kankaanranta, lecturer at Sampo

Päivi Lassila, lecturer at Sampo