Possible Application of Virtual Reality in Geography Teaching

  • Ivan Stojšić University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
  • Anđelija Ivkov Džigurski University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
  • Olja Maričić University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Education in Sombor, Sombor, Republic of Serbia
  • Ljubica Ivanović Bibić University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
  • Smiljana Đukičin Vučković University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia

Abstract

Virtual reality represents simulated three-dimensional environment created by hardware and software, which providing realistic experience and possibility of interaction to the end-user. Benefits provided by immersive virtual reality in educational setting were recognised in the past decades, however mass application was left out due to the lack of development and high price. Intensive development of new platforms and virtual reality devices in the last few years started up with Oculus Rift, and subsequently accelerated in the year 2014 by occurrence of Google Cardboard. Nowadays, for the first time in history, immersive virtual reality is available to millions of people. In the mid 2015 Google commenced developing Expeditions Pioneer Program aiming to massively utilise the Google Cardboard platform in education. Expeditions and other VR apps can enhance geography teaching and learning. Realistic experience acquired by utilisation of virtual reality in teaching process significantly overcome possibilities provided by images and illustrations in the textbook. Besides literature review on usage of virtual reality in education this paper presents suggestion of VR mobile apps that can be used together with the Google Cardboard head mounted displays (HMDs) in geography classes, thereby emphasising advantages and disadvantages as well as possible obstacles which may occur in introducing the immersive virtual reality in the educational process.

Author Biographies

Ivan Stojšić, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
PhD student (PhD programme: Teaching Methodology of Natural Sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography), Mathematics and Informatics)
Anđelija Ivkov Džigurski, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
Full professor
Olja Maričić, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Education in Sombor, Sombor, Republic of Serbia
Assisstant
Ljubica Ivanović Bibić, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
Assistant professor
Smiljana Đukičin Vučković, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Tourism, and Hotel Management, Novi Sad, Republic of Serbia
Assistant professor

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Published
2017-03-18
How to Cite
Stojšić, I., Ivkov Džigurski, A., Maričić, O., Ivanović Bibić, L., & Đukičin Vučković, S. (2017). Possible Application of Virtual Reality in Geography Teaching. Journal of Subject Didactics, 1(2), 83-96. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.438169