50 Creative Ways to use ClassVR | Generation Ocean: Coral Reefs

Generation Ocean: Coral Reefs | GEOGRAPHY & SCIENCE | Age 11+

ANGARI Foundation & Academy of the Holy Names, Florida, USA

Learning Aims:

• To identify corals as animals and recognize their common forms.
• To describe how corals form reefs and understand reef composition and features.
• To explain a coral reef’s geographical, societal, and scientific importance.

CONTEXT

Using virtual reality and 360 film, 3D printed and fossil coral specimens and related lessons, students were introduced to corals and reef ecosystems in preparation for a field trip to the Florida Keys. This served as important pre-learning and pre-exposure to these concepts, as it was the majority of students’ first exposure to the topic. It helped students understand what to expect in the field, provided a solid foundation for deeper learning, and served as a springboard for discussions about the subject area.

PRACTICAL SESSION

Generation Ocean Video: Coral Reefs&Underwater Playlist

First, students were introduced to corals, the reefs they form, and their local reef tract. The students were then given the opportunity to explore corals and reefs independently through a series of observation-oriented stations. At one station, the students accompanied coral scientists on a research expedition, both above and below water, via viewing of the 360 film. Generation Ocean: Coral Reefs in virtual reality. The remaining stations asked the students to examine, draw/describe, and identify modern and fossil coral skeletons. The students were asked to compare what they learned of ancient and modern corals and the environmental history of Florida to better understand how Florida coral reefs have changed through time.

IMPACT ON LEARNING

The students were engaged, asked thoughtful questions, and readily drew connections to other topics that they’d covered in their courses. Their lab notebook pages demonstrated a strong attention to detail and accurate application of the introduced coral vocabulary. The virtual reality expedition helped the students understand and anticipate what they would see and experience underwater on the reef. This alleviated student apprehension about entering the water and resulted in a cohort of students that was eager to get into the field and apply what they’d learned. Once in the fifield, the students were immediately engaged and were able to make coral identififications while snorkelling in an unfamiliar environment.

The students are engaged in the underwater world.

Nibiru Technology is the exclusive reseller of ClassVR in the mainland China. If you are an educator in China, you can buy ClassVR from us and we will offer you local supports, like online/offline training and after-sales service. If you are interested in building a product like ClassVR, we can provide you custom OS with the third-party custom hardware manufactured by our ODM/OEM partners. What's more, if you are interested in reselling ClassVR to international or bilingual schools or planetariums etc, we welcome you to be our distributor.

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