Augmented Reality's Role in the Classroom by Zion

Augmented Reality's Role in the Classroom by Zion - February 2018 Scholarship Essay

Augmented Reality's Role in the Classroom
Over the years, many advents and strides have been made in the field of education. Some of the most easily identifiable examples are the Internet, personal computers, and SmartBoards. However, 20 years into the future, I believe that Augmented Reality (AR) will become an integral part of the classroom.
I make this claim based on its already promising future. Currently AR technology is used in smartphone gaming. Such as in 2016 saw the release of Niantic’s iOS and Android game, Pokémon Go. This game was revolutionary for its seamless use of the user’s rear camera to overlap AR game sprites with the environment. The use of AR here made smooth and fluid gameplay, but this is only the beginning of the budding technology. Practical uses for AR technology span all age ranges and all academic disciplines. For instance, a fifth-grade class where the students can see a virtual recreation of dinosaurs to better understand their sheer size and magnitude. Where AR supersedes traditional methods is the ability to interact digitally with the content. In the dinosaur example, a student would be able to scale the digital dinosaur to a pocket size to comprehend the ratios of the dinosaur instead of being limited in seeing it in only one size. In post-secondary education, AR can be used in the medical field to understand human structures in 3D space to better be prepared for surgical procedures. Whereas, now, medical students would be limited to seeing human structures in textbooks and online, and in very expensive cases with plastic dummies or cadavers. The benefits of AR technology are highlighted by its price, once AR is widespread it will be very affordable for educators of the young and old.
In 2038, I think that will see AR technology in every classroom, from kindergarten classrooms, to universities’ lecture halls.