“Virtual reality in libraries is common sense”

Published date28 August 2019
Date28 August 2019
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-06-2019-0040
Pages10-13
AuthorFelicia Ann Smith
Subject MatterLibrary & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library technology,Library & information services
“Virtual reality in libraries is common sense”
Felicia Ann Smith
I am proposing an Immersive Virtual
Reality program to teach Information
Literacy skills; with the added bonus of
combating Fake News. The main
objective of this program is to illustrate
that “common sense” used in real-life
(RL) is the same “critical evaluation
skillset” needed in the academic world.
Virtual Reality (VR) is a computer-
generated technology that creates a
simulated world in which users interact
with visual and auditory elements
rendered or projected through headgear,
such as Oculus or HTC Vive.
VR is active learning and is more
engaging than lectures filled with jargon
terminology. Students struggle when
introduced to unfamiliar words, describing
abstract ideas that are not tied to any
personal experience to which students can
relate the concepts of the lesson. In contrast,
using VR, provides the opportunity for
students to immediately translate RL
experiences into a comparable academic
experience so that the academic lesson/
concept can be associated to a realistic
personalized memorable experience. VR
utilizes an experiential learning approach
whereby students can use personal
experiences (as opposed to books and
lectures) to conceptualize and apply the
knowledge being conveyed.
VR can transmit knowledge without
students feeling they are being preached
at. My program replaces the mundane,
jargon-filled, lecture-based approach to
instruction with dynamic, recognizable,
familiar situations that makes learning
more comprehendible as well as
improves student learning/retention.
The following proverb sums up these
issues, perfectly:
I hear, I forget. I see, I remember. I do, I
understand.
Now more than ever, it is essential
for students to be taught to critically
evaluate information in order to combat
“Fake News.” A crucial component of
Information Literacy is Digital Literacy.
In this age of Fake News, it can be hard
to differentiate between credible
sources versus click bait websites. My
program places students into scenarios
that highlight the confusing nature of
discerning truth from falsehood. My
program shows students that they
inherently possess the cognitive tools to
make necessary distinctions; but they
just need to understand how to transfer
their deductive reasoning skills to
academic pursuits.
My program proves to students that
Information Literacy is not restricted to
homework but is equally useful in their
everyday life. To achieve meaningful
learning students, need to truly
understand the real-world application of
their lessons. Instead of antiquated
lectures replete with foreign jargon, my
program uses RL situations to make
lessons easily identifiable and therefore
more meaningful.
Galileo stated it brilliantly:
You cannot teach a man anything; you
can only help him to find it within
himself.
Since I have explained the reasons, I
am proposing this Information Literacy
VR program, I will now describe the
details and logistics:
Program objective
To create an Immersive Virtual
Reality experience that makes it
obvious to users that they critically
evaluate information, in everyday
situations, by simply using their
common sense. The goal is for users
to recognize that the exact same
discernment is required when
conducting academic research.
The aforementioned is what game
developers call a “Reveal”, where through
playing we reveal information that allows
the player to come to a moment of
understanding and realization, “Aha! Of
course!” The reveal is a pleasant
experience for players and an excellent
way of making a new concept stick.
Concept phase
The first phase requires finalizing
goals for the user experience and
exploring comparable educational VR
products such as Discovery VR and
Google Expeditions.
“The infinity library”
The setting is a futuristic 3-D version
of the real Stanford Library but combined
with “Magical Surrealism.” For branding
purposes, users ascend a virtual replica of
Stanford’s iconic grand staircase. At the
top the grand staircase, the simulation of
the real library ends and is replaced by an
amazing new fantastical library world.
Everything now looks different and the
laws of physics don’t apply. Corridors
appear at impossible angles.
The librarian materializes in the form
of a floating, pulsating, glowing orb that
is not in humanoid form but rather in the
shape of a Librarian-Bot. The Librarian-
Bot’s function is to explain the goals
and instructions for each scenario. This
Librarian-bot welcomes users to the
Infinity Library, where all possibilities
can happen. Users must be the judge of
what they see. Users have to question
everything they see, to get them into the
correct frame of mind for the coming
challenges/scenario. It will also
elucidate the fact that inside of the
Infinity Library, the impossible is
possible, and that this library does not
operate at all like its real-world
counterpart.
The Librarian-Bot guides users
through the choices available and the
reflection components, after each
selection is made. Reflection
components ensure that the desired
lesson was learned. If the reflection
result was not satisfactory there can be
additional prompts to make the point
more clearly. Based on user feedback,
we can make the situations more
difficult by changing pre-set variables.
Alternatively, if users are struggling, we
can reduce the complexity level.
10 LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 6 2019, pp. 10-13, V
CEmerald Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/LHTN-06-2019-0040

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