North Carolina universities going to class in the Metaverse
INFORMATION. VIRTUAL REALITY IS OFFERING A WAY FOR STUDENTS TO GO TO COLLEGE WITHOUT PHYSICALLY GOING TO COLLEGE. TAKE A LOOK. THIS IS THE CAMPUS OF NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY. IN A VIRTUAL REALITY. STARTING THIS SUMMER ONLINE, STUDENTS IN THE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MAY BE ABLE TO TAKE CLASSES IN THE METAVERSE. WHAT WE’RE LOOKING TO DO IS GIVE OUR ONLINE STUDENTS THE AGGIE EXPERIENCE SO THEY CAN ACTUALLY CREATE A SENSE OF COMMUNITY AND WE CAN DO THAT IN A VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT. WE COULD ACTUALLY HAVE OUR ALL OF OUR ONLINE STUDENTS IN THE SAME ROOM AT THE SAME TIME. THERE ARE CURRENTLY TEN COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WITH THE PROGRAM IN THE NATION. STUDENTS HAVE EXPERIENCED FIELDS LIKE NURSING OR AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY WITH JUST A HEADSET AND CONTROLLERS. AT&T AND WAKE FOREST ARE IN THE PROCESS OF BECOMING THE FIRST METAVERS
Using gaming technology to teach, N.C. A&T to become a ‘metaversity’
N.C. A&T and Wake Forest University will become the first ‘metaversities’ in North Carolina, offering courses taught using virtual or mixed reality.
Updated: 5:36 PM EDT Mar 24, 2023
Students at North Carolina A&T State University will soon be able to go to school without physically going to school. N.C. A&T and Wake Forest University will become the first “metaversities” in North Carolina, offering courses taught using virtual or mixed reality.Top StoriesGreensboro police: Missing 9-month-old boy found safe, father in custody also connected to deadly shootingUS launches airstrikes in Syria after drone kills US workerPresident Joe Biden scheduled to visit North CarolinaGet the latest news stories of interest by clicking here“What we’re looking to do is give our online students the Aggie experience,” said Evelyn Sowells-Boone, the interim chairperson for the Department of Computer Systems Technology.There are currently ten colleges and universities across the United States partnered with Meta Immersive Labs and Victory XR to create a digital twin campus, which are digital replicas of the college campuses and classrooms. “You’d be surprised. If you look at our digital campus, when you walk into some of the classrooms or when you walk in the student union, you’ll feel like you’re just on campus,” Sowells-Boone said.The program at N.C. A&T will start with online students majoring in electronics technology or information technology this summer. Sowells-Boone is excited for how the technology can transform how students learn. “We can teach our students in a different way,” Sowells-Boone said. “For example, when we look at our labs, many times, our students are taught theory. But when you use virtual reality, we can actually take that transistor and increase it 100 fold, and we can actually go inside of the transistor and see the transistor, how it’s actually created from scratch.” The goal is then to expand through the rest of the College of Science and Technology, then to the rest of the university. At the University of Kansas, nursing students use VR to practice procedures; Northern Illinois University has a virtual reality component for its kinesiology program; and Morehouse College launched the first African-American history course in virtual reality. Students at Morehouse experienced being onboard La Amistad, a slave ship where captive Africans rebelled and won their freedom in 1839.”That’s a different level of learning, that’s a different level in engaging,” said Sowells-Boone. “And that, we believe, will impact our student learning outcome goals.”Watch: NOWCAST streaming newscastsNAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Watch NOWCAST TV | Local News | National | News We LoveMORE LIKE THISKeep up with local news, weather, and current events with the WXII app here
Students at North Carolina A&T State University will soon be able to go to school without physically going to school.
N.C. A&T and Wake Forest University will become the first “metaversities” in North Carolina, offering courses taught using virtual or mixed reality.
Top Stories
Get the latest news stories of interest by clicking here
“What we’re looking to do is give our online students the Aggie experience,” said Evelyn Sowells-Boone, the interim chairperson for the Department of Computer Systems Technology.
There are currently ten colleges and universities across the United States partnered with Meta Immersive Labs and Victory XR to create a digital twin campus, which are digital replicas of the college campuses and classrooms.
“You’d be surprised. If you look at our digital campus, when you walk into some of the classrooms or when you walk in the student union, you’ll feel like you’re just on campus,” Sowells-Boone said.
The program at N.C. A&T will start with online students majoring in electronics technology or information technology this summer.
Sowells-Boone is excited for how the technology can transform how students learn.
“We can teach our students in a different way,” Sowells-Boone said. “For example, when we look at our labs, many times, our students are taught theory. But when you use virtual reality, we can actually take that transistor and increase it 100 fold, and we can actually go inside of the transistor and see the transistor, how it’s actually created from scratch.”
The goal is then to expand through the rest of the College of Science and Technology, then to the rest of the university.
At the University of Kansas, nursing students use VR to practice procedures; Northern Illinois University has a virtual reality component for its kinesiology program; and Morehouse College launched the first African-American history course in virtual reality.
Students at Morehouse experienced being onboard La Amistad, a slave ship where captive Africans rebelled and won their freedom in 1839.
“That’s a different level of learning, that’s a different level in engaging,” said Sowells-Boone. “And that, we believe, will impact our student learning outcome goals.”
Watch: NOWCAST streaming newscasts
NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Watch NOWCAST TV | Local News | National | News We Love
MORE LIKE THIS
Keep up with local news, weather, and current events with the WXII app here
