Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies

Carlos A. Lara-Alvarez; Ezra Federico Parra-González; Miguel A. Ortiz-Esparza; Héctor Cardona-Reyes

doi:10.30935/cedtech/13569

Carlos A. Lara-Alvarez ¹, Ezra Federico Parra-González ¹, Miguel A. Ortiz-Esparza ¹, Héctor Cardona-Reyes ¹ ^*

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CONT ED TECHNOLOGY, Volume 15, Issue 4, Article No: ep459

https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Submitted: 08 March 2023, Published Online: 11 August 2023

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Abstract

Virtual reality (VR) is rapidly gaining popularity and becoming more accessible. Numerous studies have examined the effectiveness of this technology in educational settings. This article provides a summary of the evidence regarding the efficacy of virtual environments for elementary education. A meta-analysis was conducted to combine the findings of independent experimental studies. The studies included in this review were sourced from reputable databases such as Web of Science, Scopus, IEEE, ACM, and ScienceDirect. The results indicate that students who learn in a virtual environment achieve higher learning scores compared to those in traditional classrooms (standard mean difference [SMD]=0.64, 95% CI [0.36, 0.92], p<0.001). Additionally, the findings suggest that learning in a tethered VR environment is equally effective as learning through mobile VR. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in scores when different media materials were used for the control group. This review emphasizes the advantages of employing mobile VR for learning in contrast to using tethered VR.

Keywords: virtual reality, elementary school, student learning outcome, academic achievement, tethered VR, mobile VR, VR platforms, immersive technology

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Citation

Lara-Alvarez, C. A., Parra-González, E. F., Ortiz-Esparza, M. A., & Cardona-Reyes, H. (2023). Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies. Contemporary Educational Technology, 15(4), ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Lara-Alvarez, C. A., Parra-González, E. F., Ortiz-Esparza, M. A., and Cardona-Reyes, H. (2023). Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies. Contemporary Educational Technology, 15(4), ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Lara-Alvarez CA, Parra-González EF, Ortiz-Esparza MA, Cardona-Reyes H. Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies. CONT ED TECHNOLOGY. 2023;15(4), ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Lara-Alvarez, Carlos A., Ezra Federico Parra-González, Miguel A. Ortiz-Esparza, and Héctor Cardona-Reyes. "Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies". Contemporary Educational Technology 2023 15 no. 4 (2023): ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Lara-Alvarez, Carlos A. et al. "Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies". Contemporary Educational Technology, vol. 15, no. 4, 2023, ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569

Lara-Alvarez CA, Parra-González EF, Ortiz-Esparza MA, Cardona-Reyes H. Effectiveness of virtual reality in elementary school: A meta-analysis of controlled studies. CONT ED TECHNOLOGY. 2023;15(4):ep459. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13569