Category Archives: Research

Virtual Reality – Experience It Yourself

Have you ever asked yourself “how I would feel if I was the person in this situation?” Have you ever wanted the ability to switch your soul with others so you can experience someone’s life? Now, you have the technology to make your dream comes true. Virtual Reality (VR) is a “simulated experience that can be similar to or completely different from the real world” (Wikipedia). To maximize possible learning opportunities for students, VR is now more often to be applied in the classroom setting.

Virtual Reality (VR) is the use of computer technology to create a simulated environment. Unlike traditional user interfaces, VR places the user inside an experience. Instead of viewing a screen in front of them, users are immersed and able to interact with 3D worlds. By simulating as many senses as possible, such as vision, hearing, touch, even smell, the computer is transformed into a gatekeeper to this artificial world. The only limits to near-real VR experiences are the availability of content and cheap computing power.

Joe Bardi, 2019

In the picture, a female is wearing the VR glasses participating to a simulation. There is a monitor connected to the VR glasses, which shows what can be seen through the glasses. There is a hand holding object at the right bottom of the screen, which represents the actual hand movement of the participant. In other words, the participant will feel like she is actually in the situation given and experiencing like reality.
The participant is wearing the VR glasses and the monitor shows the scene shown inside the glasses.

In my point of view, VR is not directly using to collaborate with people from different areas, but it helps prepare learners and educators to engage globally soon. This article gives examples of VR uses in the classroom that benefits students’ development. Early use of VR in preschools increases students’ attention and interests to explore and learn in different ways, creating an exciting learning environment for young learners. When they get older and be able to think from different perspectives, VR helps them to virtually travel and explore the world. I believe that it is always different in emotions and inspiration when traveling through viewing photos and to “real environment” right in front of you. Google Lit Trips is a great example that allows students to read international famous literature with additional relevant information pop-up windows. This encourages students to be more open-minded with culture outside the comfort zone or the home town. They may also have more common topics to talk to when they collaborate with their global collaborative partners. It is easier to find common ground. With more opportunities trying to stand on other’s shoes, VR helps users to experience others’ “lives,” training their empathy and willingness to help the needs. 

I agree with the application of VR in the classroom, especially in early education such as elementary school. In my junior year of university, I participated in psychological research. The study applied the use of VR that I played two games. The first one was about the reaction speed that someone attacked me and I had to dodge and shoot to revenge. The second one was more peaceful that all I needed to do was painting. As I was not drawing on the paper, but any spaces around me, I was able to draw in 3-dimension easily. This is difficult to explain and describe the experience that I prefer all of you to try it yourself. However, I want to bring this up in this blog post that I think it would be an extremely helpful tool to help students develop their concept about 3-dimensional drawing. My cousin has limited imagination that he cannot draw cubes or objects with distances on a paper. If VR has been widely applied to school settings earlier, he would have a chance to learn differently and even better.

A video shows how VR is applied in the classroom setting with teachers’ opinions.

Do you have any experience regarding VR?

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Twitter: @PoYeeWong4

Get Fired Because of Your Misuse of Social Media.

How many social media account(s) do you have?
Do you seperate your professional and personal accounts?

Do you think there are limitations on posting due to your identity?

With the technology improvement, online activities are also included in the background check session for recruiting selection. Juju Kim wrote an article showing data about how misusing social media leads to firing.  She found that about 85% of candidates are disqualified because of their unprofessional behaviors on social media. The 8 things to get fired are:

  1. Post off-color remarks.
  2. Post confidential details.
  3. Bad-mouth your clients.
  4. Disrespect your employer.
  5. Post inappropriate photos.
  6. Create animated videos of your coworkers.
  7. Talk trash about your boss.
  8. Play hooky and post about it.

Here is the full article: Can Social Media Get You Fired?
https://www.themuse.com/advice/can-social-media-get-you-fired

Not only misbehaving on social media will lead to a loss of a job but also the wrong timing to use social media. CNBC article indicates that 28% of employers fired employees because they use the Internet, during working time, for personal use, such as checking out social media, shopping online, answering private phone calls, etc. Even employees are just browsing without misbehaving or posting inappropriate comments on social media, they are still unrespectful and irresponsible to their employers, colleagues, and themselves as they are doing the wrong thing in a wrong timing.

“To expect someone to maintain focus for eight hours straight is unreasonable. People need a break and, in today’s world, that break includes social media access.”

Suzana Flores (2016)

It is also true that break time is important! Therefore, all employees please make good use of your break time, and do what you should be doing in your worktime.

Here is the full article: How Using Social Media Can Get You Fired
https://www.cnbc.com/2016/02/05/how-using-social-media-can-get-you-fired.html

The following website also shares 17 stories that people were fired for using Facebook.
https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-fired-2011-5

Logos of different social media.
There are many social media that people can freely share their daily lives and/or professional ideas online.

Additional examples of getting fired because of the misbehaviors on social media.

Thanks for visiting my blog and sharing your ideas with me! 

Please don’t forget to follow me on Twitter for updates and more article sharing.
Twitter: @PoYeeWong4

How To Create Sticky Learning?

Hello everyone! Welcome to my blog, and here is my first post! As a Psychology major, I am always interested in reading research articles related to my field (either clinical or organizational psychology). Also, with good use of Twitter, I can easily find information by search #edtechchat and #psychology. The article below is one that caught my eyes the most recently. 

How To Make Learning Stick: Top Tips From Learning Psychology

The article “How To Make Learning Stick: Top Tips From Learning Psychology” is written by Steve Penfold and published on the eLearning Industry webpage. Penfold was inspired by Stella Collins, a Learning Psychologist, on how to learn better. Penfold introduced 7 ways to make learning more effective as a long term memory. Below is an outline of the article:

  1. Encourage active engagement – try to be an active learner. Beyond only listening to your educators’ explanations on different topics, learners should actively show their responses. For example, learners can give feedback, join discussions, and participate in related activities.
  2. Use what people already know – make connections with past knowledge. You can imagine it as adding a new thing to an existing network which you are accustomed to. Linking new information to what you have already known and familiar with makes it easier to be part of your long term memory, which is then easier to retrieve.
  3. Make deliberate links – try to make as many connections to the things you know as possible. Similar to the previous point, connections are hints in learning and memorizing. The more hints you have, the easier you can recall when needed. 
  4. Tap into emotions – strong feelings help memorize. Both positive and negative emotions help to learn because those feelings also represent your own experiences and reactions to the situations.
  5. Repeat – regular practices keep brain neurons and muscles active. Repeating the same materials help move the information from short term memory to long term memory, as well as, leading to the faster recall.
  6. Keep it fresh – excitement catches attention. Even you are learning the same things, learn from new perspectives and different methods can make you feel more passionate to learn and review.
  7. Use storytelling – remember and share materials like you are telling others an impressive story. When you gather all the details and relevant points of a topic you want to learn, try to make them an easy remembering story. You are learning, recalling, and teaching when you are telling the story to others.

Have you ever tried any of these ways? Are they useful?
Or any other learning methods you wan to share with me?

I was firstly attracted by the keywords “Tips” and “Learning Psychology.” I took Psychology of Learning class before, and I understand that everyone can learn as diverse as they want and as efficient as possible. They just need the appropriate strategies!

I agree with the tips shared in this article that I use most of them for my years of school life. Learning and teaching are lifetime activities that people should find ways to keep themselves passionate. Together with other reinforcement strategies, I believe that learners can boost their learning capability in a stress-free environment.

If you are interested in more learning tips, this article may help. Full video of Learning Psychologist Stella Collins’s interview is included in this article.
A image of two people chatting.
Feel free to share your experiences!

Thanks for reading my first blog and sharing your ideas with me! 

Please don’t forget to follow me on Twitter for updates and more article sharing.
Twitter: @PoYeeWong4