A new educational product for Quest devices will help teachers bring subjects to life in new ways

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• Later this year, Meta will launch a new educational product for Quest devices.
• It will provide teachers, trainers and administrators with access to a range of education-specific applications and features, and will enable them to manage multiple Quest devices simultaneously.
• The new product is the result of extensive consultation and collaboration with educators, researchers and external developers working in the education space around the world.

Of all the ways in which metaversion technologies such as virtual, mixed and augmented reality can prove revolutionary, their educational potential is one of the most exciting.

For most of us, learning is social – we learn from and with others, and from each other’s experiences. It is as much about interaction and discussion as it is about acquiring facts. That’s why the unique sense of presence and immersion these technologies create can have such a profound impact on education.

They also make possible things that are impossible in the physical world. Instead of telling students what dinosaurs looked like, they can walk among them. Virtual science labs can be built and filled with equipment that most schools could never afford. Activities can take place on field trips to top museums, regardless of their distance. They can also be used to avoid the risks associated with unsafe or expensive technical or vocational training.

Last year I wrote about some brilliant methods teachers and trainers were already using these technologies. This dynamic continues to grow, with more and more universities and institutions incorporating it into their curricula. For example:

• New Mexico State University teaches criminal justice by immersing students in virtual crime scenes to learn how to best conduct investigations.
• Stanford University is using virtual reality to teach business school students soft skills, such as how to conduct a difficult conversation and how to ace a job interview.
• The University of Glasgow is running a life science course by placing students in virtual intestines to see how the body fights bacteria.

A growing body of research shows that virtual reality learning can improve student achievement, engagement, attendance and satisfaction. As announced by Morehouse College in 2022 that students who learned in virtual reality had an average post-test score of 85 compared to 78 in person. AND questionnaire by the XR Association found that 77% of teachers believe these technologies spark curiosity and improve engagement in the classroom.

To make it easier for teachers, Meta will launch a new product offering for Quest devices for education later this year, as it did last year Meta Quest for business was designed with the workplace in mind. This will enable teachers, trainers and administrators to access a range of education-specific applications and features, and allow them to manage multiple Quest devices simultaneously, without having to update and update every device in the classroom or training environment. prepared individually. This will save teachers time and allow students to grab their headsets and start working immediately – something teachers using our devices have consistently told us.

Education and training providers constitute a significant market for technology products, and we are seeing a growing number of developers creating and releasing applications for this sector. While it is still early days for immersive technologies to be used in such environments, we believe there is potential for their application on a much broader scale.

Product name and features will be announced in the coming months. At launch, we plan to make the product available in markets supported by Quest for Business to institutions serving students aged 13+.

The new product is the result of extensive consultation and collaboration with educators, researchers and external developers working in the education space around the world. We want it to be something that makes it easier for students to learn, apply and practice new skills; feel present among teachers and classmates; and visit places or experience things that would otherwise be impossible. Above all, we want to help teachers do what they do best: teach. We will continue to learn from them so that we can continually improve and ensure that Meta Quest headsets are the best devices at the best price to bring their classes to life.