Category: Research

From Myths To Principles: Navigating Instructional Design in Immersive Environments Part 1 Introduction

From Myths to Principles: Navigating Instructional Design in Immersive Environments

Part 1 Introduction

Decorative image with text: From Myths To Principles: Navigating Instructional Design in Immersive Environments with image of cloaked traveler on a mountian looking towards a break in gray clouds towards some buildings.

This article begins a new series where I intend to continue to bust myths related to learning in immersive environments while also advocating for research-based decisions related to instructional design.

Now if that sounded like gobbly-gook, this might not be the series for you. But, for anyone with an interest in virtual worlds, the metaverse, or even a simple 2D simulation and the uses of these for education, this is the RIGHT place for you.
 
This is an updated version of my original 8-part Instructional Design in the Metaverse series. (Did you miss that? Here’s my 3 minute explainer video.) I estimate that I have at least 15 parts right now to start this series and new research comes in every day. However, this being my blog, I intend to spill a little more tea here than I do in other places.

Buckle up buttercups!


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Seeking Integrity In VR Educational Research 2: PwC VR for Soft Skills

Decorative image of a cloaked woman going through paper archives

 Credit: Me and Midjourney

My first article in this series garnered so much attention! But many folks tried to pass me Mirjam Neelen & Paul A. Kirschner’s Truth or Truthiness? Analysing a VR Study Using Gorard’s Sieve article on the PwC report entitled “The effectiveness of virtual reality soft skills training in the enterprise: a study” and all of its associated webpages like this one. I was like, I know! Mirjam & Paul wrote their article 2020 and I wrote about it in 2021. What’s cool is that separately, we both came to the same conclusions. That’s a good sign for our conclusions!

Short version: we both cast strong doubt on any conclusions.

Still, I realize the world does not revolve around me (sigh!). Some folks might have missed my long stream-of-consciousnesses article about the PwC report. I decided that the second article in this series should be an abbreviated and updated critique. Bear in mind that to reach the LinkedIn audience, I have to leave much nuance by the side of the road. If you have questions, just ask!

As Mario says “Here we go!”

What is Said About The Report

This infographic summarizes the dominant conclusions:

  • 275% more confident to act on what they learned after training
  • 4x faster than classroom training on average
  • 4x more focused than e-learners
  • 3.75x more emotionally connected to the content than classroom learners.

nfographic: 275% more confident, 4x faster, 4x more focused and 3.75x more emotionally connected to the content.

 

LinkedIn post that mentions 4 times twice and nearly four times once.

Capture of how the PwC report is being talked about on LinkedIn.
 
A few more quotes, thanks to Google and a search on “VR 4x faster.” What seems to be a pattern about all of these results?

 

 

 

 

What do these Google results have in common?

They are all companies that sell some sort of VR product or service.

Because I was curious, I checked out that vrowl dot io link (“Virtual Reality training is not effective”) just to see if it was presenting an alternate opinion. It’s a strawman argument; it puts up “not really real” protests against VR for learning and then explains them away. I’m telling ya, Beware the VR Strawman.

What the Report Says

Eckert, D., & Mower, A. (2020). The effectiveness of virtual reality soft skills training in the enterprise: a study. https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/technology/emerging-technology/assets/pwc-understanding-the-effectiveness-of-soft-skills-training-in-the-enterprise-a-study.pdf

Let’s ask Google Scholar what it thinks. It’s coming up with 11 cites. That’s not much at all. But as I showed above, the money shot is on the Internet, not in academic articles.

Truly, the 4x faster learning quote is the runaway train of this report. 

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How to Balance Theory and Research

I love to dwell in both theory and research. Both are fascinating to me.

But how do I balance theory and research when they conflict with each other?

I share an example and I know this is stormy waters ahead for some readers because I’m going to create waves.

Photo of waves set against a cloudy sky.

 Photo by Ant Rozetsky on Unsplash

First, the theory; Andragogy or Adult Learning Theory credited to Malcolm Knowles and to smaller degrees to other theorists.  Before I go any further, I have to acknowledge that in 2022, there is a STRONG movement to discredit Knowles and Adult Learning Theory.  More than I can count, it’s currently cool to disrespect this around instructional design. It’s quite ugly.

Examples:

Screen capture of post from Learning Scientists.org called: Pedagogy vs. Andragogy: What's the Difference with a comment, Spoiler alert: Nothing really. 
 
 

I find this trend really disturbing and an example of cancel culture. Realistically, I find that IDs that put no mental effort into truly studying Andragogy dismiss it out of hand as unreal based on their surface understanding. Said another way, they believe that they know what Andragogy is and then they say it does not exist. BTW, LinkedIn comments have become hot when I’ve described that THE MOST COMMON COMPLAINT against andragogy is that “children occasionally display these adult traits too, so, therefore, adult learning as an exclusive or separate thing does not exist.”  Heads-up: Classic  logical fallacy of composition. 

Once in a while someone will ask “What is an adult anyway?” which I find to be at least a cognizant thought and then explain “Yes, defining an adult is the first exercise in an Adult Learning Theory class.” Duh. It’s actually really hard to define an adult because there are so many different standards. 

In summary, using a logical fallacy of composition argument is already weak.

Additionally, I find that Andragogy is well-respected, research-supported part of education around for over 30 years. What’s next to pick apart? Gender studies?!? 2022 does seem to be the Year to Attack Women. What about Black Cultural studies? How about studies about any particular group?? Or should I be saying “Any particular group that isn’t White Mainstream?”  See? That’s where cancel culture gets you eventually; no one is good enough. I reject all of this.

Rinse & repeat on Brain-Based Learning.

 

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