How to survive your first week of teaching with VR simulation!

Virtual reality (VR) allows medical and healthcare students to learn in a simulated environment. Medical and healthcare training using VR has many applications in different education fields, but the primary ones are medical, engineering, technical, and safety education.

A growing body of research evidence shows that immersive training in medical and healthcare education yields promising results for students.

However, teaching with VR simulation in medical and healthcare can appear challenging to instructors, especially those new to this cutting-edge technology.

A 2019 research study highlighted the disadvantages of teaching with VR simulation, especially for “more senior” teachers. For instance, the study highlights that more senior teachers see VR simulation as a game rather than a tool for instructing medical and healthcare students.

Some teachers think that VR simulation can cause issues in human experiences, beliefs, and differentiating between themselves and the immersive environment.

So, how to survive your first week teaching with VR simulation. Here are a few tips. Read on!

Become Familiar with VR Simulation Technologies

VR simulation is a growing technology, offering numerous opportunities for teachers and students to embrace high-tech solutions, leading to improved medical and healthcare education.

Therefore, it is crucial to become familiar with the technology and continually learn throughout your career because the technology evolves and can change from time to time.

Medical and healthcare tools undergo upgrades faster than ever. Therefore, you have to stay calm and recognize the technological changes.

For instance, implement the strategies you have learned about VR simulation in the first week and stay up to date with innovations.

Focus on acquiring and honing new skills through practice in an interactive and safe VR environment. Make sure your students don’t only rely on instructions built within the VR technology or specific app designed for education.

So, it means your students must also rely on your instructions because the combination of physical and virtual simulations allows for more productivity, increased learning, and improved outcomes.

Remember, your students will want your knowledge and experience to discuss their VR learning modules. Therefore not only will your familiarity with modern technology allow you to engage students, but it also leads to better learning outcomes.

Collaborate and Engage with Students

Collaborative skill development is essential for medical and healthcare students when using VR simulation. Students require to learn and work in a dynamic world of team-based and collaborative practice.

Therefore, as a teacher, you have to focus on teamwork training to nurture appropriate competencies in students.

Besides, help teach empathy to students to develop familiarity with VR simulation. Remember, slow and steady wins the race.

Because it is the first week of your teaching, it is essential to collaborate with students and encourage them to use the technology appropriately.

Theory + Practical is the Key

According to National Academies Press, gaps in medical education exist within three crucial stages: during clinical hospital placements, in teacher’s or health professional’s first medical job after training, and the practice transfer.

It is crucial to engage with the medical school’s administration and a team of teachers to consider and optimize these three areas. The purpose is to stay involved with new strategies and ensure students retain their interest in VR technology.

Matching theoretical clinical understanding with immersive VR simulation technology practically requires time and effort. However, we recommend conveying the significance of VR simulation to students in the first week of your teaching.

The knowledge transferred in a medical or healthcare setting or classroom environment relating to healthcare practice is theoretical.

Because this is often alienating to students understating it, you have to match their theoretical understating with training in VR simulation environments.

Final Words

The use of virtual reality and immersive technologies allow students to engage with and interact with medical and healthcare topics, leading to positive effects on helping students to retain information and enjoy their studies.

However, implementing the right strategies is valuable, requiring instructors to follow a step-by-step approach and engage their students.

Remember, this is a collaborative effort that requires diligence, commitment, knowledge, and familiarity with new technology – just like you would need to be in a clinical environment.

The transfer of knowledge is crucial in the medical and healthcare field. Follow the tips given above to survive your first week of teaching with VR simulation.

That way, you can facilitate knowledge acquisition, improve decision-making, enhance perceptual variation, and boost skill coordination. Until Next Time!

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