The increasing importance of digital technologies in the workplace is accompanied by an increased use of Virtual Reality (VR) in vocational education and training. The use of this technology offers diverse potentials for the design of realistic teaching and learning environments, such as the simulation of typical work situations. For commercial vocational training, there are innovative possibilities for designing action-oriented teaching and learning scenarios.
Goals
The research area "VR in vocational education and training" aims to gain empirically supported insights into VR-based teaching and learning in commercial vocational education (e.g. cognitive activation, action-based knowledge acquisition). Through this, concrete implications for the use of Virtual Reality in commercial education and training shall be derived. Further research perspectives address, for example, the competencies of commercial staff, the sales-promoting design of virtual sales rooms, and the implementation of consulting and sales talks in virtual space.
Virtual vocational school
In order to investigate the learning-related effectiveness of VR-based teaching at the vocational school as a place of learning, the Chair of Business Education has been conducting a university-practice cooperation with the Erich Bracher School in Kornwestheim-Pattonville since 2020. With the help of a virtual vocational school and a "virtual supermarket", a VR-based series of lessons in the area of retailing is being carried out with trainees in order to analyse the subject-related knowledge acquisition. Another focus of this field study is the analysis of relevant contextual factors, such as the associated learning motivation, cognitive load and well-being during phases of technology use. Initial results of this currently ongoing teaching trial have already been presented to the science community (e.g. at the annual conference of the DGFE Section Vocational Education and Training in Freiburg (Germany), September 2022). Further results will be published in relevant journals in 2023.
Previous projects
"VR-Technologies in Education" - Investigation of learning-promoting effects in virtual teaching and learning environments based on VR technologies.
Funded by the University of Konstanz, Committee for Research Questions (AFF)
Duration: 02/2019 - 12/2020 (start-up funding)
Associated projects
"Virtual teaching and learning worlds" (Project funding: BMBF within the framework of the Quality Offensive Teacher Education; funding period: Jan. 2019 - Dec. 2023)
Project website
Teaching
Educational science advanced seminar "VR-based teaching and learning", master's program in business education, summer semester 2022/2023).
Poster
Publications
Conrad, M., Dölker, J., Kablitz, D., & Schumann S. (2022). VR in commercial vocational education: potentials - findings - perspectives. In S. Schumann, S. Seeber & S. Abele (Eds.), Digital transformation in vocational education. Concepts, findings and challenges (pp. 231-255). Bielefeld: wbv. e-book
Presentations
Kablitz, D., Conrad, M. & Schumann, S. (2023). Virtual reality (VR) as a teaching/learning medium: Results of an explorative study in commercial vocational school teaching. Paper presented at the Research Colloquium of the Binational School of Education (BiSE). University of Konstanz, January 10, 2023.
Kablitz, D., Conrad, M. & Schumann, S. (2022). Virtual Reality (VR) in commercial vocational education - learning success and motion sickness. Paper presented at the symposium "Digital diagnostics and intervention in vocational education". Annual Conference of the Section for Vocational & Business Education of the German Society for Educational Science (DGFE). Freiburg, September 26-28, 2022.
Conrad, M. & Kablitz, D. (2022). Virtual teaching and learning worlds - Developing and testing VR-based learning environments in teacher education. Keynote lecture at the "Tag der Lehre" (Teaching Day) organized by the University of Konstanz in Konzil. Konstanz, June 23, 2022.
Conrad, M. (2019). Cooperative learning in VR - opportunities and challenges. Invited guest talk at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. Utrecht University (The Netherlands), April 09, 2019.