Over the past two decades, research into the use of Virtual (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) in schools has demonstrated an increase in student engagement, motivation, learning and retention of knowledge (Azuma et al, 2001; Chen et al, 2018; Alenezi, 2023). VR and AR technology has become more accessible in recent years, leading to an interest in using this within education, however, very few studies have looked at the effectiveness of these with primary-aged children (Chua et al, 2019).
Many teaching beliefs are based on social constructivism, which believes that learning occurs when individuals actively build knowledge with the support of others, and is often seen as a key basis around beliefs on the way that children learn (Schreiber & Valle, 2013; Davis et al, 2017). Social constructivism can be broken down into three key principles: active involvement; social participation; and meaningful activities; all of which can be achieved through hands-on experiences and museum visits (Vosniadou, 2003). However, due to the financial and time constraints of teaching, these are often not feasible. Therefore, the proposed study aims to find an alternative.
This proposed study will explore three key questions:
- How does the use of VR and AR affect primary students’ attainment in science compared to traditional teaching methods?
- How does the consistent use of VR and AR affect primary student engagement over time?
- How do teachers integrate VR and AR into existing primary science curriculum?
The planned study will be a longitudinal study following a quasi-experimental approach, using three classes from similar demographics. The study will be expected to run for three years and involves yearly reflections. For ethical reasons, the study will be separated into six-week cycles based on science topics, where classes will switch their assigned teaching method each cycle. The teaching methods include traditional classroom approaches; short-term use of VR and AR; and full integration of VR and AR for the duration of the cycle. Participants will then be tested on the retention of learning taught at the end of each year.
The proposed study uses a variety of methods and includes collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. The first two research questions focus on the students. To measure this, quantitative data will be gathered using assessments and questionnaires at the end of each year. The final question focuses on the teachers and the practicality of embedding this technology into their curriculum.
The results are expected to show that when VR and AR technology is used students demonstrate greater engagement in lessons compared to traditional teaching methods. Several studies have reported positive outcomes, however there have been concerns around the effectiveness of long-term use on motivation (Zhong et al., 2025). The results aim to address these concerns.
The results of the study would be of interest to schools and curriculum leaders and would provide insight into how the use of VR and AR technology could support learning. Teachers would be interested in the findings to understand how this use of technology could affect attainment, engagement and their workload. The findings of this study could be disseminated widely to add to research around the impact of using VR and AR in classrooms.
References:
Alenezi, A. (2023) ‘The effectiveness of augmented reality technology in enhancing learning outcomes among primary school students: a study based on the ARCS model of motivation’, Journal of Educational Sciences & Psychology, 13 (75)(2), pp. 166–181
Azuma, R., Baillot, Y., Behringer, R., Feiner, S., Julier, S. and MacIntyre, B. (2001) “Recent advances in augmented reality,” IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, 21 (6), pp. 34-47
Chen, H., Dai, Y., Meng, H., Chen, Y., and Li, T. (2018) “Understanding the Characteristics of Mobile Augmented Reality Applications,” IEEE International Symposium on Performance Analysis of Systems and Software (ISPASS), pp. 128-138
Chua, Y., Sridhar, P.K, Zhang, H., Dissanayake, V. and Nanayakkara, S. (2019) ‘Evaluating IVR in Primary School Classrooms’, 2019 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality Adjunct (ISMAR-Adjunct). IEEE, pp. 169–174
Davis, M.L., Witcraft, S.M., Baird, S.O. and Smits, J.A.J. (2017) ‘Learning Principles in CBT’ in Hofmann, G. and Asmundson, G.J.G (eds) The Science of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. London: Elsevier, pp.70-98
Schreiber, L.M. and Valle, B.E. (2013) ‘Social Constructivist Teaching Strategies in the Small Group Classroom’, Small Group Research, 44(4), pp. 395-411.
Vosniadou, S. (2003) How Children Learn. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/44826007_How_children_learn [Accessed: 16th February 2026]
Zhong, L., Lang, W., Rong, J., Chen, G. and Fan, M. (2025) ‘Enhancing Motivation and Learning in Primary School History Classrooms: The Impact of Virtual Reality’, LAK ’25: Proceedings of the 15th Internation Learning Analytics and Knowledge Conference, pp. 272-282
5 responses to “Using Virtual and Augmented Reality to Enhance Primary Students’ Learning”
Although a secondary rather than primary teacher this work interests me from a pedagogical perspective. My only experience of using any sort of AR or VR in the classroom was as a sixth form student as our school got to trial google cardboard in A Level Physics and do a virtual field trip to space.
I have always been skeptical since training as a teacher as to whether AR/VR would be as effective as traditional teaching techniques. It seemed to me to be one of those activities whereby students would remember what they’d been doing rather than what they were supposed to be learning by doing it. I have had experiences outside of AR/VR as a teacher where I’ve had students remember the activity but not what I’d wanted them to learn by doing the activity.
That being said I’d hypothesise that some of that might be due to the novalty of doing something different. I feel that it might be overcome and you might see students beginning to learn things with the AR/VR if it was a normal part of pedagogical practice. What do you think?
Thank you for your comment. I agree that children may remember the activity more than the learning and is why I wanted to research how this impacts learning when it is used frequently and it becomes normal classroom practice.
Hi Millie
Thank you for a superb presentation. Some of the questions from the chat pane are below. Some you answered on the day, some not – it’s up to you how you respond here.
Best wishes
Simon
You might see more students beginning to learn things with the AR/VR if it was a normal part of pedagogical practice. What do you think?
The learning design can potentially hold back any value to the technology. What support might teachers need to design VR enabled activities?
You mentioned that children often use IT more effectively than adults. Could adult skill be a barrier to implementation?
Will teachers need training?
How easy has it been to find appropriate AR/ VR packages that can be used to teach the Science curriculum? And how have you evaluated their quality?
Would you be involved as participant observer, co-participant in teacher/ pupil relationship, or distant researcher?
Would you create a community of practice for working with the teachers as they become familiar with this approach?
Responses to conference questions:
You might see more students beginning to learn things with the AR/VR if it was a normal part of pedagogical practice. What do you think?
Thank you for your question. I think that if AR/VR become a normal part of pedagogy that the novelty of using something different will wear off and children will learn the same as they do with any other pedagogy. However, the only way to know for sure is to research it.
The learning design can potentially hold back any value to the technology. What support might teachers need to design VR enabled activities?
Thank you for your question. There is a need for teacher training around using this technology. I also feel that teachers need to see the benefits to using something different before they make changes to their practice.
You mentioned that children often use IT more effectively than adults. Could adult skill be a barrier to implementation?
Thank you for your question. I agree that adult skill could be a barrier to implementation and this is something that would be addressed through training. I do feel that teacher confidence may prevent people from using the technology but if teachers can see a benefit in using the technology they may be more willing to trial it.
Will teachers need training?
Thank you for your question. Yes teachers will need training to use the technology.
How easy has it been to find appropriate AR/ VR packages that can be used to teach the Science curriculum? And how have you evaluated their quality?
Thank you for your question. Education technology is increasing so there are a few companies offering programs that would support this. I have trialed a few myself when teaching. Some of these have been shared at education conferences. Finding the best resources would also be an area to be considered in the research.
Would you be involved as participant observer, co-participant in teacher/ pupil relationship, or distant researcher?
Thank you for your question. The researcher would take on a partnership role with the teacher to support them and make joint observations. The teacher knows their class and curriculum better, whereas the researcher will know the technology and study better so I feel it would be beneficial to work together.
Would you create a community of practice for working with the teachers as they become familiar with this approach?
Thank you for your question. Yes, this would be the aim of the research as I hope that it would be beneficial to teachers in supporting their practice.
Hi there,
I have been working with Primary Schools for the last 5 years on an AR project.
You might wish to look at some of my research. http://www.epic-science.com
A paper published here https://www.jotse.org/index.php/jotse/article/view/1394/701