A Portable Multi-User Cross-Platform Virtual Reality Platform for School Teaching in Malawi

Abstract

This paper discusses and evaluates a self-contained portable multi-user cross-platform Virtual Reality (VR) setup that was devised and configured using off the shelf technologies and devices. This paper exemplifies how some fundamental challenges like those faced in Malawi in relation to technology use, can be addressed, to allow for the use of VR technology as a potential solution to improving the quality of secondary school education in situations where the challenges in question are faced. This paper explains how the proposed VR setup was evaluated, where the results of that evaluation indicate that the proposed portable multi-user cross-platform VR setup is viable and can potentially be used for secondary school teaching. This is a follow-up to previous work that outlined the design and implementation of a VR software application to showcase the capabilities and functionality of this “Synchronous Multi-User Cross-Platform Virtual Reality for School Teachers”, which consisted of using questionnaire data collected from school educators in England and it was part of a larger study. Whilst the challenges addressed are those that are faced in Malawi, the platform has more general applicability to a range of teaching contexts.