Dive Brief:

• According to research from the New Media Consortium, wearable tech devices may become commonplace in K-12 classrooms within four years.
• The new BIRD device from MUV Interactive is a new piece of wearable tech that transforms common surfaces into a multitouch interfaces; BIRD will be comercially available in coming months.
• Other virtual reality immersive learning products growing in popularity include Google’s Glass and Cardboard and Microsoft’s HoloLens.

Dive Insight:

With costs generally decreasing, emerging wearable technology is more accessible than ever. Google Cardboard’s virtual field trip software, Expeditions, is now being tested in the U.S. and abroad, and many lesson plans, tools and tips about incorporating wearable tech are free and can be found online. 

Students with disabilities may be well-served by wearable tech. Sensory-based learning can be facilitated by wearable tech, which is particularly beneficial to students with trouble focusing on lectures and reading, who can then opt for a physical experience instead. For physically disabled students, projects like “Signglasses,” where sign language narration is projected onto traditional eyeglass lenses via Google Glass, could be a gamechanger both in and outside the classroom.

Recommended Reading

Ed Tech Magazine: How Wearables and Virtual Reality are Finding a Place in the Classroom