Reflections Chapter 4

The virtual reality technology is not yet perfect and still too expensive for the common person. The use of high-end VR is mainly restricted to larger companies, and to special areas such as medical surgery and pilot training. Home users are limited to desktop virtual reality programs, which lets them navigate in three-dimensional worlds, but seldom gives the feeling of actually being there. Human beings are social creatures that like to communicate. Because computers make networks, VR seems a natural candidate for a new communications medium (Heim, Michael 1993). Just as the Internet has become our times biggest communication network, virtual reality could have a great impact on how we share information. Imagine a meeting with people from all parts of the world in a virtual room, or playing cricket with people from Pakistan. There is quite a debate on whether or not virtual reality has positively effected education. Some proponents of virtual reality in the school argue the fact that virtual reality has a vast supply of resources as well as the fact that virtual reality will dominate society and will continue to do so. Opponents of virtual reality in education take the position of experiencing things actually and not just on a computer screen, a reality versus virtual reality argument. In addition to this, there is the aspect of time involved with using a computer as opposed to interaction with actual living things. Computers provide for a vast world of resources, which is very helpful in education. Teachers can go onto the Internet to find added information on a topic and find useful fun activities for lessons. Virtual reality will help students to explore information and do research for projects and assignments as well. The danger behind this is the fact that students can also find other means of virtual reality on the computer done by adults and use them as their own works without the teacher knowing. This is not only deceitful, but the students learn absolutely nothing. It seems like the virtual reality technology is inevitable. People initially use technology to do what they do now-but faster. Then they gradually begin to use technology to do new things. The new things change life-styles and work styles for everyday users. The new life-styles and work-styles change society and eventually technology.