An ethnographic comparison of real and virtual reality field trips to Trillium Trail: The salamander find as a salient event
Real field trips provide better overall learning environments than virtual field trips
Learning today often involves the use of technology. The purpose of this study was to investigate children’s learning when comparing a simulation of a field trip to an actual physical trip to the same location.
In this study, Harrington compared 12 nine- to eleven-year-old students’ experiences on a real and virtual field trip. Two groups of students (6 each) from a Pittsburgh public elementary school went on a real and virtual field trip to a local wildflower reserve. Data were gathered from knowledge tests, video and audiotape recordings, photographs, interviews, surveys, and observations.
In analyzing the data, Harrington found that while more students preferred the virtual field trip, students felt that they learned more from the real field trip. In examining the field trips with regard to curriculum learning impact, however, she found no differences between the two trips in terms of children’s performance on a specific knowledge post-test. In terms of participants’ views, Harrington found that students’ reported that the real field trip was better than the virtual field trip with regard to learning, inquiry, and presence. Regarding the other dimensions examined, which included exploration, desire to create, sense of excitement, level of curiosity, desire to re-experience, sense of calm, desire to share, awe and wonder, assessment of beauty, level of frustration, and disinterest, she found no statistical difference in student ratings between the real and virtual field trips. Many students reported that they liked spotting plants or being in the context of the environment on the real field trip, while students reported that they liked the ability to fly or use their imagination on the virtual field trip. Overall, Harrington found that the real field trip provided a chance for students to use all their senses and for spontaneous events to occur and instigate investigation and learning (e.g., finding a salamander), while the virtual field trip provided students with new views of the environment and enabled individual exploration.
As a result of this study, Harrington concluded that a virtual field trip can be used successfully as part of a curriculum, but that a real trip provides a superior learning environment that goes beyond specific curriculum-based learning. This study provides important insight into the complementary value of real and virtual-based learning opportunities, as well as ideas on how to improve both types of experiences for students.
Citation
Harrington, M. C. R., (2009). An ethnographic comparison of real and virtual reality field trips to Trillium Trail: The salamander find as a salient event. Children, Youth and Environments, 19(1),
