Instructions for Learners and Faculty

In this assignment, you are going to do FOUR (4) things:

1. Develop at least 3 specific futurist predictions for immersive technologies.

1. Use the 5-step process of science fiction prototyping that you used in Lesson 1.
2. Each of your predictions should be Times New Roman, 12 pt font, single-spaced, and no more than 1 page - the more concise the better. (All three should be able to fit on 1 page with the single-spacing.)

2. Contribute to the collaborative creation of a timeline of immersive technologies history and future events.

1. Go to the Sutori website (you should have already signed up for a free account.)
2. Be sure to enter the code ##### to enroll in our class on this website.
3. View some example timelines on the website.
4. Access the Help Center and read about how to add and edit items on a timeline.
5. Edit the class timeline: (Immersive Technologies Timeline (2019))

1. Post 3 past events in immersive technologies history on the Class Timeline (use your readings from the last two lessons). You cannot repeat an item that another student has already used, and you cannot delete an item either).
2. Transform your futurist predictions into fictitious "future events" and post your future events on the timeline.

1. For example, if your prediction was of the use of immersive technologies to train humans to settle on another planet, post an event about the first use of immersive technologies on such a topic :)

3. Include a visual and textual representation of each event, past, and future. The visual can be either an image, video, or animation.

3. Go to the discussion board for this assignment.

1. Create a new discussion board thread, titled, "Your Name's Timeline".
2. In the text editor, list the past and future items you added to the timeline with the year and title.
3. Add your 1-page futurist predictions either in the text or as attachments in the editor (use the "paperclip" button on the text editor).

4. View others' comments and predictions in the discussion board.

1. Comment on their futurist events and predictions.
2. Provide specific feedback on how well they followed the science fiction prototyping process and the likelihood of their future events.

Grading Criteria

Future predictions timeline: Immersive Technologies Rubric

Example

Students add their items to the collaborative timeline according to the instructions.

See the example: Immersive Technologies Timeline (2019)

Discussion Thread

 SUBJECT: River’s Timeline and Predictions

• 1838 Stereoscopy
• 1929 National Flight Simulator
• 1968 Sword of Damocles
• 2030 Virtual Professional Learning Platform (VPLP)- 2030
• 2035 Virtual Gaming Math Class – 2035
• 2040 AI and VR Teacher Interview Application– 2040

2030 Virtual Professional Learning Platform (VPLP)

As education has continued to find ways to cut costs, they are now incorporating the Virtual Professional Learning Platform. No longer do teachers need to travel to another location to receive updated or new training. Instead, they are able to join a virtual reality room with other teachers and they can receive training from their classroom. They are able to access these meetings by logging into the platform and putting on their VR headset which includes a mic. Within these virtual rooms, teachers are able to interact in the professional learning process by talking to others in discussions and interacting with the presenter. These VR professional learning events for teachers have saved districts thousands of dollars. Many school districts are even now hosting district-wide meetings through virtual professional learning platforms. They are considering other possible ways this can be used by evaluating the feedback from teachers and administration. Most of the feedback is positive. Most like the convenience of not having to travel, stay in hotel rooms, and pay expensive registration costs. Others state that they feel disconnected from the process since they are not actually meeting face-to-face. The platform is considering launching a second part that would allow for large conferences to host two- and three-days events. This would allow for almost unlimited registration to these events. Presenters could log in from their own location and broadcast to educators who paid to join the conference.

2035 Virtual Gaming Math Class

A new math curriculum has arrived! No longer is math taught through listening and doing, but now the students is part of a course-long game. The game is virtual, so the students will put on a VR headset and head into their math class. Within the math class game, students will encounter a teacher who will teach short lessons with skills. Then the students will interact with the game by applying those skills to work their way through the game portion of the math course. There will be areas where students can gather and virtually share ideas to solve the game. These areas are monitored for a specific conversation. If suspicious language is picked up then the students are kicked out of the virtual room with other students. After two warnings the student loses privileges of the discussion room for the cause. Students have shown success and rate the course a 4 on a scale of 5. Students' results on the final test show mastery results with an average score of 78%. There is a concern for students interacting in a virtual world and that the current monitoring system is not strict enough. Also, some students have listed that they would prefer face-to-face interaction at times during the course.

2040 AI and VR Teacher Interview Application

School districts now can interview teachers all over the US no matter their location. Using the virtual reality interview simulation that uses artificial intelligence methods to assess the interviewee's potential as a client for a school district. This has helped schools look at hiring differently giving them the opportunity to set on a committee and view multiple candidates in one day. Also, the analysis results are showing that it helps match a candidate with the school district with 88% accuracy. This has opened the doors for teacher recruiting to be highly effective and mobile. Some would like feedback stating that they miss the in-person interviewing process, but like the idea of not having to travel to an interview session.

RE: River’s Timeline and Predictions

Hi River,

Your future predictions would have a great impact on society. As someone that struggles with my sense of smell due to seasonal allergies, I would love to be able to smell through a device. Having something in close proximity makes it easier for me to smell but I see how this could affect people that are sensitive to smells.

I think accessing banking information without the use of passwords is on the horizon as institutions find more ways to protect people’s privacy. This is definitely a prediction we could see in the near future.

I must admit the idea of creating a hologram of deceased loved ones is a little scary to me. However, I do see how this could help people working through grief.

You did a great job working through the scientific prototyping and explaining the ramifications of these new technologies on society. I think it would be nice to see how these technologies affect education. I’m sure psychology students would have to learn how to properly implement the holograms into treatment, so it doesn’t cause harm to the patient. You have really cool ideas about future technology. Great job!!

References

Balaji, M. S., & Chakrabarti, D. (2010). Student interactions in the online discussion forum: Empirical research from media richness theory perspective. Journal of interactive online learning, 9(1). Retrieved from https://edtechbooks.org/-hLbR

Brian David Johnson, "Science Fiction Prototyping: Designing the Future with Science Fiction," in Science Fiction Prototyping: Designing the Future with Science Fiction, Morgan & Claypool, 2011. Retrieved from https://edtechbooks.org/-IFZ