I-Corps: Virtual Reality Biofeedback Education Technologies

Cornell University, Ithaca NY

Investigators

Abstract

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to provide a new means for how educational content is delivered in virtual reality (VR) with consistent impact, independent of demographics and environment. This technology offers a higher level of personalized learning that can be administered without requiring accompanying professional development for teachers due to the delivery of lessons in a highly controlled virtual environment. Removing this dependence on additional training facilitates the adoption across schools with limited resources. The increased efficacy in learning and retention of material through VR has made it a technology of interest for teachers and school administrators. This technology can be used across a range of educational subjects, and with the immersive personalized learning experience, offers a high-quality learning solution for educators. This I-Corps project uses biofeedback to personalize learning in virtual reality (VR). The technology manipulates a user's environment based on their physiological reactions. This can include the surrounding physical objects, light source, or landscape. The auditory manipulation is a more indirect change where the audio path of a lesson is based on the emotional reaction of a user, such as when someone is distracted or agitated. This emotional reaction is based on tracking numerous physiological inputs over time. The identification process is based on existing research using the same physiological measures to classify users' emotional states and improved through this project This level of adaptation enables a higher degree of VR program customization and more a meaningful learning experience while using the technology. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.