Curious about how to elevate your educational practice with cutting-edge technology? Have you heard of an immersive room but aren’t sure what it is or how it can benefit education? Don’t worry, we’ll explain it all!
What is an immersive room?
An immersive room is a physical space where the boundaries between the real and virtual worlds blur. Imagine a room about 4 by 4 meters where lifelike, full-scale projections are displayed on the walls (and sometimes even on the ceiling and floor). In this space, you and your students can step into realistic environments using projections, sound effects, and even interactive objects. The walls are touch-sensitive, creating an interactive experience. From hospitals to data centers, the possibilities are endless!
Why use an immersive room in education?
There are many great reasons to incorporate an immersive room into your teaching. Here are a few practical examples to give you an idea:
- Safe Practice: Imagine your students working in a virtual hospital, handling real-life situations without the need for actual patients. This way, they can practice their care skills without any risk.
- Access to Inaccessible Places: Have you ever heard of a student casually walking around a large factory, data center, operating room, or construction site? Probably not. With an immersive room, you can offer them that experience without leaving the classroom.
- Simulating Risky Situations: How do you teach trainee pilots to navigate an aircraft through a storm? In an immersive room, you can simulate stressful, high-risk scenarios to help students prepare.
- Reflection and Feedback: In the immersive room, actions can be recorded and reviewed. It’s possible to connect a video system to the room, allowing students to watch their own actions. This gives them a chance to reflect and receive peer feedback, greatly enhancing the learning process. Additionally, the video setup allows for live viewing, enabling students to learn from one another while teachers can assess their actions from a distance.
Gamification: making learning fun with an immersive room
Beyond simulating real-life environments, an immersive room also allows for gamification—adding game elements to engage students more deeply in the material. Picture this: instead of a standard test, you set up an escape room in the immersive room. Students have to use their knowledge to solve puzzles and overcome challenges to “escape.”
In doing so, they’re not just testing their knowledge—they’re also collaborating, communicating, and using problem-solving skills. With gamification, learning becomes not only more interactive but also more enjoyable and challenging. The result? Students are more motivated and excited to engage, learning in a playful way. Schools already using immersive rooms have reported higher levels of engagement and better learning outcomes thanks to this playful approach.
Is an immersive room just an expensive gadget?
It may seem like a high-tech toy, but once you experience it for yourself, you’ll immediately understand its value. Whether it’s practical lessons for healthcare students, training simulations for different professions, or even designing luxury yachts, the immersive room brings situations and environments to life that are usually inaccessible. This not only saves physical resources (like freeing up a hospital bed), but it also significantly enhances your students’ learning outcomes.
The Graafschap College and their immersive room
A great example of a school making full use of the immersive room’s potential is the Graafschap College in Doetinchem. DO-IT PRO AV recently installed an immersive room there, and the school is already enthusiastically exploring the new learning environment. They describe it as a space full of opportunities for education.
At Graafschap College, the immersive room is used for simulations where students can practice complex, risky, or unsafe scenarios in a safe and realistic environment. Teachers can observe from a control room, allowing the experience to be evaluated afterward. The space is also ideal for serious gaming and is regularly used as an escape room, where students can test their knowledge in a fun and engaging way.
Ready to experience it yourself? Book a free demo!
Curious and want to experience firsthand what an immersive room can do for your educational program? We invite you to join us for a free demo in our immersive room! See for yourself how it works and explore the possibilities for your subject area. Contact us, and we’ll be happy to schedule an appointment.