Distance learning taps in to virtual reality technology - Lucy Jolin, the Guardian

New technology – such as forums, online lectures and interactive study experiences – is enhancing today’s online learning experience, and there are plenty of innovations in the pipeline. Dominic Micklewright, dean of academic partnerships at the University of Essex, believes mixed reality teaching and learning environments (MiRTLEs) – which enable online students to enter a real face-to-face lecture virtually – will become an increasingly popular facet of online degrees. “The online student can view the lecture, lecturer and other face-to-face students from a first-person perspective via a webcam. In the lecture hall, distance-learning students will appear either as an avatar or as themselves – via their webcam – on a large screen that the face-to-face students and the lecturer can see.” http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/feb/19/distance-learning-taps-in-to-virtual-reality-technology