Only 47% of Indian graduates are employable, claims All India Council for Technical Education. Out of 5 million Indian graduates passing every year, only 20% have the skill sets to be employable, states Industry lobby Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM). 

Though the number of universities, colleges, and programs is increasing in the country day by day, the lack of quality education persists. Application-oriented practical knowledge has never been in focus, whereas information based rote learning is what we and our policymakers believe in. 

Information tries to weave a rational logic about everything around and about the subject. While, insight is a journey of understanding WHY, HOW, WHEN, and so on. The information-based pedagogy is aiming at producing the same type-casted ‘products – students’ from the same mould of Macaulay’s education system. In such a scenario, the entire Indian education system is leading Indian youth to become clerical staff. This is an alarming situation!

This may sound absurd, but for most of the technical education institutes in the country – The higher technical education sector has traditionally been slow to admit innovative technology. However, in this ever-changing environment, it is crucial that such educational institutes, incorporate new innovations such as AR and VR in order to remain competitive. The educational pedagogy mostly aims at the information-sharing approach, while for higher technical educations, it’s the insight that matters!

By providing an innovative and engaging learning environment without the use of textbooks, AR and VR technology empowers learners to explore and learn at their own speed, stimulating learning and understanding and enhancing essential retention. Extended Reality in Education will improve the way teachers deliver their lectures. Technology will not only allow teachers to make lessons more engaging but will also support students by making it easier for them to understand difficult subjects and topics.

Teachers can use XR to help students develop a deeper understanding of teaching materials. In addition, it can be used as an instructional material that visually facilitates storytelling and language learning, or it can be used for disaster prevention education, such as projecting a major disaster that is difficult to imagine in a normal world.

Educators should set up a curriculum where they can choose from three different ways to learn: mobile touch mode, virtual reality, or augmented reality. Teachers may build personalized AR lessons with the option of embedding images, videos, and recorded voiceovers to appear in the classroom or living room. Imagine learning opportunities by exploring the interior of a volcano or looking closely at a prehistoric dinosaur in the safety of your own house. Using Xr you can also look in for topics your students find the most challenging and plan lectures accordingly. Also, doubt clearing sessions will no longer be ordinary when Augmented Reality technology is put to use. This gives students a better understanding of the subject matter.

The recently launched National Education Policy highlights the implementation of augmented reality, artificial intelligence technologies for higher education purposes. It seems a sigh of relief – let’s hope it gets implemented, the way it has been envisaged.