DAVENPORT, IOWA (February 21, 2023) — St Ambrose University Environmental Ethics students stood in the middle of a thundering herd of migrating bison last week. As the students roamed the prairies, they also encountered populations of wolves, elk, deer, birds, and even aided a fire ecologist with a prescribed prairie burn — it was quite the virtual field trip.
St Ambrose President Amy C Novak EdD has launched an unprecedented virtual and augmented reality pilot in partnership with VictoryXR as part of strategic initiatives to help emphasize the new generation of learners and better strengthen student engagement.
“St Ambrose is on the cutting edge of something very different and will be the first school globally to test the launching of a full augmented reality campus within the physical campus,” said Novak. “It became clear after conversations with VictoryXR CEO Steven Grubbs that St Ambrose would be an ideal test site for learning through both virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). We are all equally invested in understanding what it would look like if higher education began to develop an infrastructure to support these new ways of learning.”
“Working with our partners, T-Mobile and Qualcomm, we are building an augmented reality campus on the actual physical SAU campus in Davenport, Iowa,” said Grubbs. “Students will use cutting-edge glasses from Lenovo to see a world of learning that is otherwise invisible.”
According to a GlobeNewswire release, the global metaverse market size is projected to grow from USD 61.8 billion in 2022 to USD 426.9 billion by 2027, at a compound annual-growth rate (CAGR) of 47.2%.
“This surge in the use of AR and VR technology is being witnessed across industries,” noted Novak. “Banks are using these tools for orientation of new employees; large senior-care facilities are using it for everything from virtual ping pong to virtual animal care in search of ways to engage seniors in activities that address isolation and mobility. I think this will continue to grow and expand, and as it does, I want to see how it will make sense for St Ambrose to apply these technologies in learning and preparing students for the future workforce.”
St Ambrose faculty in the departments of History, Theology, Philosophy, Business, Engineering, Biology, and Nursing are all at different phases in the exploration of the best methods to apply these technologies. The Engineering department has already adopted a virtual welding lab to strengthen competencies.
St Ambrose professor Fr Robert “Bud” Grant has witnessed how the use of VR can transport his Environmental Ethics students into a highly-engaging educational lesson.
“I created the virtual prairie where students could move with a migrating herd of bison,” said Grant. “The students quickly picked up on it, learning to move and ‘teleport’ within minutes, and some even began drawing their own 3D images. On day two of the virtual lesson, I added a dire-wolf who stood beside me to ensure good behavior. After the giggles subsided, we were able to go on a virtual field trip to the Loess Hills, where students flew over the terrain and studied the topology and invasive woodland species.”
Early discoveries highlight the need for the University to expand bandwidth. Still, most students are pleased to be part of this engaging pilot and feel using this technology can become an integral supplement to learning. St Ambrose has committed to continue to be a leading test site of this innovative technology to see how it fits into the strategic direction for the University.
“While this will not substitute live classroom instruction, we are asking the fundamental questions of how students will learn differently in the future and how we best equip them for that learning. The way I describe it to faculty is that it is another tool in the toolbox of high-impact learning and teaching practices,” said Novak.
About St Ambrose University
Founded in 1882 by the Diocese of Davenport, St Ambrose University’s commitment to academic excellence, the liberal arts, social justice, and service is rooted in its Catholic intellectual tradition. The leading, private university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and offers more than sixty undergraduate majors, eleven Master’s degrees, and three doctoral programs. One-hundred and thirty years since its inception, St Ambrose education remains centered on intentional, holistic, and experiential learning to develop high-impact world shapers in every field. To learn more about St Ambrose University, visit sau.edu.
