Imagine stepping into a day at work, where you can practice essential skills and go through procedures as if you’re really there. That’s what immersive learning offers. By using VR training, you can experience everything from hands-on skill training to realistic job scenarios, breathing new life into your organization’s learning culture. But how do you make this happen? From brainstorming ideas to launching the program, XR experts are here to help you design an immersive learning experience that boosts both engagement and knowledge retention.
VR Training for Employees
Does your organization need a holistic approach to training and development? XR has revolutionized training practices, putting experiential learning at the top of employee preferences. Immersive learning makes a lasting training impact with a trove of learning perks that keep employees engaged in their roles. From manufacturing floors to retail storefronts, the versatility of virtual reality training has allowed extended reality to make a major impact across industries.
Getting VR Training Right The First Time
Immersive learning is more than a trend – it’s been proven to help learners retain critical information and keep them safer on the job. Immersive learning technologies introduce a fresh approach to workforce development that doesn’t necessarily mean out with the old, in with the new. Ultimately, virtual reality training enhances traditional training methods with memorable onboarding experiences and break-out sessions that stimulate learners. Here’s how to do it right:
Keep VR Training Learning Centric
Kick off your VR training the right way! A comprehensive development process helps organizations create a learning-centric VR training program.
Start with site visits during the discovery phase to gather essential information. With insights from expert instructional designers, a detailed flowchart serves as the ultimate blueprint for your development team. Next, an innovative team of programmers and 3D modelers brings your assets to life, focusing on geometry and realism. From POS systems to scanners, custom replications add a personal touch to the training experience. Ensure that in each development phase, your VR provider prioritizes testing and feedback, guaranteeing that your project aligns perfectly with your organization’s learning strategy.
What do your training goals look like? With a development process that has clear learning objectives, additional design strategies for XR training help maximize the impact of virtual reality training. For example, each step in your training should be intuitive. It’s important to keep interactions in VR natural. For example, an intuitive learning feature may include highlighting the corners of a 3D object that needs to be lifted correctly. Immersive learning bridges theoretical training concepts with skill application. By establishing clear learning goals and following each step of development, each detail of your program comes together in a polished, immersive learning experience.
Opt-In For A Blended Learning Program
A blended learning program combines traditional and digital learning techniques to create a fully comprehensive program. This approach honors different learning paths and champions learning reinforcement. By incorporating different learning modalities, your organization can lead an inclusive training program for a diverse cohort of learners.
Blended learning combines the best aspects of different training modalities. Ineffective training methods are still a barrier for many organizations, partially because it’s difficult to teach anything just one way. By incorporating VR training into a blended learning program, the immersive aspect of training allows employees to gain hands-on experience. In VR training, learners get to experience accidents without real consequences, grounding them in the reality of the dangers they are exposed to on the job. Learners step into a virtual world where they witness the risks and dangers of their jobs firsthand. By facing these scenarios head-on in a safe environment, employees gain a practical understanding of safety standards. In virtual reality training, new hires learn from mistakes, practice problem-solving skills, and feel more confident on their first day.
The right mix of modalities optimizes training by pairing foundational information with active learning experiences. Blended learning caters to different learning styles. The key is to harness the power of immersive technology for specific learning reinforcement. Immersive technologies should always be used to illustrate skill objectives while providing experiential learning opportunities. Instead of the same old song and dance, it’s a learning journey that is twice as engaging. Mix ILT with AR, eLearning with VR, and more!
Read More: 6 Step Guide To Blended Learning
Use Cutting-Edge Features In Virtual Reality Training
Effective XR training content ties learning objectives with specific interactions to keep training an active learning experience. Unlike traditional methods that can feel passive or quickly forgotten, VR uses cutting-edge features to engage multiple senses and drive emotional connections during training. For example, using spatial audio, sound effects, and voice actors helps shape immersive experiences to invoke realism, guide learners with audio cues, and improve situational awareness. Take a look at this comprehensive list of XR features that make virtual reality training more human:
- Haptic Feedback
- Animations
- 3D Graphics
- Personalized 3D Models & Visual Effects
- Intuitive Learning Design
- Spatial Audio and Sound Effects
- Performance Metrics
- Action-Based and Tactile
VR is revolutionizing skill acquisition through innovative haptic feedback devices that enhance hands-on learning processes. These devices provide realistic tactile sensations, allowing users to feel and interact with virtual objects as they would in the real world. From temperature cues to force feedback on your fingertips, haptic devices are accelerating VR skill acquisition by improving hands-on processes.
By simulating real-world situations, VR training helps employees understand and retain complex information and skills. This hands-on approach enhances memory formation through repetition and practical application, reinforcing key concepts in a memorable and impactful way. By creating feature-rich VR training programs, learners get the most out of your organization’s investment.
Avoid Heavy Text in Extended Reality Programs
Not every kind of training works in an immersive format. Don’t sabotage your virtual reality training with heavy text!
VR has a unique ability to capture our attention and transport us somewhere new. Action-based interactions that physically engage learners are more likely to help your employees see in real-time the benefits of experiential learning. With an emphasis on body ergonomics, VR safety training relies on action-based interactions to connect learners with the reality of their roles. When matched with exceptional programs, learners retain important information.
Patience is a virtue. Rather than pushing old training content through a VR headset. The copy-paste method may be appealing based on the veneer of convenience, but learners end up overwhelmed by an overload of information that isn’t compatible with an immersive experience.
Select The Right VR Hardware
Choosing the right VR hardware is an important decision that can impact learner experiences. Modern VR headsets offer sleek designs and advanced functionalities, making them versatile tools that can be tailored for specific use cases and industries. Driven by the competition to produce crisper, immersive experiences, organizations are redefining the standard for virtual reality experiences.
VR headsets are popping up across industries, proving their effectiveness in simulating real-life scenarios and facilitating immersive learning experiences that enhance skill development and retention. While there are unique benefits and characteristics associated with current hardware offerings, selecting the right VR headset for your training program will ultimately depend on your use case. Popular use cases for VR headsets include onboarding and scenario-based training where learners are still in the initial training stage. As learners practice foundational training concepts, virtual reality training is great for training on anything that is too dangerous, too expensive, or too inconvenient to train on. VR headsets are more powerful than ever before, proving to be an organizational asset.
Leverage Learning Metrics and Instant Feedback
When your team succeeds, so does your business. The best way to get VR training right the first time is to take a data-driven approach. Virtual reality programs provide instant feedback to learners so they can self-correct during training, producing meaningful metrics for your organization to analyze.
This data helps organizations refine their training programs to focus on areas where learners struggle the most. The benefits of eye-tracking extend beyond efficiency. In any given driving simulation, ensuring that learners keep their eyes on the road and monitor their surroundings can reduce the risk of accidents. Eye-tracking data also provides valuable insights into a learner’s engagement and understanding. By using an extended reality system like Mercury XRS, your organization can manage key performance metrics to evaluate your workforce.
Virtual Reality Training Starts Here
Together, we are reinventing corporate training experiences. Immersive tech is racing ahead, unlocking new opportunities and fresh strategies involving data analytics and beyond. Want to get VR training right the first time around?
Start by incorporating features that build memorable learning experiences. From animations to 3D graphics, immersive learning keeps learners engaged in active learning. Are your employees eager to receive real-time feedback on their performance? Start your immersive learning program with the first step!
