Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2012

Developing 3D spatial visualisation skills through Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality (AR) is a computer generated technology that allows the user to explore a mix of real and virtual 3D information. Lower costs of advanced technology systems such as AR plug-ins now offer a viable solution for teaching and learning applications. Within academic and business settings, AR technology is being used to market products, diagnose and solve engineering and technical faults, supplement field trips and provide simulation training in medical and defence training. Most of today’s smart phones, work stations and tablet devices can utilise the inbuilt camera to provide an enhanced view of physical real-world environments. While Brisbane Girls Grammar School is already making use of this technology as a learning tool, The 2011 Horizon Report identified AR as an emerging environment for education in the next two to three years. This is consistent with other reports that indicate AR will be mainstream in the next two to five years (Fenn & Raskino, 2010). Year 9 Innovative Design students are currently using an AR plug-in with Google SketchUp to model their architectural solutions for a given design brief. The AR models allow students to virtually explore and reflect upon design choices, facilitating structural quality and innovation. The AR-media technology assists in visualisation, and the interaction of SketchUp models in AR provides a method for experiencing digital content in new ways. AR is radically enhancing these student learning experiences by providing the girls with broader opportunities to grasp 3D spatial concepts and situations. The practicality of integrating AR into the classroom

provides the students with the ability to study and analyse scaled virtual prototyping in a corresponding real environment. AR technology assists in the learning process by allowing the student to examine and position the prototype through the webcam outside the constraint of the computer screen. The Technology Studies Faculty is currently investigating past trends in Queensland Core Skills (QCS) common curriculum elements associated with identifying and visualising shapes in two and three dimensions. The Faculty is also reviewing international academic research that identifies persistent gaps in cognitive spatial skills of women, specifically on measures of mental rotation, where it is consistently found that men outscore women by a medium to large margin (Linn & Petersen, 1985; Voyer & Bryden, 1995 cited in Hill, Corbett & Rose, 2010). As a leader in exceptional scholarship for young women, Brisbane Girls Grammar School hopes to help address this gender imbalance by offering its students the most advanced and innovative spatial learning opportunities.

Mr Brendon Thomas Co-Director of Technology Studies

References Fenn, J. & Raskino, M. (2010). Mastering the hype cycle . Boston: Harvard Business Press. Hill, C., Corbett, C., & Rose, A. (2010). Why So Few?: Women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics . Retrieved February 19, 2012, from: http://www.aauw.org/ learn/research/upload/whysofew.pdf. Johnson, L., Smith, R., Willis, H., Levine, A., & Haywood, K. (2011). The 2011 Horizon Report . Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium. Retrieved May 2, 2011 from http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2011/.

Grammar Gazette Autumn 2012 16