Abstract
In this study, we evaluated affective components of the learning processes of students after being exposed to a virtual geology field trip of the Baengnyeong Island, South Korea. Changes in students’ cognition of and interest in science and scientific attitude were measured before and after exposure to the virtual field trip. We exposed 106 middle school students to the program and our results revealed that this program had a positive impact on their scientific attitude (p value = 0.014) but no significant changes were observed in the students’ cognition of and interest in science (p value = 0.166). The significant finding from this study was that the VFT program can bring positive scientific attitude as a component of affective learning process. The affective learning process influences the cognitive learning processes and eventually the academic achievement of the students can be improved. In the students’ satisfaction survey, the highest satisfaction level was in the convenience of the program. As access to Baengnyeong Island is limited, though the island is an ideal location for studying geological phenomena, the VFT can be a useful tool for instilling a positive scientific attitude in students via indirect field experience. It can be a good alternative to bridge the education gap between students with special needs who are less mobile and other students.
Highlights
In geosciences, field excursions are important for effective learning; suitable locations are often difficult to access, and traveling to such locations can be time-consuming and costly [1,2]
The questionnaire included a section on interest, consisting of one question related to why students were interested in the class using the Virtual Field Trip (VFT) program, and the other on academic achievement, which comprised of two questions related to knowledge on rocks and geological structures
One student suggested the use of subtitles on the screen in the program, because some content was difficult to understand due to inaccurate pronunciation or wind noise in a few videos that were linked to hot spots
Summary
Field excursions are important for effective learning; suitable locations are often difficult to access, and traveling to such locations can be time-consuming and costly [1,2]. A solution in overcoming such limitations is Virtual Field Trip (VFT) which can actualize the virtual 3D world. The results showed that students exposed to the VFT exhibited a similar effect to that of the group that attended the actual field trip. This proves that VFTs can provide the real nature of field trips, allow learners to achieve independent learning without time and spatial limitations, and portray various and integral information of science with high accuracy
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