Migros Club School brings the first language course with VR glasses
The Migros Club School is introducing English courses with virtual reality. The new VR language course was developed in collaboration with the University of Applied Sciences Graubünden and co-financed by Innosuisse, the Swiss Agency for Innovation Promotion.
In March 2019, Innosuisse gave the green light for the development of the Klubschule's forward-looking and market-oriented learning offering. Funding is provided for courses that meet a market need and create added value for society. Language courses with VR elements have clear advantages: Participants use the foreign language in authentic situations. They no longer act in a static classroom, but directly in everyday English-speaking life. From the classroom, they immerse themselves in the foreign-language culture, order their food in a restaurant in Shanghai or book leisure activities on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
From the virtual to the real world
The project proposal and the course content were developed together with the University of Applied Sciences Graubünden (formerly HTW Chur). "Various studies have shown that multidimensional learning in a simulated, but still real-feeling everyday situation increases memory. We wanted to take advantage of this potential and create a new learning experience," says Nathaly Tschanz from the UAS Graubünden. "By immersing learners in authentic language situations, practical transfer is facilitated. Language knowledge applied in context creates more confidence, inhibitions are solved. And VR learning is also simply fun!", the lecturer for digital business management and augmented realities is convinced.
New technologies require new skills
The project manager at Klubschule Migros, Gigi Saurer, is delighted with the successful collaboration: "The time is ripe for VR application in language learning. The technology is now mature and the glasses are lighter and easier to use than they were just a few years ago. It is possible to get started with calculable investments." However, this course also places new demands on the teachers: "We have given our language course instructors - especially those who enjoy technology - further training themselves," adds Gigi Saurer.
Over the next few months, the Club School will check how course participants respond. The VR offering will be expanded to other languages depending on demand.
