AVRover & ONfinity Portable Interactive Whiteboards

Why 3D? Educators at Hamilton Park in Dallas, TX explain

From Texas Instruments DLP Pilot Study Findings at Hamilton Park In talking with educators across the country we've found that a common search they undergo is for an effective way to convey abstract concepts to their students.  These topics are often the most difficult for students to grasp leading to frustration and withdrawal. The use of technology in education has been tasked with helping to bridge this gap in understanding, with the employment of 3D at the forefront.   In light of this schools across the country have been piloting 3D in order to harness its ability to completely revolutionize the way we teach and learn.  At one of TI's DLP Pilot schools, Hamilton Park Elementary, Teachers and Administrators alike were blown away with their students response to 3D. "Their understanding of these abstract concepts blossomed"-Brittany Russo, 3rd grade teacher, Hamilton Park, "The students just LOVED this.  It can be hard to keep kid's attention-- there are only so many pictures you can show before some kids get bored or frustrated. One of my students said to me, 'We are actually having fun while learning -- that never happens.'" Principal Megan Timme agreed, "I believe the kids are more engaged because they are able to take abstract concepts and make them more concrete in their minds.  An engaged child is a successful child." Another Hamilton Park teacher added, "This is one of the most beneficial tools we've ever had.  They actually paid attention because it was neat.  They're learning and they're having fun."

3D Vision Problems indicates underlying eye disorders

Recently the AOA (American Optometry Association) published an extensive report outlining the benefits of employing 3D technology in Education.  Most importantly it dispelled claims that 3D should not be viewed for extended periods of time or that 3D was somehow damaging to users vision.  At the same time, with the flood of 3D products available on the consumer market (from the Nintendo's 3DS to 3D Cinema to 3DTVS) there has been alot of confusion and questions around those who've perceived discomfort when viewing 3D.  An important fact to keep in mind is that we see the world around us in 3D everyday, all 3D technology does is present videos and digital images to use in a way that appears three-dimensional, akin to the way our eyes function all the time. In an effort to dispel some of these concerns lets look at how our eyes view our world and how this translates into viewing 3D content. 

The human abilty to see in 3D and identify objects as having depth, as outlined in the AOA's report 3D In the Classroom, is known as Stereopsis.  But for us to view our world and 3D Videos in Stereopsis both of our eyes need to be functioning well and able to work together as a team to determine depth, distance, texture and a host of other details.  Stereopsis is a complex process that requires a number of physiological and neurological conditions to be met.  Just like 3D Content in order for us to be able to see in 3D we need each eye to see a slightly different image.   The differences in the two retinal images are called horizontal disparity, retinal disparity, or binocular disparity which results from the eyes' different positions in the head.  Stereopsis is proccessed in the visual cortex in binocular cells which have what are known as receptive fields located in different horizontal positions each eye.  These cells are only active when the given stimulus is in the correct position in the left eye as well as the right eye, thereby making them a way of detecting disparities. 

When we look at an object, both of our eyes converge so that the object appears in the center of the retina in each eye.  Everything around the object we are focusing on appears to shift in relation to this "main" object.  If our eyes aren't able to move together properly, as is the case in terms of binocular vision disorders, the ability to see in 3D is effected.  This condition does not just effect the ability to see 3D Videos but is everpresent.  Because often times we may not be aware of vision disorders, viewing 3D videos can bring this problem to the forefront, when normally it may not have been realized.  Optometrists have supported the use of 3D as an important educational tool not only because of its proven educational results but because it serves as a poweful diagnostic tool as well. 

For more on the AOA study, check out our 3D Resources page.

3DAVRover Educational Spotlight

 
Achieve Preparatory Academy in Toledo, OH

In order to engage students and increase enrollment Kerry Keese turned to the 3DAVRover to revolutionize their classroom experience and excite their blossoming young minds.In the modern classroom engagement is the key to increasing test scores and encouraging students to approach subjects in completely new ways. At Achieve, Kerry Keese, school leader, incorporated the 3DAVRover into their 3D lab, complete with blacklight paint to make the experience even more immersive. In addition to a more well-behaved and engaged student body, Achieve was featured this week in the Toledo Journal for their forward looking educational approach, which AVRover was proud to be part of!