Experiencing Physical and Technical Phenomena in Schools Using Virtual Reality Driving Simulator

In the time of globalization and technical advances, companies want to remain competitive on national and international markets. This requires a qualified workforce with a corresponding level of education in the STEM fields. This paper presents a didactic methodology for a virtual reality-based workshop which supplements the school curricula of secondary education institutions. A virtual reality driving simulation application is used in order to enhance the students understanding of different physical and technical phenomena as well as to teach technical skills, such as the ability to program virtual reality applications. We observed that this methodology helps to reduce complexity and aid the understanding of the subject. This is due to the three main contributing factors: Immersion, interaction and engagement. The enthusiasm for the virtual reality systems kept the students motivated not only during the teaching units, but it has also inspired them to pursue the STEM careers.