3D as Accelerator

For educators exploring mobile, large display, virtual reality or augmented reality platforms using 3D, it is important to know the value added benefits of these products. To date, most reports about the effectiveness of using stereo 3D in the classroom revolve around increased retention of learning, ‘wow’ factor, motivation to learn, and higher pre-test/post-test scores. What if there is another benefit we are missing entirely, something much more appealing to educators?

One advantage of teaching with 3D, based on recent learning experiences in advantage of teaching with 3D, based on learning experiences in Swedish schools, appears to be the acceleration of curriculum. The growth dividend associated with the acceleration of curriculum seems very attractive.  Here’s how it’s evidenced in some Swedish schools.

Using the 3D Classroom, a richly 3D simulation series produced by Sensavis, teachers in Sweden are seeing some surprising results, even at very young ages. At the intermediate school level, Principal Mattias Bostrom reported the following example of curriculum acceleration in action:

An 8th grade biology teacher using The 3D Classroom stopped having tests in anatomy at the end of a course. Instead he had the 8th grade students teaching what they had learned to 4th and 5th grade students, but using the same 3D visualization tools. This way he could better understand the depth of the 8th grade students’ knowledge. During the experiment, the instructor noticed that the 4th and 5th grade students asked tougher questions than he had imagined they would ask. The biology teacher, curious about what the younger students had learned, conducted another spot experiment.  He took the last year’s final test for 8th grade anatomy and gave it to the 5th graders. He was surprised and delighted when the 5th graders scored better on this test than last year’s 8th graders. Humorously, at the same time he was a bit worried what to teach the 4th and 5th graders when they became 8th graders. 

Stay tuned next week for a post involving curriculum acceleration by even younger students.

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See to Achieve: Where Virtual Reality, Vision, and Learning Meet

Reading. What does it take to be successful? Part of the answer is physiological. For the early learner, how well vision works is vital. Children’s eyes must be able to track, focus, and team (work together). Successful reading requires our eyes to track a line and focus on a word or letter—and our eyes must do those things together. Enter modern day virtual reality. 3D virtual reality experiences also require our eyes to track, focus, and team. Sound familiar? This presentation will show how virtual reality is fostering unanticipated benefits for vision health and learning; and how new mobile 3D technology is being used to screen for and improve early childhood vision. 

Chasing Efficiency: Learning with 3D

We learn more in less time," 9 year-old Preston explains, sitting cheerfully in his Minnesota classroom. This trumpeting of learning efficiency is one of the increasingly apparent benefits of teaching in the 3D classroom. Learning efficiency simply means that students can reach a deep understanding of their learning goals in a shorter amount of time.  This economy in learning really matters. When teachers and learners are more efficient, it frees up more time in the curriculum to cover or learn [more topics]—or to go deeper than the students were able to go before.

Learning efficiency is not evidenced solely in the 3D classroom, of course; many technologies, when used well, usher in the same advantage to learners. Consider the time-saving advantages of such a familiar educational technology as the word processor; or think about the omnipresent graphing calculator, which enables students to complete ten times the number of transformations than possible with pencil and graph paper in the same amount of time. 

That’s learning efficiency in a nutshell. 3D visualization, however, promises a brain-based renaissance for promoting learning efficiency like never before.

North Carolina Rocks 3D

Another Success Story in 3D Education

I don't know what it is about the Tar Heel state, but ya’ll certainly gotchee a mess of educational 3D talent there.  Maybe it comes from the drinking water. Or the fresh country air. Or the amazing waffles. Maybe it’s due to the Old North State’s beautiful, plentiful, and restful foliage.  Perhaps it emanates from the high-tech bowels of the Research Triangle. But they sure do educational 3D well in North Carolina. It's a 3-D success story all around.

Rural Richmond County, NC

For the last few years I have described the work of the so-called 3D Jedi, Director of Technology—Jeff Epps.  His past efforts can be reviewed in these previous blog posts: 3D Jedi * 3D Jedi Conclusion * Return of the 3D Jedi * Return of the 3D Jedi (2) But let's move on...

Holly Ridge, NC

Now move eastward with me, as we take a look at some of the 3D learning taking place at coastal Dixon high school.  For the last two years, Jason Chambers, a respected biology teacher, has used XPAND glasses, DLP technology, and DesignMate software with positive results:  “It’s been a dream using the software. It not only helps the kids but the teachers are also enjoying it, especially when they see the test results. In General Biology alone there has been a more than 50 percent improvement in test scores. Our principal is ecstatic,” Mr. Chambers said. In North Carolina, a student has to score a level 3 (mastery of concepts) or 4 (superior understanding and clearly proficient in concept) on a statewide testing exam to be considered proficient. All classes taught by Mr. Chambers [including those with special needs students] earned a remarkable 100% proficiency using the 3D material. In an Honors class taught by Mr. Chambers, he had 12 students score 4 in a class of 21 students. “Those types of scores are unheard of!” Mr. Chambers added. “Normally I’m lucky to get four or five 4’s in a class of 30 students, so the numbers speak for themselves.”

Where students often get restless when a video is being played, Mr. Chambers noticed the opposite effect with the presentation of 3D content. “I can hear a pin drop in the room when we’re watching a 3D video. Kids are attentive and focused and actually entertained by what they are watching. I had never seen that before,” he said.

“Students are grasping the material much quicker than with traditional methods,” Mr. Chambers said. Mr. Chambers concluded: “I don’t have to change the way I teach; I’ve had outstanding results with the content.”

Listen to this short overview video of Dixon High School’s 3D project:

Also, listen to this short video with interviews of students and Mr. Chambers. 

Kinston, NC

And, surprisingly we’re still not done. North Carolina is still that good!  Meet Joe Romig, IB biology teacher at Kinston High. His students, too are seeing positive results using 3D in biology lessons. "In the past, before the 3D biology classes, 8 of 26 students showed academic growth. Now that number has increased to 24 of 29 students," he explains. "I've had kids that would probably have been at level two score at level three. Even had a kid score a perfect EOC [end of course] score." 

See this video of Kinston.

Based on some of these success stories coming out of North Carolina, I am certain that other states “might can” (might be able to) see similar results.  North Carolina rocks. Don't  you agree?

The 3D Classroom

What happens when a 3D powerhouse takes its first confident step into the world of K-12 and university education? Good things happen. At the SETT conference in Stockholm, Sensavis recently launched “The 3D Classroom”, an interactive teaching program presented in life-like 3D. (See their website.)

This Swedish company created The 3D Classroom in close collaboration with teachers and professors. The first teaching modules publicly launched today include the “Human Body” series covering the heart, lungs, kidney and fertility. These modules have been trialed for two months by schools in Stockholm with extremely positive results. Over the coming months, Sensavis plans to roll out teaching modules for the remainder of the human body, and other school subjects such as mathematics and geography

There are three key reasons why this new product release is quite significant in the broader world of eS3D (educational stereo 3D):

First, this new content delivers what we have always expected and always wanted from 3D: the ability to go beyond superficial visualization. This new tool brings us remarkable capacity to drill down, then go further down; to go inside, and then travel further inside. In short, to truly experience the long-desired “fantastic voyage” that 3D has always promised us.

Second, it is interactive, allowing students to operate the experience, not just teachers. (See the mouse in the above photo.)  Sensavis CEO Magnus Arfors explains“that [learners] can determine the “journey” by steering with their fingertips, [selecting the view] from macro to micro detail.”

Last, the 3D Classroom comes ready to plug and play. Long the holy grail of a difficult-to-implement emerging technology, their entire 3D solution has been designed to be fiercely plug and play: low maintenance, low care and feeding, just go and do it.

The hardware partners for the Sensavis solution are also noteworthy. Sensavis has partnered with LG to provide TV screens, and HP for workstations in this passive 3D implementation. 

For more information, see the 3D Classroom website or contact Maggie Warbrick.

More on Brain Research and 3D Learning

In our post last week, I wrote about a new study now being conducted in Boulder connecting brain research with 3D learning.  In this follow-up post, I want to take a closer look at the study design and the hardware/ software that is being deployed in the effort. This insight can help other schools and organizations develop their own research strategies.

Study Design

Some of the most insightful design aspects of this study include:

• Using software in both the stereoscopic mode (3D) and in non-stereoscopic mode (2D) in to explore students’ ability to understand and retain abstract knowledge (as opposed to just using 3D). 
• Testing a student’s ability to transfer learning through model building and videotaped explanations of abstract concepts and processes (as opposed to testing for retention). 
• Ascertaining a student’s ability to transfer their newly-acquired visual learning to the standardized tests and writing prompts of the new Colorado state testing system.
• Using a control group of students, who do not view the science and math lesson content in stereo version prior to the standardized test, comparing their outcomes with students who used the stereo mode for only the first 5 to 10 minutes of a class period. (Remember, it may not require constant use of 3D to show a positive effect on learning.)
• A special focus on the effects of 3D versus 2D images on thinking, memory formation and student learning disabilities.
• As an innovative form of evaluation, students will be videotaped while using 3D and 2D interactive software and while doing hands-on performance assessments (3D model building and video explanations of content).

Hardware and Software

The hardware being deployed in this study includes DLP 3D projectors provided by Vivitek and active glasses provided by XPAND. The software lessons to be used in this designed study include Stereo 3D biology, physics, and chemistry resources from Designmate, along with and 3D Geometry and Calculus lessons from Spatial Thinking.

3D Conference Talk

As the 2012 ed-tech conference season began in earnest, I found myself at the FETC 2013 conference in Orlando (late January) and the TCEA conference in Austin (early February). I not only attended these huge events, I presented at both.  Of course, I also spent considerable time traversing the exhibit halls.  I would like to share some key observations related to 3D presence at these huge conferences.

Learnings from FETC

Stereo 3D was not well represented.  It was visibly on display only in only one or two booths. I followed up on every session in the conference program that mentioned ‘3D’ in the title or description, and it is clear that, except for one presentation by Nancye Blair, Stereo 3D is not well understood by conference leadership.  They imagine that “3D virtual worlds” (rendered-3D immersive worlds, like Second Life) and rendered-3D design tools (like Sketchup), or rendered-3D animation in augmented reality or games is what it is all about. I found nothing on the visualization and learning advantages of using stereoscopic 3D.  You may ask, “Why doesn’t conference leadership understand what stereo 3D is? I think it’s easy to explain. It is not fully a part of their generation or their personal culture.  It is not yet on their radar.  It should be, but it is not.  But don’t ever think it is an unreachable goal.  We just need the right messaging.

Learnings from TCEA

For the second year in a row, Texas really “gets” 3D.  My half-day workshop was packed with interested K-12 educators of every persuasion. My follow-up TATN network 3D presentation was well attended and well received.  It was clear the educators were ready to move on this technology. On a negative note, the exhibit hall floor had only four booths demonstrating 3D, a significant downward trend. Teachers kept approaching me on the exhibit floor to find resources, but I had only two places to send them. Lumens was the bright spot, crisply demonstrating their magnificent 3D document camera. One brave exhibitor was a new entry into the marketplace for 3D pre-school  content, Classteacher Learning Systems.  

Also, one 3D printing company (what we call additive manufacturing) offered a small presence.

The final product was in the Epson booth. But they were showing a 15-year old technology solution for 3D (double projectors) that exemplified the historical problems with this old delivery system: the projectors were out of sync and two expensive projectors, not a single inexpensive DLP projector, were necessary.  My conclusion: Again, just like last year, Texas educators really ‘get’ 3D.

On a related note, DLP 3D Lamp-Free Projectors were being demonstrated in a few areas, but the messaging was exceptionally weak.  I consider this to be one of the most impactful technologies ever invented for recession-wrenched educators, but it was absolutely clear that neither exhibitors nor integrators had any idea how to communicate its value proposition to educational customers. (To the educator, ‘lamp-free’ means not paying for bulbs every year—at $350 a whack.  These projectors cost a little bit more, but pay for themselves in a year and a half. In some cases, a solution can last for 20,000+ hours—10+ years in school terms.) You may want to research this mainstream innovation on your own.

Teaching with Depth

Grasping for words. In search of just-the-right language. Looking for richer metaphors. These best describe what has been occupying my think time in recent months. You see, the expression ‘3D’ carries a lot of unwanted baggage. 

For most, the expression ‘3D’ conjures to their minds little more than movies—‘pokey’ entertainment.  Some people immediately associate the term ‘3D’ with architectural drawings (CAD), Google Earth, gaming, or other types of “rendered 3D” objects or scenescapes. Then there’s a well-known film critic, who speaks for many, in suggesting that “‘3D—it just makes me sick.” (He was unaware of the research findings that indicate his discomfort is caused by underlying vision issues, which are easily addressable. But that’s another story.) For many others, ‘3D’ is simply not a part of their generation and therefore not on their radar.

Using the term “stereo 3D” doesn’t seem to help either. Adding that double-fisted adjective merely adds a pinch of technophobe seasoning to the mix. No, I’ve been looking for a kinder, gentler pathway. So far, I have settled on the following:

Teaching and learning with DEPTH is a pleasant way to describe how we use 3D in educational settings. It’s an expression that is, at once, both hopeful and free of the past, largely unwarranted, baggage. So far, it seems to resonate well with educators and educational conference leaders. 

Do you have any similar musings? Other ways to word the notion of the 3D experience? Please post them as a comment below.

3D Vision Basics

The 'old' way

The 'new' way

If you are a bit unfamiliar with the role of 3D in supporting vision health and improved learning for children, you may want to watch this short video of James Sheedy, O.D., Ph.D., explaining how 3D viewing helps diagnose vision problems. It was filmed in Chicago during the American Optometric Association’s annual membership conference. It also addresses the importance of our natural 3D vision in successful student learning.

Also, watch the rough video below to see an example of how TrueVision uses 3D in eye surgery education to show clarity and depth:

Summer 2012 eS3D Content Update

Below please find my Future-Talk 3D August 2012 list of producers of 3D educational content. These content producers are listed in alphabetic order, along with a few salient comments that are worth a look. Links are provided and the entire file is downloadable. If you are a 3D educational content manufacturer, and you are not yet on this list (but would like to fill me in on your intentions), please contact me directly.

                                    Open publication - Free publishing - More 3d

3D Comm

For those readers who want to learn more about 3D in the educational marketplace, or simply wish to increase their knowledge about the possibilities and capabilities of 3D, a high-leverage opportunity is coming your way. 3D Comm Seminars are again being offered at this year’s InfoComm conference in Las Vegas on June 13 and 14.

These 90-minute sessions, taught by Insight Media analysts as well as other leaders in the 3D industry, will focus on “providing unbiased information on many aspects of the 3D ecosystem, and help you gain critical knowledge about technology, markets, applications and uses of 3D.” 

The 3D Comm schedule of offerings includes:

Wednesday, June 13
3D1	Introduction to Stereovision and 3D Human Factors	Chris Chinnock	Insight Media
3D2	Advanced Capabilities of 3D Projection	Victor Vettorello	Vista Systems Corp./ Christie Digital
3D3	System Integration for Stereoscopic Solutions	Norbert Hildebrand	Insight Media
3D4	Introduction to Stereovision and 3D Human Factors	Chris Chinnock	Insight Media
3D5	3D in Visualization/Simulation	Andrew Jamison	Scalable Display
3D7	Autostereoscopic 3D Displays for Digital Signage	Chris Chinnock	Insight Media
3D8	3D Applications - Where, What & Why	Norbert Hildebrand	Insight Media
Thursday, June 14
3D 9	Content Creation for Stereoscopic Displays	Chris Chinnock	Insight Media
3D11	Introduction to 3D Displays	Chris Chinnock	Insight Media
3D12	Remapping for 2012: 3D and the Education Market Space	Len Scrogan	University of Colorado-Denver
3D13	Deploying 3D Displays Using Touch, Gesture and Motion Tracking Technologies	Kurt Hoffmeister	Mechdyne

As you can tell, I am one of the presenters. I will be speaking about Remapping for 2012: 3D and the Education Marketspace. My focus will be on three key topics:

• “What does great eS3D look like?”
• “How can the industry best prepare for the 2012-2013 academic year in the educational marketplace?“
• “What changes and developments must be considered in order to reach and succeed in the educational market?“

Please join me if you can, and take time to shake hands and chat one-on-one. You can get more information about 3D Comm at this link.

ISTE 3D Preview

The ISTE 2012 educational conference, scheduled for San Diego in June, is offering four powerful educator presentations in the area of stereo 3D. Make plans to be there and learn about the latest in stereo 3D DLP technologies for the classroom. Click on any link to learn more.

When 3D Comes to Your School Saturday, 6/23/2012, 12:30pm–3:30pm Presenter: Len Scrogan, University of Colorado-Denver This is a comprehensive three-hour workshop on everything you need to know about creating a stereo 3D classroom or pilot project in your school or district.

3D in Education
Tuesday, 6/26/2012, 5:00pm–6:15pm
Nancye Blair, McKeel Elementary Academy with Len Scrogan

This is a birds-of-a-feather gathering for teachers or leaders interested in learning or talking about teaching with stereoscopic 3D. It is an open-ended discussion focusing on emerging resources and best practices for using 3D technologies to increase student engagement and learning gains.

Exploring 3D Technology in the Classroom: Strategies and Lessons Learned
Tuesday, 6/26/2012, 1:00pm–3:00pm
Carole Hruskocy, Regis University with Sandra Foster

How does 3D technology in a science classroom affect learning and teaching? Explore this emerging technology and find out the results from a third-year extension of the BVS3D research study, presented by University researchers in a two-hour stay-as-long-as-you-want poster session.

Teaching in 3D: Why It Works, Why It Matters
Tuesday, 6/26/2012, 10:00am–12:00pm
Presenter: Len Scrogan, University of Colorado-Denver

Discover how stereo 3D visualization technology is being used effectively in K-12 classrooms, how it affects student thinking and performance, and why it matters. Presented in a two-hour stay-as-long-as-you-want poster session. 

Wanted: 3D Educators

The following opportunity is being offered by the stalwart 3D company, Eon Reality: 

Apply to the International 3D in Education Program.

EON Reality is hosting a competition in which 30 schools from around the world (5 in North America, 5 in South America, 5 in Europe, 5 in Asia-Pacific, 5 in the Middle East, and 5 in Africa) will be selected to participate in the International 3D in Education program. Tell them how your school will use interactive 3D content in Education: the 30 best applications will receive a one-year license for interactive 3D content creation software that enables teachers and professors to create their own 3D learning applications and to use interactive 3D in their classroom. Download the application form at http://tinyurl.com/EON-3D-Education-Competitionand send it back to education@eonreality.com before April 30.

On Youthful Shoulders

I think DLP-enabled 3D will definitely be carried into the future on the shoulders of kids. Kids get it. Adults, still not so much. Why do I say that? Three reasons. See if you agree with my logic. And please comment if you have time.

Reason 1. Kids pressure adults. While attending the CIO Summit in Fort Lauderdale this year, I had some separate conversations with a superintendent from a large school district on the east coast and his entourage (all technology staff). Although 3D was nowhere on the radar of his technology staff, the superintendent, in a separate discussion, was very interested in creating a DLP-enabled 3D pilot project in his district. I asked him why. He explained that his 4^th grade daughter thought it was cool. (I gave him several 3D stickers for his daughter.)

Reason 2. Kids pressure adults. The notion that students appreciate what 3D has to offer was amplified in the last Speak Up survey, an annual national research project produced by Project Tomorrow, which surveys K-12 students teachers, teachers, parents, and administrators.  When asked what types of digital content students perceived as important to make available in e-textbooks, students included access to 3D content as one of their top choices. Middle school students, in particular, rated access to 3D content higher than all other grade levels surveyed. Interestingly, we know that 3D content can also play a major role in four out of the remaining five of the preferred e-textbook characteristics identified in this chart (virtual labs, video clips. games, and animations/simulations).

Figure 1. Project Tomorrow (2010). Empowering Digitally-rich Content through the E-textbook.

Speak Up 2010 Survey. Reprinted with permission.

By the way, Project Tomorrow is a wonderful resource to help you understand what educational stakeholders value in both the present and future, so be sure to visit their website frequently.  You may even want to consider sponsoring a future report.

Reason 3. Kids pressure adults. Scorsese made the film Hugo in 3D because a) his wife wanted him to make something his kids could actually see, and b) his own 12 year-old daughter and her friends asked “In 3D, right?” See Scorcese’s own comments at the 3D Society Creative Awards:

What’s the bottom line? Young people readily connect with the visual, mobile, and social technologies that so permeate our modern lives. Now if only the adults will listen…