VR classroom facilitates Gazan students in interactive learning

GAZA - Studying science has become easier for 11-year-old Shahd Jundiya, a Palestinian student living in the Gaza Strip, ever since she began to attend classes in her school's virtual reality classroom.

"In the past, I had to spend long hours on maths, science, engineering and Arabic subjects to be at an advanced level in my class," the fifth-grade student told Xinhua.

The situation has changed since she began to take lessons taught with virtual reality technology, she said. "I can have access to the virtual reality of each subject, which allows me to better understand and keep in mind all its configurations and combinations." Leen al-Louh, Jundiya's classmate, shares similar views.

"Thanks to the virtual reality classroom, I was able to touch the animal cells and learn about their chemical compositions and special functions," said al-Louh.

"Mathematics and its engineering derivatives were among the most difficult subjects I studied during my academic year, but they are now interesting to me," she added.

Both Jundiya and al-Louh are among the 500 students of al-Basma school in Gaza who have studied across the curriculum in a virtual reality classroom that was newly introduced to the impoverished coastal enclave.

The classroom uses 3D graphics to visualise concepts in a subject. In maths class, students can "touch" a square, triangle, or other geometric shapes to better perceive their differences.

"The virtual reality classroom is the first of its kind in the Palestinian Territories. Its primary goal is to build a simulation model in which students can engage in future sciences, and at the same time allow them to study and understand the curricula in a more practical way," Ahmed al-Natour, director of public relations at the school, told Xinhua.

According to him, compared to regular classrooms, virtual reality classrooms allow students to learn knowledge more effectively.

Furthermore, the virtual reality class - by visualising abstract concepts in their curriculum - helps students to understand them faster and easier, as well as fosters their creative thinking, he added.

"We want the culture of virtual reality classes to expand in Palestinian schools, which will contribute greatly to bringing Palestinian students to the world of artificial intelligence and future sciences," al-Natour added.

Parents of these students also applauded their children's academic progress as well as the way that lessons are taught via virtual reality, which has become popular with students.

"My son has become more interested in his schoolwork and reviews them at home alone without our help... He was able to explain to us the details of chemical molecules without us spending hours to help him recollect difficult concepts," said Safaa Shureiteh, a student's mother.

The 36-year-old mother of four hoped that the coastal enclave could have more virtual reality classrooms so that all local students could take on such an "incredible (learning) experience" and grow to be a "future maker" someday. - BERNAMA-XINHUA