The Role of Unity Agencies in Shaping the Future of AR/VR Educational Platforms

As the use of Unity software grows, so too does its use in the educational sector, particularly in the fast-expanding fields of AR/VR. In today’s world, if you want Virtual content, then Unity is the package of choice for most developers, and there are many Unity agencies in the market.

Unity is an excellent platform for instructional content because of its interactive nature, visual appeal, and ease of usage. As a result, it is a powerful tool for engaging learners in a variety of curriculum activities. The sheer adaptability of this technology enables the creation of immersive experiences, like simulations and games, which have the potential to improve learning outcomes and boost comprehension amongst students. Let’s have a look at the main reasons why this is;

• It allows for Interactive and Immersive Learning for students of all ages.
  Moving beyond conventional textbook-based education, Unity helps to create dynamic and interesting learning spaces. Using many of the common tools that are included in the Unity package, users can quickly interact with virtual objects, investigate a variety of simulated situations, and practise complicated processes, hence deepening the students’ knowledge. Examples of this include virtual tours of historical landmarks, simulations of medical procedures, or interactive scientific experiments that may be easily built in the program. All of these can be developed quickly and easily within the Unity software and without the need to use third-party content for parts of the development. Unity does it all within the engine.
• It has huge visual appeal and accessibility.
  Unity’s visual interface and simple design helps teachers as well as students in understanding programming ideas and build interactive content with ease. This visual method can help to make learning much more interesting and enjoyable, especially if the user doesn’t like it and is not adept at coding. In addition, Unity’s cross-platform functionality guarantees access to many common platforms including desktops, tablets, and, of course, AR/VR headsets.
• It’s highly flexible.
  Unity offers a framework for developing AR/VR experiences that can be accessed on several platforms, including mobile phones, tablets, and VR headsets, hence enabling a larger variety of students and teachers to use them. The system also provides tools and free instructional materials, hence helping schools and other educational organisations to save money.
• It’s simple yet powerful.
  Unity is a very powerful, well-tested game engine that serves as a foundation for many AR/VR applications, including those in education. It offers a comprehensive toolkit for creating 3D environments, animations, and interactive experiences. In addition, the package has a huge number of free assets within the software, allowing the user to pick and place many common features and interactive experiences, right from within the Unity dashboard.

A huge number of technical commentators now recognise Unity as being the software of choice when it comes to mobile and AR/VR developments. According to app analytics company Apptopia, Unity is the most often used 3D development tool worldwide. It drives 40% of the top 1,000 mobile games and more than half of all new mobile games. With that kind of spread, it’s little wonder that Unity is finding increasing use in professional developments.

The market for AR/VR equipment and devices is expected to reach a whopping $27 billion this year, and demonstrate year-on-year rises for the foreseeable future. This makes it a highly important market for developers and some of the top Unity-based companies are gearing up to be a part of the future immersive learning solutions.

Unity Is Perfect for Educational Developments

Educational engagement in the UK is becoming increasingly driven by the use of virtual environments for a number of very coherent reasons:

• It’s flexible. AR/VR offers the ability to create exciting and creative lessons that can test the student in many different ways. Because the medium allows for the creation of immersive worlds, the extent of what can be delivered is only limited by the imagination of the designer. Imagine a mathematics lesson where the student is able to physically handle parts of an equation to produce a solution, and other students can step in and help out. How about a trip to virtual Ancient Rome, or the Antarctic, all from the comfort of the classroom? AR in education can deliver all of these and much more too.
• It’s engaging. AR/VR can capture the imagination like no other form of learning can. Because it incorporates all styles of learning – visual, aural, and kinaesthetic – it can be effectively used and enjoyed by all learners. Lessons learnt in the virtual medium are far more likely to be absorbed and remembered.
• It promotes interaction. Because most of the Apps created for AR/VR educational purposes are intended to be used by a group of students – or even the entire class – they tend to encourage collaboration between students to work out problems as a team. Using AR/VR in the classroom can also increase soft skills amongst pupils, helping them gain social competences that will help them throughout their lives.
• It’s affordable technology. It is likely that a growing number of students will have their own personal VR headsets at home and will be well versed in their use. That will not only help in class, but will instil a certain pride in helping others in class. This is known as the “I know how to do it and can help you factor” and is a great psychological tool in a peer environment.

In addition, AR/VR headsets spark imagination and a want to succeed, and have been shown to be a fantastic tool for students with special educational needs. However, almost every report that highlights the advantages of virtual environments in education, also point out the need to have professional Apps to use on them, and that becomes the major issue with the technology.

The Need for Professional Unity Agencies

Having the right software for the job is only half of the equation. It is essential for a client to select professional developers to help construct an App from first principles. Unity Developers have an impressive background in the design and implementation of AR/VR apps and content. 

Introducing a new App – particularly in something as sensitive as education – requires a great deal of background work to establish the parameters of the development, what it must do, and how it is likely to be used.

Typically, a new development will start off with a detailed specification which will dive deep into what the package will be expected to do, how it will do it, and how student success will be measured. Once the specification is agreed with the client, actual work on the App can be started. 

In today’s highly competitive market, educational content is becoming increasingly important and will be needed by schools, colleges, and universities both now and in the long term. The most professional Unity developers will benefit from this huge and expanding market, and it is essential that those seeking new AR/VR developments engage the best possible companies.

Unity Developers are in the top tier of companies able to create professional immersive learning solutions. Why not contact them and start discussing your new educational project.