Impact of Virtual Reality in Maritime Education and Training: The Case of the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific

Abstract

The use of virtual reality (VR) in education is one of the revolutionizing strides in developing computer-assisted instruction. Through an elaborate literature review, the study tracked the development of VR in education and its progress in maritime education and training (MET) here and abroad. The research employed a case study analysis in assessing the impact of VR-based education juxtaposed with the traditional method of teaching. The two groups of students from Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP) underwent two sets of tests which were the Diagnostic Test and the Assessment Test. Each set of tests was composed of 25 questions. The T-test was used as the analysis framework to determine whether there was significant difference between the two sample means. The two separate treatments (VR-based Teaching and Traditional Teaching) which were used in the experiment were two independent samples, were normally distributed, and had the same variance. The p value was less than 0.05; therefore, the null hypothesis that there was no significant difference between the two means of the VR-based Teaching and Traditional Teaching was rejected. The mean score of the VR-based Teaching was 20.84% while the mean score of Traditional Teaching was 10.44%. The primary advantage of VR-based teaching which emerged in the study was the ability of VR to engage the learners while infusing fun and excitement and to immerse them in experience that generally makes retention easier. Furthermore, majority of the students reported that given the option, they would utilize and recommend VR in their education and training. Overall, students reported positive experiences in using VR, specifically citing the realism that the VR head gears were able to replicate in the virtual environment. They study also found that simulation technology in education and training can deliver the desired competency among seafarers and safety in shipping vessels