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1.INTRODUCTIONEvery technological innovation, from the beginnings of TV to the current fashion of artificial intelligence, echoes in the educational world with the promise of a pedagogical revolution [1]. The virtual reality craze dates back several years, but recent technological developments now allow for use in ordinary classrooms. In fact, the cost of the equipment has fallen sharply (a virtual reality headset costs a few hundred euros) and the improvement in the computing performance of the headsets has made it possible to detach them from computers. These developments have allowed the commercialization of several educational applications within virtual reality, including the Immersive Photonics Lab for optics. In this statement we are not claiming that virtual reality will revolutionize the teaching of optics. We propose a didactic approach to analyze the learning opportunities offered by such apparatus. We will start from an analysis of the specificities of teaching physics, and in particular optics. We will then offer a very probably still incomplete panorama of the possible uses in training. We will conclude with the prospects for studies to be carried out to validate the usefulness of such devices in training. 2.DIDACTIC ANALYSIS OF OPTICAL TEACHINGPhysics is an experimental science which makes connections between objects and phenomena of the world as well as the models and theories which make it possible to understand and predict them [2]. Therefore, practical work plays a key role in the teaching of physics. The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) drew up in 1998 an inventory of the objectives assignable to practical work in optics [3]:
The teaching of optics, as a thematic of physics, therefore pursues the same objectives. However, it should be noted that optics are also at the service of the engineering sciences. Thus, the optics lessons also have the objective of: 3.LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED BY VIRTUAL REALITYIn view of the didactic analysis above, we think that the contribution of virtual reality is particularly obvious for everything related to procedural learning, and therefore points 2, 6 and 7. Virtual reality obviously makes it possible to embark into augmented reality which has already demonstrated its usefulness in helping students to better understand the concepts of physics (point 3) [4]. The use of this technology makes it possible to take on several very interesting dimensions for the teaching of optics:
CONCLUSIONThis is an a priori analysis of the opportunities offered by virtual reality for teaching optics which have guided the development of an educational application: The Immersive Photonics Lab. The in-situ study of the use of this device and its effectiveness makes up part of the prospects of this work. REFERENCESD. Muller (Veritasium),
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