Students exploring new worlds with their virtual reality headsets.
Imagine a school day where students can use a 3D printer to create prototypes of their own designs, participate in an immersive virtual reality experience, and hold holograms in the palm of their hands. For the scholars at Dorothy Height, this is their reality.
Thanks to a partnership with Verizon, Heart of America, and Arizona State University, Height is now the home of its very own Verizon Innovative Learning Lab. The immersive media lab is designed to prepare students for the future job force through encouraging entrepreneurial mindsets, social innovation, and design thinking. Height was chosen to receive an Innovative Learning Lab in early 2022, and the completed lab was officially unveiled in February 2023.
Verizon provided the school with 3D printing stations, virtual reality headsets, monitors, and other necessary equipment for the lab, as well as ongoing training and support to ensure that the lab is of maximum use to the school and its students.
“Verizon has curriculums readily available for use, and there are different course tracks,” Immersive Media Lab Mentor Dara Coleman said.
3D printer in action
For example, while the sixth graders began with the Immersive Media track and created adventures through different worlds, the seventh graders focused on Digital Product Innovations. Other tracks include Artificial Intelligence and Smart Solutions.
In addition to implementing the curriculum designed by Verizon, Coleman encourages scholars to utilize the technology to execute their own project ideas and try new things. Coleman stresses the importance of having the kids take risks and try out their ideas because she doesn’t want the technology to seem daunting to them.
Coleman also hopes to bring more teachers into the Lab next year by showing them how the technology can enhance their lessons and engage scholars in new ways. For example, if an ELA teacher has students read a book set in ancient Egypt, Coleman can bring the Virtual Reality (VR) cart to their room and provide the scholars with a VR tour of ancient Egypt.
“And it’s the same thing for social studies,” Coleman added. “If they want to do a field trip to the French Quarter, but we can’t get everyone there, the teacher can check out the 3D camera, go to the French Quarter, do the 360, and when the kids receive the headset, it’s as if they are walking around the Quarter.”
For the scholars who are most interested in the equipment itself, there is also a student Tech Team, which works with Coleman on maintaining the lab space and helping set up the equipment for others.
Coleman became the official Lab Mentor after working closely with the Verizon Innovative Learning coach and working on technology integration. Since assuming this role, her own relationship with technology has also changed.
The Height Tech Team celebrating the official completion of the Verizon Innovative Learning Lab at the ribbon cutting in February 2023.
“I had to learn how to use all of this technology so that I could pass the knowledge onto the kids, and coming up with new ways to integrate more technology into the school day definitely keeps me motivated,” she added.
Some of Coleman’s favorite projects are the ones that let the scholars build their 3D worlds. They start with just a graded plane and get to develop and animate their characters using simple block code, and find ways to have their characters interact with their created environment.
“One of the sixth graders had a T-Rex and a knight fighting in the middle of a cityscape, and the buildings were blowing up, and people were running around scared,” Coleman said. “It was amazing to see the thought and amount of work he put into it and to see how their imaginations are working.”
Students used the 3D printer to create a pin of the school’s lion mascot.
The scholars have enjoyed learning from these tools and those who participate become more comfortable with technology. The lab is an opportunity for scholars to utilize new technology and start thinking about what they want to do with their lives. Coleman wants to teach the scholars that there is so much out there to explore, and the lab helps scholars see what kind of different opportunities are out there for those interested in this kind of technology.
“The Lab sheds light on the opportunities and possible career pathways for scholars interested in STEM and engineering,” Coleman added. “A lot of my students want to start their own businesses, and there are so many ways that they can use the lab as a starting point.”
