Virtual reality has exploded over the past year, extending to conversations in the mobile, gaming, and video landscape. There’s a rapidly rising interest in how to use this new technology for learning and performance. With “VR” now one of the hottest buzzwords, how much is hype and how much is substance?

Healthcare education about dementia typically focuses on increasing understanding through didactic methods (i.e., scripto-visual materials) that address knowledge rather than emotion and experience. A scan of educational technologies for dementia revealed limited products using animated VR and facilitated in-person or physically constructed simulations. These approaches are not cost-effective, sustainable, or easily scalable. Furthermore, these have not been evaluated for effectiveness or impact.

A new generation of virtual reality headsets is bringing immersion to new levels—the feeling of actually being in another place. Imagine strapping on a headset and practicing emergency response procedures in a realistic-looking computer-generated environment. Or experiencing racial biases from a first-person perspective. Or sending new employees on a virtual field trip to far-flung company locations. Evidence of the effectiveness of VR in learning is overwhelming, and both VR hardware and software are now becoming more affordable. Still, there are few case studies that demonstrate how to leverage VR for learning. What do you need to understand to use this medium more effectively in L&D?

Immersive learning experiences can be a large leap for organizations, instructional designers, and trainers who are accustomed to traditional classroom and online training methods. It can be overwhelming to think about how to go from creating eLearning to developing complex virtual reality experiences. However, there are other immersive learning options to consider: alternate reality games (ARGs) and mixed reality. These solutions can bridge the gap between the way you currently develop content and new methods, providing you an incremental entry into immersive learning.

As products and services become more complex, providing the right training or performance support has the biggest impact on improving proficiency. Augmented and virtual reality can be the link that enables you to deliver your valuable content directly to your audience when they need it most.