There are more and more tools entering the marketplace that allow you to quickly create 360-degree virtual reality images. However, the final results aren’t always what you’d like: The stitching of VR images in these tools, unfortunately, is not always perfect. Also, there are often inconsistencies both above and below the VR image. These flaws can take away from the immersiveness of the experience you’re creating and even get in the way of learning.

You’ve decided that 360-degree video looks promising and you want to try it out, but you have questions: What do you need to get started? What should you watch out for? Do you have the skill set to do it? What are the benefits? What is it going to cost? And probably more.

For virtual reality to achieve its goals, instructors need to create presence—the feeling of being in the virtual scene. Presence is what differentiates VR from video, and it’s what gives VR its unique power to affect learners. Virtual reality content doesn’t always do this well, leaving users less immersed than instructors intended, and creating weaker experiences and learning impact.

When any technology is used for training or performance support, you want to make sure it’s actually effective. That’s why the impact needs to be examined through a performance lens to determine whether the technology really enables people to do their work better. This analysis of the context is increasingly important to the development and deployment of AR and VR.

There is enormous potential for what L&D professionals can achieve by harnessing the levels of engagement available with virtual reality and augmented reality. Hardware and infrastructure suppliers continue to push the capabilities of these technologies forward. However, there is an enormous gap between those advancing technologies and the realities of today’s learning landscape.