VR in the Library By Heather Tesiero

 

Imagine being able to travel anywhere from the library. Libraries can now deliver their patrons to other locations through the power of VR. Rider University in New Jersey has an immersive VR program taking students to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam without leaving New Jersey. The link to the promotional video is here:

Library access to VR will help bring the technology to those who may not be first adapters. As VR technology evolves there will be more adaptations for educational use. Students can use the device to explore historic sites such as the Anne Frank House shown in the video. Travel to Antarctica and explore penguin life.

There are various brands and types of VR headsets and each library will need to access their own needs. Rider University mentioned in the ALA interview mentions the Oculus brand headset. I have personal experience with the  Playstation VR2, I have Kayaked in the Arctic with the VR and it is very engaging and fun. Other Virtual Reality headsets are Meta Quest 3, Google Cardboard, Apple Vision, and Meta Quest Pro, are the more popular ones available.

References:

Anne Frank House. (2018, June 12). Anne Frank House VR Trailer | Anne Frank House [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCFUuyi-lIc

Ellern, G. D., & Cruz, L. (2021). Black, White, and Grey: The Wicked Problem of Virtual Reality in Libraries. Information Technology and Libraries, 40(4)10.6017/ital.v40i4.12915A new mechanism for dialogue: virtual reality programs in academic libraries | Programming Librarian. (2022, May 17). https://programminglibrarian.org/articles/new-mechanism-dialogue-virtual-reality-programs-academic-libraries