State Superintendent Visits AHS for VR Experience
Posted on 05/05/2023
Alexander High School welcomed a special visitor on Wednesday, as Georgia’s State School Superintendent Richard Woods stopped by to observe students using new, virtual reality (VR) technology to learn algebra.
The technology, known as Prisms, touts itself as a personalized learning experience that helps students learn math through real-world applications. The technology features three key components – VR content modules for students to learn more about core concepts, teaching materials to support learning, and an area that allows students to work on additional practice problems.
While using the program, students are able to problem solve in a real-world situation by using hands-on models to visualize and interact with different structures. The goal is for this to help students connect three-dimensional experiences to abstract representations, like graphs, tables and equations.
During Woods’ visit, students put on their VR headsets to work through a new concept before coming back together as a group to break down the problem. Following the lesson, Woods heard from students about their experiences with Prisms and how it has impacted their learning.
“I think that a lot of people’s issue with math is not seeing the usefulness of it,” said one student, “but I think this is so valuable because it gets people to understand math and not just know how to do the steps and get an answer.” 
Like this student, others echoed this, with many saying that they believe that the VR technology helps them master content more quickly and that they would welcome it in other subjects outside of math if possible.
“I appreciate the feedback from you all,” Woods told the students. “This is the first time I’ve seen this technology, and I want to get your perspective, because [students] are what it’s all about. We always want to hear about ways we can deliver a great education to you all.”