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Virtual reality (VR) technologies are transforming educational paradigms by enabling highly immersive, interactive simulations that increase engagement and cognition. This paper presents KonnectVR (KVR), an innovative, open-source platform designed to mitigate common barriers in educational VR. Barriers such as high costs, limited content customization, and the absence of real-time assessments. The system, constructed by undergraduate students, facilitates experiential learning, real-time collaboration, and assessment delivery, empowering educators with an unprecedented degree of accessibility and customization. Employing a case study methodology, we provide unique insider perspectives into KVR's architectural design, underlying pedagogical framework, development processes, challenges encountered, and future directions. Findings reveal technical hurdles overcome by undergraduate student teams like VR-specific programming, user interface design, networking, and cybersecurity integration. The analysis uncovers key themes around project-based skill acquisition, problem-solving perseverance, cross-team knowledge gaps, and the benefits of an agile, user-centric approach. Ultimately, KVR demonstrates how emerging technologies and open-sourced solutions can converge to innovate learning, pushing boundaries while serving an egalitarian educational mission. The platform sets the foundation for a new generation of community-driven tools democratizing access to interactive, distributive, collaborative VR experiences that maximize knowledge construction.
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This content will become publicly available on May 26, 2026
Leveraging Virtual Reality for Neurodivergent Representation in Cybersecurity Education: An Emerging Technology Report
As Virtual Reality (VR) gains traction in education, its potential to support neurodivergent learners in cybersecurity training remains underexplored. This emerging technology report examines how VR can bridge the gap between STEM education and cybersecurity training for neurodivergent individuals, highlighting both its promise and the challenges that must be addressed. While VR-based cybersecurity simulations offer immersive, hands-on learning experiences that align with neurodivergent strengths, existing implementations often overlook critical accessibility considerations. This emerging technology report reviews current VR-based cybersecurity training systems, and provides insights and limitations in how they are supporting neurodivergent users. This report also addresses key challenges in this area of research such as cybersickness, the lack of neurodivergent representation in VR development, and the difficulty in creating realistic cybersecurity simulations. Given the rapid evolution of VR in cybersecurity education, ensuring accessibility requires intentional design choices and co-development with neurodivergent learners. We conclude by identifying research gaps and advocating for a more inclusive approach to VR-based cybersecurity education that fosters diversity within the field.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2302596
- PAR ID:
- 10611505
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Technology, Knowledge and Learning
- ISSN:
- 2211-1662
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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