Immersive learning for students, staff & faculty at Parker University

About

Parker University is a private university located in Dallas, Texas. Originally founded in 1982 as the Parker College of Chiropractic, the school was renamed to Parker University in 2011.

The Doctor of Chiropractic program continues to be Parker's primary doctoral degree. They regularly expand and refocus healthcare degree programs to modern needs and disciplines, resulting in 30+ education programs.

The tornado

In 2019, the campus was struck by a tornado which damaged a significant portion of their classroom space. This caused a temporary pivot to online instruction, which was extended following the COVID-19 pandemic. 

This led to the team looking into augmented and virtual reality simulations to increase online student resources and bolster physical representation. 

Following the deployment of clinical scenarios, the team also saw the opportunity for nonclinical simulations - which is when they found Bodyswaps

Goals

1. Create a bridge for communications training - give students a chance to practice in
   realistic scenarios before interacting with real patients
2. Provide extra support to those students whose education was disrupted by COVID-19 and provide additional support to online learners

Deployment

Blended learning

In 2023, Parker started a hybrid DC cohort whose first four trimesters are fully remote before they join their in-person classmates for the rest of their program. To support their learning, each of these students gets a VR headset and during this time they are assigned Bodyswaps modules to complete.

Institution-wide

Mary Lee Carter and the team continue to research opportunities to deploy Bodyswaps institution-wide, from students to faculty to staff. They aim to implement it in staff onboarding,
security team training, as well as for students across all their degree programs.

Results

• 77% of learners identified areas to improve on their job interview skills.
• 79% of learners would recommend Bodyswaps to their peers.
• 62% of learners increased their understanding of job interview techniques.

Advice

• Get people in headsets! The best way to open people’s minds to the opportunities of immersive learning is to get them to try out headsets. Try out fun, gaming apps as well as education simulations, to show the overall value of immersive experiences.
• When looking at deploying on an institution-wide basis, first identify the areas that are most interested in new technologies and innovation. These groups can then be your advocates when deploying to other areas which may need more encouragement.

Future Plans

Mary Lee and the team plan to deploy Bodyswaps to their student affairs department next. 

They also want to set up an area in the library and digital anatomy lab where some headsets will be available on-demand for students to be able to practice on their own time. 

Parker University is creating a Human Performance Center, in which they want to incorporate virtual reality opportunities.