FIELD TRIPS
THE FUTURE
Google Expeditions allows Mary, Mother of the
Redeemer Catholic School to bring lessons to life
To learn about geology, the students of Mary,
Mother of the Redeemer Catholic School
gather in a classroom. They put on the
appropriate headwear. And then they
go right into the gaping mouth of an
active volcano.
Thanks to the virtual reality app, Google
Expeditions, and the efforts of the school’s
faculty, students can also join Paul Revere
on his midnight ride. Or explore outer space,
the ocean floor, and the organs of the
human body. Ultimately, the students get to
experience their lessons live and in person —
no buses or brown paper bags required.
“The kids are ecstatic,” says Jonathan
Fox, technology teacher and classroom
coordinator. “Each time we go to a new
location, as it loads into their headsets,
there’s just this shocked noise across the
room. ‘Whoa!’ ‘Cool!’ The room explodes with
voices. Instead of just watching the content,
they feel as though they’re a part of it.”
Google Expeditions is a free app that lets
students explore virtual reality panoramas
and 3D images of places around the
world — and beyond. At Mary, Mother of
the Redeemer, classes use virtual reality
headsets that track their motions so students
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can look up, down, and all around in each
location. Teachers guide and narrate the
tours, using the technology to teach practical
lessons across all subjects.
“The students don’t even
realize they’re learning,
because to them, it’s fun,” says
Principal Denise Judge. “And
that ties in to our mission to
make it enjoyable, to make it
meaningful, to make it real.”
Mary, Mother of the Redeemer adopted
the program in the fall semester of 2016.
Fox says one of the biggest draws of the
technology is that it is fully adaptable. A
virtual trip to the Great Wall of China, for
instance, can be used to teach lessons on
history, geography, architecture, and math.
And the app can be used on a range of
devices, from advanced headsets to more
affordable Google Cardboard viewers.
Younger students and students prone to
motion sickness can view tours on everyday
smartphones or tablets.