GLOSSARY
on immersive learning
New technologies are booming, making it increasingly important to clarify the vocabulary of immersive learning. Also known as immersive learning, it is an educational approach using advanced technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and other digital environments to facilitate learning.
The Irwino team has decided to publish a glossary to help you familiarize yourself with the world of immersive learning.
Why a glossary?
Irwino is known for its innovative virtual reality training solutions, and it can be difficult to master all the vocabulary of immersive learning. Our glossary aims to:
- –Clarify obscure terms
- –Deepen your understanding of immersive learning
- –Enrich your own vocabulary
Here is the glossary of notions related to immersive learning:
A
- 🧠Memory Anchoring
- Memory anchoring is the process by which new information is associated with existing knowledge or experiences, facilitating lasting memorization. Immersive learning, by simulating realistic situations, promotes memory anchoring.
- 🧑🏽🎓Immersive Learning (Apprentissage immersif)
- A learning method using technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to create interactive environments where learners can simulate real-world situations and develop practical skills.
- 🔓Standalone (VR Headset)
- A standalone VR headset operates without being connected to a computer or console, offering the user total freedom of movement.
C
- 🌀Cybersickness
- A feeling of discomfort (nausea, dizziness) that can occur during a virtual reality experience, caused by a mismatch between visually perceived movements and those felt by the body. Careful VR experience design helps minimize this effect.
- ✅Credibility
- While realism is important, the credibility of the simulation is sometimes more crucial. It involves designing environments and elements sufficiently evocative for the learner to easily transfer them to reality.
D
- 💻Digital Learning
- A learning method using digital technologies to deliver training, often in an interactive and engaging way.
E
- 🧑🏻💻E-Learning
- Online learning using the internet to access courses, training, and educational resources. Allows learners to follow training remotely, at their own pace, via digital platforms.
- 🎭Multisensory Engagement
- Immersive learning stimulates several senses (sight, hearing, touch) to create an immersive learning experience and promote memorization.
- ✨Virtual Elements
- Objects, images, or information created and integrated into a digital environment. They can be visible or interactive in a virtual or augmented reality experience.
- 🕶️Immersive Environments
- Virtual or augmented spaces in which the user is immersed to experience an interactive and realistic experience. They stimulate several senses to reinforce learning and engagement.
- 🌐Semi-Virtual Environment
- A space where the real and virtual blend. The user evolves in their physical environment (e.g., their premises) while virtual elements are added via augmented reality.
- 🌐Virtual Environment
- A 3D digital space in which the user can move and interact, generally via a virtual reality headset.
- 🦺PPE (Personal Protective Equipment)
- Equipment used to protect an individual against occupational hazards. In the context of VR training, this equipment can be virtually simulated.
- 🧯Virtualized Fire Extinguishers
- Digital representations of fire extinguishers in a virtual reality environment, allowing learners to practice their use without risk.
F
- 🔭FOV (Field of View)
- The Field of View (FOV) refers to the angular extent of the visible world seen through a VR headset at any given moment. A wider FOV enhances the feeling of immersion. Current headsets typically offer an FOV between 90 and 120 degrees.
- 🔥Virtual Fire
- A 3D digital reproduction of fire used in virtual or augmented reality simulators. It allows realistic practice in responding to flames, without any danger.
- 🌊Flow
- Flow, or the "state of grace", is a mental state where the learner is completely absorbed by the activity, focused and satisfied with their achievements. Immersive learning aims to induce this state to optimize learning.
- 🌎Distance Learning
- A teaching method where the learner and trainer are not physically in the same location, often using digital technologies.
- 🕶️VR Training
- A learning method using virtual reality technology to immerse learners in simulated environments for training purposes.
- 🎮Gamified Training
- A pedagogical approach that integrates game elements into learning to make it more engaging and motivating.
G
- 🎯Gamification
- The application of game mechanics (scores, rewards, challenges, leaderboards) in a non-gaming context such as professional training. Gamification boosts learner motivation, engagement, and knowledge retention.
H
- 🤲Haptic Feedback
- Tactile feedback that allows the user to feel physical sensations (vibrations, resistance, textures) when interacting within a virtual environment. This sensory feedback enhances the realism of the simulation.
I
- 📹Immersive
- Describes an experience that plunges the user into a virtual environment, creating a sense of real presence.
- 🚀Immersive Learning
- Immersive learning is an innovative pedagogical approach that immerses learners in realistic virtual environments simulating real-world situations. The goal is to enable learners to acquire and apply practical skills effectively.
- 🔄Interactivity
- The ability of a system to allow bidirectional exchange with the user, promoting active and engaging learning.
L
- ⏱️Latency
- The delay between a user action (head movement, interaction) and the response displayed in the virtual environment. Low latency (below 20 ms) is essential for a comfortable and realistic experience.
M
- 🕹️VR Controllers
- Hand-held control devices that allow the user to interact with the virtual environment.
- 💪🏼Muscle Memory
- Muscle memory refers to the body's ability to memorize and reproduce learned movements and gestures. In immersive learning, simulations allow learners to practice technical gestures and develop their muscle memory.
- 👓Meta Quest 2 / Meta Quest 3
- Standalone virtual reality headsets developed by Meta (formerly Facebook), widely used for VR training applications.
- 👀Virtual Scenario
- A learning scenario in a virtual environment that simulates a real situation, allowing the learner to practice skills safely.
- 📚VR Training Modules
- Learning units specifically designed to be delivered via virtual reality, covering various subjects and skills.
- 🤢Motion Sickness
- A feeling of discomfort (nausea, dizziness, headaches) that can occur during a virtual reality experience, when the movements perceived by the eyes do not correspond to those of the body.
O
- 🤖Connected Object
- A real object equipped with sensors and connected to a virtual environment, used in our VR training to reproduce real-world gestures and interactions (e.g., virtualized fire extinguishers, virtualized fire hose reel).
- 🛠️Immersive Tools
- Technologies such as virtual reality or augmented reality that allow the user to be immersed in an interactive and realistic experience to learn, simulate, or practice in near-real conditions.
- 📚Educational Tools
- Educational tools are resources that facilitate learning by offering interactive and adapted support to learners' needs through digital devices, educational software, and visual aids.
P
- 👤Presence
- Presence describes the feeling of actually being "present" in the immersive virtual environment. The stronger the feeling of presence, the more effective the learning.
R
- 📱Augmented Reality (AR)
- Augmented reality overlays virtual elements (images, sounds, data) onto the real world perceived by the user. It enriches the existing physical environment with contextual digital information.
- 📲Mixed Reality (MR)
- Mixed reality combines virtual reality and augmented reality by merging digital objects with the real environment seamlessly, allowing interactions between both worlds.
- 🛸Virtual Reality (VR)
- Virtual reality completely immerses the user in a 3D digital environment generated by computer. Through a VR headset, the user is placed in a simulated virtual world and can interact with elements of that environment.
- ⏱️Immediate Feedback
- Immersive environments provide real-time feedback on learners' actions, allowing them to adjust their strategies and track their progress.
- 🚒Virtualized Fire Hose Reel
- A real fire hose reel with a digital representation in a virtual and augmented reality environment, allowing learners to practice its use without risk.
S
- 📝Training Scenarios
- Predefined learning situations in which learners are placed to practice specific skills.
- 👾Serious Game
- A serious game is an educational or training video game that combines entertainment and learning to achieve serious objectives in various fields.
- 🖥️Simulator
- A device or software that reproduces the behavior of a real system for training or analysis purposes.
- 🖥️🔥Fire Simulator
- A training tool that virtually reproduces a fire outbreak to learn how to respond to a fire. It allows practice in complete safety, without real flames or material risk.
- 🌐3D Simulation
- 3D simulations are digital tools that use three-dimensional images to recreate real or theoretical situations.
- 🎮Immersive Simulation
- A virtual reproduction of a real situation in which the user is immersed through virtual or augmented reality. It allows training, learning, or testing scenarios in near-real conditions, without risks.
- 🔥Fire Simulation
- A VR training scenario that simulates a fire, allowing learners to practice safety procedures and fire extinguishing.
- 🚑First Aid Simulation
- A VR training scenario that simulates medical emergency situations, allowing learners to practice first aid gestures.
- 🎬Realistic Simulation
- Immersive environments rely on realistic simulations reproducing authentic scenarios. Learners can thus experience concrete situations safely and learn from their mistakes.
- 🎓Immersive Solution
- An immersive solution is an immersive technology that allows a user to be plunged into an interactive digital environment. It creates interactive and engaging learning experiences through devices such as VR headsets and augmented reality systems.
- 🆘First Aid at Work (FAW)
- Training that prepares employees to intervene in the event of an accident in the workplace. VR can be used to simulate emergency scenarios in this training.
T
- 📡Tracking
- A system that tracks user movements (position, head orientation, hands) in space. Tracking enables the virtual environment to respond in real time to movements, ensuring natural and immersive interaction.
V
- 📽️360 Video
- Video technology that captures a complete spherical view, allowing the user to look in all directions.
- 🎦VR360
- VR360 (or 360° video) allows filming real environments in 360 degrees and viewing them with a virtual reality headset, offering total immersion in these spaces.
W
- ⚙️WebVR
- WebVR refers to all web technologies that allow access to virtual reality experiences directly from a browser, without needing to install dedicated applications.
This immersive learning glossary is:
A living tool
Alive and constantly evolving. We will continue to enrich it over time, adding new entries and refining existing definitions. We invite you to share your suggestions to improve it and adapt it to your needs.
A language we all speak together
Each term in this glossary represents an aspect of the immersive training experience we offer. We encourage you to explore these concepts in practice, using our simulators to discover the full power of virtual reality training.
We hope this immersive learning glossary has provided you with the keys to better understand and use our innovative solutions.