A Revolutionary Teaching Tool
Step into the future of electrician training as Siemens USA shines a spotlight on the essential technical roles that are crucial in updating and maintaining our infrastructure, including electricians. Siemens' virtual reality (VR) software has emerged as a groundbreaking teaching tool for electricians, with the potential to expand across various educational channels, training the workforce of the future.
A Glimpse into the Classroom
Keith Glenn, a seasoned electrician and electrical technology instructor at Northeast Tech in Afton, Oklahoma, was searching for an innovative teaching tool when he stumbled upon Siemens' VR software. After seeing a demonstration at a local supplier in late summer 2021, Glenn knew he had found what he was looking for.
“I took one look at that VR technology and said, ‘How do I get that?’” Glenn recalled.
Through Siemens Distributor Sales Engineer Sarah Glaser, Glenn acquired two VR units programmed with beginner-level instructional software for electricians. The introduction of these VR units to his classroom was met with great enthusiasm from his students.
“I can’t go buy $13,000 pieces of switchgear for my students to tear apart and reassemble, and I can’t buy protective suits for every student to learn how to wear PPE properly,” Glenn explained. “The VR gives them a look at things we don’t have in the classroom—giving us so many learning opportunities we didn’t have before. Some of my students were assembling low-voltage pieces in the VR without my help at all.”
Transformative Learning Experiences
The initial VR program used by Glenn’s students provided instruction on deciphering labels and tags on electrical panels to understand the voltage of a breaker box. In the simulation, students wore protective gear for handling high voltage and then worked on the actual panel. If they completed the task correctly, the program congratulated them.
Another VR program covered the installation of arc-fault breakers and power-surge units, guiding students through critical wiring steps. Glenn's electrician course at NE Tech draws a diverse group of high school juniors and seniors from neighboring towns, representing various communities and demographics.
“Generally, most of my students want to be electricians, and a lot want to open their own business, so they have goals,” Glenn said. “I’m trying to get them to think ahead, career-wise, because the average age of an electrician these days is 52, and that’s not someone who’s going to know how to run VR on a worksite. My kids will—they’ll be teaching the veterans.”
Collaborative Learning and Safety Training
A unique aspect of using VR as a teaching tool is the collaborative learning it fosters. Glenn observed students working together, with two students using the VR headsets to guide the rest of the class through tasks.
“They started teaching each other on their own,” he said. “How cool is that? There are so many instructional layers to using VR in a vocational education environment.”
Glenn also utilizes the VR program on a television, allowing him to coach both the students using the headsets and the rest of the class through simulations. This method significantly enhances safety training, as it teaches students to work together, mirroring real-world job site scenarios.
Future Prospects
As Siemens continues to innovate, VR stands at the forefront of revolutionizing how we teach, train, and ensure safety in various industries, preparing a skilled workforce for the future. Adapting means embracing VR's potential, learning new skills, and integrating it into training with collaboration, standards adherence, and resource investment essential for success. It requires learning VR skills, flexible training methods, and integrating VR for realistic safety simulations.
Understanding virtual reality through in-depth research helps Siemens better grasp the human role in artificial intelligence during tech product development. Testing products in a virtual environment before actual construction saves time and money while enhancing product quality, flexibility, and efficiency. VR's capabilities allow trainees and operators to work from anywhere, heralding a new era of product development and design.
VR also enhances employee experience, particularly in Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS) training. By creating immersive VR experiences, such as a virtual escape game simulating a fire emergency, Siemens makes training engaging and effective. This approach not only improves learning outcomes but also ensures that safety training is accessible anytime, anywhere, a crucial benefit in times of limited personal contact.
The potential applications of VR are vast, extending beyond training to areas like quality assurance, workplace inspections, and more. Siemens' VR initiatives demonstrate the transformative power of immersive technology in creating lifelike, interactive training environments that enhance learning and safety.
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