Google Expeditions recently came to The Marches School to run virtual reality Geography and Science themed sessions with Years 7 and 8 students. Using Google Cardboard goggles, staff took students to destinations around the world, into volcanos, under the sea and even as far as space.

Google Expeditions is a new app developed by Google to open up the classroom for an immersive learning experience and a new tool to help teachers deliver innovative lessons. On the day, Google brought in 60 phones, 60 Google Cardboards and 2 tablets to run the expeditions from. Using the tablets, staff led students on a virtual reality field trip linked to their current learning.

Mrs Heighway, I.T Teacher at The Marches School, commented, “Year 7 students were all given a session to travel the world in virtual reality. The classroom was alive with excitement and wonder as students visited some of our world’s amazing sites. Other groups of students were also able to take part, including Year 5 from Whittington Primary School. In total over 450 students took part.”

One Year 7 student commented, “I have enjoyed everything because it was very interesting and amazing. I loved visiting the places, especially Mount Everest, it was beautiful.” Another student commented, “I enjoyed the ocean diving because we saw sharks, fish and seals. It was epic!”

Teachers leading the expeditions thoroughly enjoyed using the equipment Google provided and for the learning experience that happened. For more information about the program: https://edu.google.com/expeditions/#about.

Pictured – Year 7 students looking through their VR experience Google Cardboards