Video: Middle School Students Explore World Of Virtual Reality

TUPELO, MISS.  (WCBI) – Students in a STEM class at Tupelo Middle School were able to visit a shipwreck,  step out onto a cliff, and even try base jumping.

Jane Claire Shettles teaches engineering, as part of the STEM curriculum at TMS, and today, she had Virtual Reality expert Vince Jordan visit her class, with a hands on demo for students.

The youngsters heard about advances in VR and how the technology can be used in a variety of careers, including architecture,  the military and the medical field.

“It actually gives the engineer or architect the chance to go into the environment and experience, through 3D, so it’s a real life experience for them before they ever actually design a building,” Shettles said.

“With it you can go in for, an engineer, you can build places, add on, and feel like a real engineer without having to do it and maybe it can teach you to want to be it in real life,” said Ryder Jones, a seventh grader at TMS.

Jordan oversees a Virtual Reality Academy in Clarksdale, where high school students are trained to create their own virtual reality experiences.