Immersive training programs for schoolchildren: a systematic review

Immersive technologies have been recently adopted by researchers to enhance students' learning skills, but few studies still exist on the schoolchildren population. Therefore, through a literature search on the main research databases (EBSCO, Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed) and after the selection process, 11 eligible papers were judged suitable for the systematic review. Comprehensively, the studies employed a sample of 401 children, of which 234 (58 %) were typical learners and 167 children had a specific learning disorder (42 %). The trainings targeted learning abilities (reading, writing, comprehension) and cognitive abilities (executive functions, attention, problem-solving), for a minimum of 2 weeks, at least 8 sessions, each one lasting from 15 to 60 min. All the studies reported a significant effect of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) training on learning and cognitive abilities, with higher effect and engagement than traditional training. Therefore, in case of children with and without specific learning disorders, administering AR/VR training to school students can increase their academic readiness and success.