More and more universities are becoming “metaversities”, taking its physical campuses into a virtual online world, often called the “metaverse”. An initiative has 10 US Universities and Colleges working with Meta, the parent company of Facebook, and virtual reality company VictoryXR to create online 3D replicas, sometimes called “digital twins“—of its campuses that update live as people and things move through real-world spaces.
Some classes are it’s already happening in the metaverse. And VictoryXR says that by 2023, it plans build and operate 100 digital twin campusesthat enable a group setting with live instructors and real-time class interactions.
One metaversity builder, New Mexico State University, says it wants to offer degrees where students can take all of their classes in virtual reality, from 2027.
There are many benefits of taking college classes in the metaversesuch as 3D visual learning, more realistic interactivity, and easier access for students who are far away. But there are also potential problems. my recent research has focused on ethical, social and practical. aspects of the metaverse and risks such as privacy violations and security breaches. I see five challenges:
Teachers and students cannot freely participate in class discussions if they know that their every movement, speech, and even facial expressions are being watched by the university as well as a large tech company.
The virtual environment and your team may also collect a wide range of user data, such as physical movement, heart rate, pupil size, eye opening, and even signs of emotions.
Cyber attacks in the metaverse could even cause physical damage. Metaverse interfaces provide information directly to the user’s sensesso they trick the user’s brain into thinking they are in a different environment. People who attack virtual reality systems can influence the activities of immersed users, even inducing them to physically moving to dangerous placeslike at the top of a ladder.
The metaverse can also exposing students to inappropriate content. For example, Roblox has released roblox education to bring interactive 3D virtual environments into physical and online classrooms. Roblox says it has strong protections to keep everyone safebut no protection is perfect, and its metaverse involves user-generated content and a chat feature, which could be infiltrated by predators or people post porn or another illegal material.
3. Lack of rural access to advanced infrastructure
Many metaverse apps, such as 3D videos consume a lot of bandwidth. They require high-speed data networks to handle all the information flowing between sensors and users through virtual and physical space.
Many users, especially in rural areas, lack the infrastructure to support streaming high-quality metaverse content. For example, 97% of the population living in urban areas in the United States have access to a high-speed connection, compared to 65% in rural areas and 60% on tribal lands.
5. Amplifying biases
Gender, racial and ideological biases are common in textbooks of history, science, Y other issues, which influence how students understand certain events and topics. In some cases, these biases impede the achievement of justice and other goals, such as gender equality.
The effects of bias can be even more powerful in rich media environments. Films are more powerful a molding students views than textbooks. metaverse content has the potential to be even more influential.
To maximize the benefits of the metaverse for teaching and learning, universities and their students will have to contend with user privacy protections, teacher training, and the level of national investment in broadband networks.
Nir Kshetri is a professor of management at the University of North Carolina–Greensboro.
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