Case Study: VR for Year 10 Design and Technology students: Wales High School
“The training was engaging, exciting and inclusive. Students came out of the session with a huge ‘buzz’ understanding Gravity Sketch, the tools it provides and how this links into careers and the wider world”
At Mesh Training, we are driven by having the ability to bring immersive experiences into the Design and Technology classroom, and our latest Gravity Sketch workshop with Wales High School in South Yorkshire was no exception. The school has recently secured funding from the Careers and Enterprise Company, South Yorkshire to purchase 5 Pico Neo 3 headsets to help introduce students to emerging technologies and offer them valuable career exploration opportunities. As part of this initiative, we delivered an interactive, in-person workshop for 36 of their Year 10 Design and Technology students throughout the morning of Thursday 5th December. Split into two groups of 18, the students explored what Gravity Sketch had to offer and how they could use its capabilities to conceptualise a trophy in their design process.
A student at Wales High School getting immersed into their design work!
Goals and Objectives
The session was designed with three key goals in mind:
Introduce Students to VR Technology: Ensure students are comfortable using VR headsets correctly and safely.
Build Foundational Skills in Gravity Sketch: Provide hands-on experience with essential tools like navigation, scaling, sketching, and primitive objects, culminating in each student conceptualising and designing a their own trophy. For many students, this was their first encounter with both VR and Gravity Sketch.
Demonstrate how Virtual Reality is used in the design sector: Showcase a selection of real-world use cases to inform students how VR is used in the industry and the benefits of using the technology within the modern workflow.
A snapshot of Priten’s ‘Introduction to Virtual Reality in Design’ presentation
Workshop Design and Implementation
We began the session with a presentation on how Gravity Sketch is used across various industries to spark their interest into the technology. From industrial design to automotive and footwear design, we covered a wide range of use cases, highlighting the VR’s sustainability and design efficiency benefits.
Once inducted on how to operate and use the headsets safely, students were shown various Gravity Sketch tools throughout the session as they iterated their trophy design, including sketch, revolve and the primitive object tool. We utilised our ‘follow me’ technique and projected live demonstrations onto the classroom projector, guiding the students through each stage before they donned their headsets to practise the techniques themselves. Every tool and activity was contextualised within an industrial design framework, encouraging students to approach their work as though tackling a professional project. During the activities, we ‘floated’ around the room to provide 1:1 support and hinted at advanced techniques to those who picked up the tool quickly. As with all of our sessions, to support their adjustment to VR, tools were introduced in 10-minute intervals to support student’s adjustment to VR.
Outcomes and Impact
The results of the training session were nothing short of inspiring. Students were thoroughly engaged throughout the workshop, and their creativity shone through in the impressive designs they produced. It was wonderful to see the smiles and excitement as they explored the software, collaborated with their peers and experienced the future of design.
“After first experiencing Mesh Training at an event at Nottingham Trent University, we were very interested in delivering this in our secondary school. We chose to offer a 2-hour session to some of our Y10 students, and it was amazing. How this links to careers and the wider world resonated with the students. The software is fantastic and can be used for those who struggle to get their ideas onto paper, especially for coursework in some subject areas. I would 100% recommend this.”
Key Takeaways
Student Engagement: Our interactive and contextualised approach kept students engaged and excited about VR and it’s use within the design sector.
Real-World Applications: Demonstrating Gravity Sketch’s professional uses helped students see the relevance of VR technology to their future careers.
Accessible Design Tools: For students who find traditional design methods challenging, Gravity Sketch continues to provide a user-friendly and immersive alternative.
We are very proud and grateful to have been able to provide this workshop to the students at Wales High School. By introducing students to VR and professional design tools like Gravity Sketch, the school has not only found an opportunity to enrich its curriculum but also equip students with vital skills for the future.
“As staff, we can’t wait to get trained ourselves to roll VR to other subjects and curriculum areas. We are looking at running a Women in Technology club and further embed our VR headsets into the explanation of careers in this industry and future careers.
The team’s communication and organisation made running these training sessions a dream!”
Our sessions wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the amazing staff at Wales High School!
This session was provided in-line with our Education Pledge, to prioritise support for Design Education and inspire the next generation of designers. To find out how we can help your school, college or University embrace this fantastic technology, feel free to drop us a message!
