Improving Experiential Learning with Haptic Experimentation

Abstract

Experiential learning reflects the idea of knowledge construction as a behavior change resulting from the interaction between the user and the environment leading to experiences, feelings and sensations. The use of virtual simulators in education is a path to foster experiential learning because they provide interactive environments that students can explore and observe. The use of haptic devices with these simulators adds a new dimension, touch, increasing their immersive capacity and the studentsâ?? attraction and interest. Physics is an area particularly well-suited for the application of haptic simulators. The study of forces, for instance, is an area normally taught in a very abstract and theoretical way and students have extreme difficulty in relating those concepts with their practical application. The â??Forces of Physicsâ? haptic simulator described in this article allows experimenting various forces of physics such as the friction force, the aerodynamic force and the gravitational force.