Virtual reality technologies are becoming part of the educational process at the Graduate School of Management of St. Petersburg University (GSOM SPbU). The fourth-year students of the Bachelor in Management program got a unique opportunity to rehearse the defense of final qualification works in VR-glasses. Using a simulator developed jointly with Modum Lab, the speakers immersed themselves in a situation as close to real as possible. Virtual listeners not only stared intently and nodded approvingly, but also expressed boredom on their faces if the speaker was not convincing enough. And at the most inopportune moment, the phone could ring or the microphone could break.

“This was my first experience with virtual reality glasses and I loved it. The audience is very similar to the real one both visually and auditory: people interact with each other and talk. By the reaction of the audience to my words, I understand how I speak. This is a very valuable and useful experience, especially for me, as a person who is preparing a final thesis on the topic of learning in virtual reality.”

Yana Antonova, a fourth-year Bachelor program student

Sergey Lukashkin, Director of the Research and Education Center "Digital Technologies in Education" at GSOM SPbU, tells in more detail about why students of the Business School need to train some skills in virtual reality:

“The tools that immersive technologies offer us today, in particular VR headsets, help develop the skill of public speaking during education at the Business school in order to speak more confidently and professionally in front of any number of listeners in the future. It is easier for a person to start speaking in front of a non-existent audience. In addition, we also help him with special tips. Virtual reality technology has existed since the 60s of the last century — this is how pilots were trained. Now simulations have become more accessible and are used in various fields. Every year more and more new tools appear, and the virtual environment becomes more interesting and realistic. Headsets and various digital applications enrich the learning process and complement very well the subjects that are taught, especially in the field of management.”

VR technologies are used at GSOM SPbU not for the first time, but this event is a unique experience of introducing a virtual environment into the main educational program. Students simultaneously performed in front of a live audience and in front of robots, thereby additionally training, getting rid of fears and complexes. While preparing for the event, Evgeny Blagov, Senior Lecturer of the Department of Information Technology in Management at GSOM SPbU, tried on a VR headset and was convinced of its usefulness:

“I tested this technology, and then, after watching and listening to a recording of my speech, I found that I speak more evenly in front of a virtual audience than in front of a live one, I have fewer parasitic words, and so on. This immerses you in a resourceful state and allows you to better understand what to focus on in speech and build the optimal presentation logic. We hope for further implementation of these technologies in the main educational programs. Such classes will strengthen the soft skills of students: the skill of communication and presentation, which will certainly benefit both in their studies and in their future careers.”