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.