Mixed Reality for Development of Spatial Skills of First-Year Engineering Students

Abstract

This paper follows up on the validation and usability study done on augmented reality, which is based on an application for the development of spatial skills in engineering students. In this phase, the training has been implemented in new Engineering degrees adapted to the new European Higher Education framework at a Spanish University. In this paper, the results obtained by students when improving spatial ability while carrying out their training, are shown and related to academic performance and drop-out rates, which are from current academic courses as well as previous ones. Additionally, a pilot study is introduced where a group of students use Head Mounted Displays (HMDs) for visualizing the real scene with augmented objects, so spatial ability improvement results and time spent, are compared to others belonging to the group using the PC monitor instead. Results confirm the training's validity and technical data which are collected to improve the interface's application as well as the augmented book. This has allowed the training to be made available to education centers which are waiting for the academic implementation through a commercial edition.