The use of virtual reality applications in social studies teaching: Seben Rock Houses and Fossil Forest examples

This study aimed to evaluate the opinions of students who use virtual reality applications in educational environments. The content to be used for the virtual reality application was created by the researcher in the Seben rock houses and fossil forests in the province of Bolu, where the research was carried out. This study, in which the basic qualitative research method was used, was conducted with a total of seventy students from three different secondary schools with lower, middle and upper socio-economic levels. A semi-structured interview technique consisting of ten questions was used to collect data for the research. The data obtained because of the research were interpreted with the descriptive analysis method. In this study, in which the use of virtual reality technology as an educational material is evaluated through the opinions of the students, it is aimed to reveal the awareness of the students about the virtual reality technology, the positive and negative aspects of the applications in question, the effect on learning, the problems that may be experienced during the use of this technology and the students' purposes for using this technology later on. As a result of the research, when the data collected from the students were interpreted, the desire to use virtual reality technology in lessons as educational material has emerged due to reasons such as allowing virtual trips to be made, increasing the memorability of the information, and being interesting. Most of the students attributed the reason that they did not meet this technology before because it is an expensive technology.