This week, schools across North Dakota are receiving over 300 HTC VIVE VR headsets in a statewide initiative spearheaded by CareerViewXR, an emerging immersive edtech startup.
In partnership with the trusted headset vendor, the distribution plan also sees CareerViewXR’s first-party immersive learning platform integrated into the headset, ready for deployment.
Moreover, the initiative marks a growing partnership with hardware provider HTC VIVE and CareerViewXR, whereby the firm is also distributing VIVE Focus Plus headsets to education groups in the North Dakota region.
Daniel O’Brien, GM of Americas at HTC VIVE, said the firm’s participation in the North Dakota initiative “fits perfectly with our mission of merging humanity and technology to unleash the imagination.”
O’Brien explained:
Our partnership with CareerViewXR provides immersive learning solutions to inspire and empower students and job seekers to advance their skills and explore new career paths in an engaging and safe environment without limitations.
North Dakota: Powered by HTC VIVE
Public and private North Dakota schools can receive the headsets beginning February 11-13 during the 2024 NDCA Annual Conference. Education institutions can get a headset at the event, and unclaimed HTC VIVE VR devices will be distributed to appropriate schools.
Wayde Sick, the State Director of the ND of the Department of Career and Technical Education, noted that the region’s schools are already “enthusiastically adopting” CareerViewXR’s immersive learning solution on non-VR devices ahead of receiving the HTC VIVE headsets.
Additionally, following the VR headset distribution, adopter schools can access an additional variety of immersive learning content.
Sick explained:
With the addition of virtual reality hardware, students can get fully immersed in dozens of great jobs located right here in North Dakota. We’re grateful for this gift, and for the value CareerViewXR brings to the state’s RUReady career planning system.
With its success in North Dakota, the firm is also seeing its platform in further schools across the United States for young students and adult job seekers.
More on CareerViewXR
CareerViewXR provides a cross-platform immersive learning service that students can access on various devices, partly achieved by the platform’s web-based operations, which allow for a quick set-up process.
The firm’s service is already profoundly present in the region’s schools, ideally laying a foundation for the more than 300 devices landing in schools soon.
The move marks a “one of a kind” initiative, says Matthew Chaussee, the CEO and Co-Founder of CareerViewXR, who also added:
This initiative is one of a kind. To our knowledge, North Dakota will be the first state in the country to put VR headsets in every public and private middle and high school. Supported by ND Career and Technical Education’s RUReady platform, ND Job Service, and EduTech, this donation enhances a multiagency public-private partnership that we are especially proud of.
CareerViewXR is also supporting its statewide adopters in understanding the HTC VIVE devices, assisting schools in onboarding and then leveraging its immersive learning service.
With the web-based service presumably already understood by North Dakota educators, the onboarding processes should be streamlined to hardware comprehending thanks to a familiar immersive learning platform – giving students the chance to “fully” immerse themselves, the firm notes.
The CareerViewXR platform primarily provides 360 interactive, immersive tours and trips, also including VR videos – with a growing 65 library of 65 experiences.
The firm notes how the immersive learning content library gives students a glimpse into professional working lives and environments for “in-demand” industries—therefore increasing career awareness.
Katie Chaussee, Owner of CareerViewXR, also added:
Providing these headsets to schools is a way we can ensure CareerViewXR is best positioned to address the career awareness gap, helping ensure every student has the opportunity to discover their dream job. The headsets also provide a great first step for schools to start exploring all immersive media solutions.
With immersive productivity on the rise thanks to the influence of Apple, more eyes are on immersive learning services and with firms like CareerViewXR spearheading adoption, more hands are also on devices.
As the presence of XR rises in education, enterprise, and at home, the XR/spatial boom may be on the way if the industry can continue to optimise and scale immersive solutions towards ubiquity.
