Educational Horizons of the Metaverse: Vision, Opportunities, and Challenges

Abstract

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a profound reconsideration of our approaches to teaching and learning. The metaverse, blending 3D digital realms with the intersection of reality and the virtual landscape, has emerged as a prospective frontier in education, offering substantial promise. Despite its potential, scant attention has been devoted in current research to examining the metaverse through the lens of education, marking it as a relatively unexplored domain. In this article, we commence by presenting the conceptualizations of the metaverse, delving into its inception, definitions, and common attributes. Subsequently, a precise delineation of the metaverse in an educational context is articulated, accompanied by an elaborate framework that undergoes thorough exploration of its distinctive features. We expound upon four conceivable applications of the metaverse in education, elucidating the rationale and providing illustrative cases for each: blended learning, language acquisition, competence-based education, and inclusive educational practices. Our primary discoveries indicate that the terms "education," "application," and "metaverse" appeared with the highest frequency and demonstrated interconnectedness. Upon analysis, it becomes evident that concepts like "challenge," "teaching," and "knowledge" have not received exhaustive research attention. Concluding our exploration, we put forth a spectrum of research topics that are pertinent to the intersection of the metaverse and education, serving as potential avenues for future scholarly investigations.