Moments of Stress in the Virtual Classroom - How Do Future Vocational Teachers Experience Stress Through 360° Classroom Videos in Virtual Reality?

Abstract

To deal with challenging situations and stress in the classroom, future vocational teachers could benefit from training with 360° classroom videos in virtual reality in advance of being confronted with reality at school. The present study attempts a first step into measuring psychophysiological stress responses in form of Moments of Stress of future vocational teachers while experiencing 360° classroom videos and completing the task to act as teachers in the given situations. Participants acted as teachers within the 360° classroom videos in virtual reality while their gaze and reaction were recorded, and psychophysiological data was tracked with a sensor. Moments of Stress were calculated, and a qualitative analysis of Moments of Stress occurrence was performed. The explorative results show that all participants (N =16) show stress reactions with a pattern of stress occurrence during intended and scripted classroom stressors such as student misbehaviour or teacher centred situations. The virtual training environment thus provides a tool for stress measurement in initial teacher training. It can be used to train and possibly prevent stress during difficult classroom situations through use in university seminars as it provides a protected space for initial practical teacher training. These findings provide a first approach to the application of 360° video in VR in university teacher training because perceived stress during teaching is one factor that contributes to higher levels of illness and burn-out related symptoms in teachers. Further research on the application of virtual teacher training for stress reduction and a positive impact on practical training is needed to broaden the understanding of its benefits and downsides.