Augmented Reality in Education and Training

There are many different ways for people to be educated and trained in regards to specific information and skills they need. These methods include classroom lectures with textbooks, computers, handheld devices, and other electronic appliances. The choice of learning innovation is dependent on individual’s access to various technologies and the infrastructure environment of the surrounding community available. In a rapidly changing society where there is a great deal of available information and knowledge, adopting and applying information at the right time and right place is needed to main efficiency in both school and business settings. Augmented Reality (AR) is one technology that dramatically shifts the location and timing of learning and training. This literature review research describes Augmented Reality (AR), how it applies to learning and training, and the potential impact on the future of education. The general meaning of AR Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that allows computer-generated virtual imagery information to be overlaid onto a live direct or indirect real-world environment in real time (Azuma, 1997; Zhou, Duh, & Billinghurst, 2008). AR is different from Virtual Reality (VR) in that in VR people are expected to experience a computergenerated virtual environment. In AR, the environment is real, but extended with information and imagery from the system. In other words, AR bridges the gap between the real and the virtual in a seamless way (Chang, Morreale, & Medicherla, 2010). The origin of AR in learning and training. According to Johnson, Levine, Smith, & Stone (2010), the history of AR goes back to the 1960s and the first system was used for both Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality as well. It used an optical see-through headmounted display that was tracked by one of two different methods: a mechanical tracker and an ultrasonic tracker. Due to the limited processing power of computers at that time, only very simple wireframe drawings could be displayed in real time (Sutherland, 1968). Since then, Augmented Reality has been put to use by a number of major companies for visualization, training, and other purposes. The term ‘Augmented Reality’ is attributed to former Boeing researcher Tom Caudell, who is believed to have coined the term in 1990. Markerand Markerless-based AR. According to Johnson, et al. (2010), augmented reality systems can either be marker-based or markerlessbased. Marker-based applications are comprised of three basic components which include a booklet for offering marker information, a gripper for getting information from the booklet and converting it to another type of data, and a cube for augmenting information into 3D-rendered information on a screen. On the other hand, markerless-based applications need a tracking system that involves GPS (Global Positioning System), a compass, and an image recognition device instead of the three elements of maker-based systems. Markerless applications have wider applicability because they function anywhere without the need for special labeling or supplemental reference points. Adopting AR in learning and training. According to Chang, Morreale, and Medicherla (2010), several researchers have suggested that students and trainees can strengthen their motivation for learning and enhance their educational realism-based practices with virtual and augmented reality. In spite of a great amount of research during the last two decades, adopting AR in