As part of the VR4Empathy project, the Slovenian partners organised four national round tables between 23 May and 17 June 2026, bringing together 24 teachers and 30 students from four secondary schools. The sessions aimed to gather valuable feedback on the pilot implementation of the project’s Virtual Reality (VR) approach and the VR4Empathy Quality Assurance Framework (QAF), ensuring that both teachers’ and students’ perspectives contribute to improving immersive learning in education.
🌟 Key takeaways
The round tables confirmed the educational potential of Virtual Reality when it is meaningfully integrated into teaching and aligned with curriculum objectives. Teachers highlighted how immersive experiences can make abstract concepts more tangible and provide access to environments and situations that are difficult to experience in a traditional classroom. Students also described VR as engaging, motivating and capable of encouraging perspective-taking and cognitive empathy.
Participants agreed that VR delivers the greatest impact when it is embedded within a well-planned learning journey, combining teacher guidance with preparation before the immersive experience and opportunities for reflection afterwards.
The discussions also identified several practices that can further enhance the use of VR in education. Participants agreed that shorter and more interactive VR experiences lead to higher levels of student engagement, while strong links between VR activities and curriculum objectives are essential to maximise educational impact. They also highlighted the importance of providing sufficient time for preparation and reflection, involving students in the creation and improvement of VR content, and ensuring that schools have adequate equipment and technical support to facilitate classroom implementation.
The round tables also provided valuable input for strengthening the VR4Empathy Quality Assurance Framework (QAF). Participants emphasised the importance of adapting the number of VR headsets to the classroom context, ensuring reliable internet connectivity or offline access to content whenever possible, supporting teachers with practical implementation guidance, maintaining a close alignment between VR activities and curriculum objectives, and providing inclusive alternatives for students who are unable or choose not to use VR headsets. These recommendations will contribute to refining the QAF and supporting the wider adoption of safe, inclusive and pedagogically meaningful Virtual Reality experiences in education.
🚀 Looking ahead
The Slovenian national round tables represent another important milestone for VR4Empathy, reinforcing the project’s commitment to developing high-quality, inclusive and impactful Virtual Reality practices for education.
The enthusiasm shown by both teachers and students throughout the pilot demonstrates the growing interest in using immersive technologies to enrich teaching and learning. Their feedback and active participation continue to shape the project’s educational resources and Quality Assurance Framework, supporting the wider adoption of Virtual Reality across European education.
Follow VR4Empathy on LinkedIn and Facebook for the latest updates!
