Augmented Reality comes to the classroom 增强现实走进教室

Arina Golosovskaya

海词积累

1. augment v. 增强;扩大

2. virtually adv. 事实上; 几乎

3. curriculum n. 课程

4. mock adj. 模仿的;模拟的

5. airframe n. 機身

Augmented Reality（AR） has been around for decades. It is only recently， however， that people are beginning to recognize AR's unlimited potential in virtually every aspect of life， including classroom training and teaching.

As with any evolving technology， Augmented Reality presents both obstacles and opportunities for new applications. A major obstacle is the availability of affordable viewing hardware at the consumer and student levels. Although Microsoft has made Meta 2 and HoloLens headsets avail- able to developers， they are not yet being marketed to consumers. With their hefty（可观的） price tags of $949 and $3，000 respectively， the headsets are unaffordable to many， especially students and school districts. Another challenge facing the continued growth and use of Augmented Reality is assuring a steady supply of practical programs. Consumers will purchase HoloLens， Meta 2 and similar headsets only if there are always new apps readily available that entertain， educate or generally tend to make life easier.

When properly applied， AR in the classroom will engage， entertain and educate students of all ages and grade levels.

The STEM （Science， Technology， Engineering and Mathematics） curriculum has adopted Aug-mented Reality as an instructional tool. From the primary grades through graduate school， Augmented Reality is transforming the edu-cational process by adding a whole new dimension to learning. For example， Boeing's employees tasked with assembling a mock airframe wing were divided into two groups， one following directions contained in a PDF file， the other using animated AR instructions viewed on digital tablets. The group using tablets were 30% faster and 90% more accurate than their coll-eagues that relied upon written instructions.

France is the forerunner in recognizing the benefits of introducing students to Augmented Reality at a young age. It is one of the earliest countries to put AR into use. In 2015， the French Government revised its instructional curriculum to include teaching AR technology in the public school system. This provides students with an opportunity to grasp the concepts and the skill sets needed to put those talents into good use in the real world.

Reading Check

1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about？

A. Augmented Reality's history and future.

B. Augmented Reality's application and function.

C. Augmented Reality's challenges and opportunities.

D. Augmented Reality's development and conditions.

2. What is the author's attitude towards the application of AR in STEM？

A. Positive.           B. Unclear.           C. Neutral.           D. Doubtful.

3. Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “forerunner” in paragraph 5？

A. Practitioner.      B. Pioneer.            C. Tutor.             D. Participant.

Language Study

Write a summary of the text with the expressions given below. Your article should be about 60 words.

AR obstacle apply France

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