Can desktop virtual reality effectively enhance academic achievement? —A meta-analysis

Virtual Reality (VR) is gradually integrating into classroom teaching, emerging as a new trend in educational development in the era of artificial intelligence. Desktop virtual reality stands out due to its lower cost and greater convenience. To elucidate the effectiveness of desktop virtual reality in learning, this paper employs a meta-analysis to systematically analyze 31 relevant studies. The findings suggest that desktop virtual reality can effectively enhance students’ academic achievement, fostering improvements in their knowledge, emotions, and abilities. Moreover, its effects in developing countries surpass those in developed countries. There is a linearly increasing relationship between the duration of the experiment and students’ academic achievement. Notably, there is no significant difference in learning outcomes across different subjects, with the implementation in high school showing the most promising results. The immersive VR teaching effectiveness in the control group slightly exceeds that of traditional teaching, particularly at higher levels.