Design of virtual environments for the comprehension of planetary phenomena based on students' ideas

Children enter the classroom with a wide range of misconceptions about planetary phenomena. Conventional teaching methods usually cannot overcome these difficulties, which we consider may be because of the lack of appropriate teaching aids. The purpose of the present study is the design and development of an educational virtual environment for the support of the teaching of planetary phenomena, particularly of the movements of the Earth and Sun, the day and night cycle and the change of seasons. Our interactive three-dimensional (3D) virtual environment was based on the results of an empirical study of 102 secondary school students and provides students with new experiences, personal involvement and close-up examination of the phenomena under study. Our first results after the use of the virtual environment showed that the majority of students enthused about interacting with it and modified their misconceptions concerning the day-night cycle and the change of seasons.