Great news!! You can now import projects from Google Tour Creator to the VRTY platform. Check out here for more information.
The virtual reality (VR) and 360º technology worlds were rocked recently when Google announced they were ending support for its Google Expeditions and Google Tour Creator. Support is ending for its VR app, Expeditions, on 30 June 2021 and a year later, on 30 June 2022, for its 360º technology app, Tour Creator.
Educators at schools and universities have been using Google Expeditions and Tour Creator to create 21st-century learning experiences. Given the immersive experience and additional learning benefits these tools can provide, many educators will need to look for an alternative option if they want to continue using VR and 360º technologies in their classrooms.
VRTY can meet the needs of educators
VRTY is a proven online VR creation tool that helps teachers and students create, experience, and share their own curriculum-aligned VR and interactive 360° projects. This creation tool can meet the needs of Google Expeditions and Google Tour Creator education users, as well as help educators, create interactive and immersive experiences that support different pedagogical approaches and advance learning outcomes and experiences.
VRTY tools can be easily shared at scale. They are suitable for digital technology educators, ICT educators, ICT integrators, STEAM/STEM educators, principals, assistant principals, teachers, and TAS teachers. Learning areas where VRTY can help include:
- Languages
- Geography
- History
- English
- STEAM/STEM
- Entrepreneurship
- Health and Wellbeing
- Sports
- Incursions
- Special Needs
- School Tours
- And more
Who Is VRTY?
VRTY (pronounced ‘ver-tee’) is a virtual reality and 360° technology start-up based in Sydney, Australia.
Our mission is to improve education approaches by using state-of-the-art technologies. We help educators from primary schools to universities around the globe. We provide them with tools to create curriculum-aligned VR and 360° projects.
The VRTY team is guided by an advisory board of experienced educators with backgrounds in curriculum development, learning management, digital literacy, future of learning, primary schools, secondary schools, universities, and professional corporate learning.
Examples of the VRTY Platform Features and Functionality
VRTY provides an enormous amount of functionality, including capabilities that are not available in Google Expeditions and Google Tour Creator. For example, you can:
- Upload 360° images and 360° videos as scenes and view in VR-mode
- Design multi-scene linear experiences or branch narrative choose-your-own-adventure options
- Customise marker icons using GIFs, JPEGs, or PNGs
- Include and layer media assets into one content marker
- Use multiple media (images, videos, audio, rich text, GIFs) as the content inside interactive markers
- Embed YouTube videos
- Create parent and child markers that appear after the parent marker has been triggered
- Create text-to-speech autogenerated audio that is available in 5 languages
- Record audio straight into a project
- Create ‘moving markers’ that can move across the screen
- Create ‘timeline’ markers that appear and disappear at set times in the scene
- Analytics that measure project viewing and interaction statistics
- Allow collaborative viewing so a whole class can experience the same project at the same time
- Integration with school learning management systems (LMS), so students can view VRTY projects without leaving the LMS
Our website has a series of case studies that highlight these capabilities.
Pricing plans for educators
VRTY makes its tools available only to registered educational institutions, their teachers, and students. It offers multiple subscription pricing plans to satisfy both individuals and institutions.
• A$15/mth – for individuals building quick and simple VR/360° projects
• A$50/mth – for individuals who need more customisation for VR/360° projects
• A$125/mth – for groups of educators and learners to build their curriculum-aligned VR/360° projects
The VRTY Platform is available for a free three-week trial. Take some time to look through our website to learn more.
