… to the wonderful world of haptic devices in an educational setting. “Haptics” are any device that provides a touch-based system of interaction with virtual environments. In education this is important because we learn as we touch and interact with objects and data (Jain, 2003). We learn using as many of our five senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste) as possible (Gardner, 1983). Until recently only the first two of those senses, auditory and visual, have been used in forms of digital education (Laycock & Day, 2003). Now, with a selection of inexpensive haptic devices and a growing awareness of the potential of haptics, we can begin to feel those digital objects as well.

This webpage will focus on how educators might use these devices to augment the sense of presence that a student perceives while working in virtual worlds or on digital assignments (Van Shaik, et al., 2004). We have created several sections in order to facilitate this learning and attempted to organize it in a useful way.

First we have attempted to layout an explanation of what haptics are and the theoretical foundation for haptics in education.

Next have done an extensive literature review of haptics devices to this point in time and written a proposed study on the use of haptic devices in education.

Third we have laid out the basic functionality of the Novint Falcon, the primary haptic device we have worked with, as well as all the technical research we have done to this point. We have also laid out the possible uses of these devices in other areas of study.

Finally we have included an extensive bibliography for those interested in researching further on the topic, as well as some useful downloads for those working with haptic devices.