Review by Jason Shiroff, Common Sense Education | Updated August 2017
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CoSpaces Edu

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VR design tool sparks creativity for those with the coding chops

Subjects & skills
Subjects
N/A
Skills
  • Communication & Collaboration
  • Creativity
Grades This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.
4–12
Great for:
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Price:  Paid $75 per year for 50 licenses; other license packages available for more students.
Platforms:  Website

Take a look inside

5 images
Combine real photos and virtual characters.
Code in Blockly, a Scratch-like coding language.
Publish your work in a gallery and remix other projects.
Create 3D virtual worlds for a variety of purposes.
Users can also code in JavaScript and TypeScript.

Pros: Provides a fully engaging and immersive way to create virtual, 3D worlds.

Cons: Since there's not much support, users will need a strong background in coding to take full advantage of the site.

Bottom Line: This is a well-designed VR playground for experienced coders.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Teachers can use CoSpaces Edu across the curriculum. Students could use it to model their thinking about literature, create infographics, tell stories, or model scientific principles. A virtual museum could be created for sharing student work. To truly build out elaborate projects, students will need some deep coding instruction first.

CoSpaces Edu would make sense in a project-based learning class. Use the lesson plans for ideas to get started and then dive in to the forum to get more detailed help.  

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Standards:

CoSpaces Edu makes coding 3D virtual reality worlds engaging and accessible. Creating a class and creating new assignments are quick and easy. After joining the class, students use the drag-and-drop library to build a virtual world limited only by their imagination. Images, including 360-degree photos, can be uploaded. The next step is breathing life into these objects. This is accomplished by coding using Blockly (a Scratch-like coding environment) or through JavaScript and TypeScript.

Users can share their work in galleries and remix other gallery projects. Instructors have real-time views of their students' work using a slick dashboard. Viewing the projects using VR glasses is the real standout for CoSpaces Edu. This is accomplished with the accompanying iOS and Android apps.

CoSpaces Edu can be an excellent learning tool for students with a coding background. Bringing content to life in virtual reality using the programming languages can be highly motivating for students. However, users with limited coding chops may struggle to take full advantage of the platform because it doesn't offer coding tips.

CoSpaces Edu is a solid platform that doesn't onboard teachers or users as well as other coding platforms; building in scaffolded coding projects could help newbies and provide starting points for teachers. It would also benefit from tutorials and built-in help features that could assist beginners in moving to the next level.

Overall Rating
Engagement Is the product stimulating, entertaining, and engrossing? Will kids want to return?

Students will immediately take to creating the virtual worlds of their imagination; animating and coding the world are a bigger challenge.

Pedagogy Is learning content seamlessly baked-in, and do kids build conceptual understanding? Is the product adaptable and empowering? Will skills transfer?

Simple VR worlds can be created by dragging and dropping from a library of objects. The real power is bringing these worlds to life by coding in Blockly or JavaScript and TypeScript.

Support Does the product take into account learners of varying abilities, skill levels, and learning styles? Does it address both struggling and advanced students?

Tutorials, coding basics, and projects are missing from the site. Users will benefit from prior coding experiences.

Common Sense Reviewer
Jason Shiroff Classroom teacher
About our ratings and privacy evaluation.

Key Standards Supported

Engineering Design

  • 3-5-ETS1-2

    Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

  • 3-5-ETS1-3

    Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.

  • MS-ETS1-1

    Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.

  • MS-ETS1-2

    Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

  • MS-ETS1-3

    Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to identify the best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the criteria for success.

  • MS-ETS1-4

    Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.

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