Virtual Reality: Friend or Foe?

by Joe Little

Five Horizons Foundation

You may be thinking that an article about virtual reality is a little premature, but 2016 is the year of the headset!  Developers like Facebook’s Oculus Rift, HTC, and Playstation are all getting into the virtual reality game and the initial results are pretty good.  My question to our community is; how will it impact our special needs kiddos, especially those on the spectrum?  If your son is anything like mine, he can get lost in his iPad for hours on end if I don’t reign him in.  What if he had access to a literal “different world?”  I downloaded Minecraft the other day and tested it out myself with my Samsung phone and goggles.  20 minutes went by in the blink of an eye and I don’t even enjoy that game!

This article is not a position statement, rather a conversation starter.  I’m curious about the opinions of other parents on this technology.  I can also see a huge upside.  Imagine your child being able to wear glasses that show them visual representations of what’s being said to them!  You speak the words, “juice or milk?” and they see images of each with the word “or” in the middle.  No more icons all over the fridge!  We are just scratching the surface of what’s possible here but rest assured, it’s coming.