Date of Conferral
7-28-2026
Date of Award
July 2026
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Loren Naffziger
Abstract
The problem addressed in this basic qualitative study was that although some K–12 teachers have access to virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies, these tools are not widely accepted or adopted for classroom instruction. Guided by the technology acceptance model, the purpose of the study was to explore K–12 teachers’ perspectives on their willingness to incorporate VR/AR, the perceived usefulness and ease of use of these technologies, and the challenges they encounter or anticipate during the adoption process. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 10 K-12 teachers from public, charter, and private schools in the United States who had at least 1 year of teaching experience and access to VR/AR. Through Braun and Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis, the following themes were generated: teachers were motivated to adopt VR/AR and found them to be useful tools for increasing engagement, supporting visualization of abstract concepts, and benefiting diverse learners, but the adoption was constrained by access and equity limitations, high costs and limited device availability, technical and classroom management challenges, and insufficient professional development. The implications for positive social change are that the findings may inform policies and practices that prioritize sustained, practice based professional development, equitable resource allocation, robust classroom management tools, and clearer implementation guidance to support scalable VR/AR integration in K-12 settings, which, in turn, might increase students’ engagement and inclusion.
Recommended Citation
McKenley, Breanna, "K-12 Teachers’ Perspectives on the Adoption of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Technology in Classroom Instruction" (2026). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 20455.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/20455
