abstract
- © 2021 IEEE.Building Information Modeling (BIM) is arguably the most important and promising ICT applied in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. One of the most important dimensions of BIM is its implementation for Virtual Reality (VR) to simulate and interact inside virtual environments of construction projects. The benefits of using BIM and VR with educational purposes has been explored recently by separate, however there is no evidence of an approach that develops and implements both technologies together. The research in this study is the first one in developing the framework for the implementation of a user-friendly BIM-VR software application with specific pedagogical objectives for AEC education. This study demonstrates that the development of this high-tech educative tool aims to: 1) make more effective use of learning hours through playful interaction with BIM models, and 2) improve understanding of abstract complex concepts that are difficult to explain theoretically. The implementation of this technological tool is developed in the context of national AEC higher education programs in a university in Mexico. In this study, the effectiveness of using a collaborative BIM-VR tool as a didactic method for AEC is demonstrated. Also, this study demonstrates that the learning experience can be improved using BIM-VR.