Enhancing pre-service teachers' understanding of density through the CAVE virtual reality experience

Godfrey Walwema; Johannes Addido; Samuel Katende; Godfrey Walwema; Johannes Addido; Samuel Katende

doi:10.3934/steme.2026010

STEM Education

2026, Volume 6, Issue 2: 230-257. doi: 10.3934/steme.2026010

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Research article Topical Sections

Enhancing pre-service teachers' understanding of density through the CAVE virtual reality experience

1.
The Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities, Ball State University, USA; godfrey.walwema@bsu.edu
2.
Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Eastern New Mexico University, USA, Johannes.Addido@enmu.edu
3.
Department of Curriculum & Instruction, Science Education, University of Houston, USA, skatende@cougarnet.uh.edu

Academic Editor: Feng-Kuang Chiang

Received: 07 August 2025 Revised: 20 December 2025 Accepted: 06 January 2026 Published: 06 March 2026

The concept of density is difficult for students to understand because it cannot be directly observed. To gain a deeper understanding of this concept, students need to learn about density at the microscopic and macroscopic levels. Virtual Reality (VR) provides an opportunity for students to experience the phenomena at both levels. A density exploration simulation was used in a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) to investigate the impact of the CAVE on preservice teachers' understanding of density. Three preservice teachers were interviewed before and after their CAVE experience on the concept of density. The data collected consisted of participants' recorded audio responses, written texts, and drawings made during the interviews. Thematic analysis was used to examine the raw data, and three major themes emerged regarding participants' understanding of the concept of density. The experience helped participants visualize water and oil molecules, recognize differences in molecular structures, explore the role of intermolecular forces in determining water density, and observe that air does not affect ice density at the microscopic scale. The study suggests that students can benefit from VR experiences such as those in the CAVE to explore density at macroscopic and microscopic levels.
- density,
- pre-service teacher education,
- virtual reality (VR),
- cave automatic virtual environment (CAVE),
- conceptual understanding,
- misconceptions
Citation: Godfrey Walwema, Johannes Addido, Samuel Katende. Enhancing pre-service teachers' understanding of density through the CAVE virtual reality experience[J]. STEM Education, 2026, 6(2): 230-257. doi: 10.3934/steme.2026010

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Abstract

The concept of density is difficult for students to understand because it cannot be directly observed. To gain a deeper understanding of this concept, students need to learn about density at the microscopic and macroscopic levels. Virtual Reality (VR) provides an opportunity for students to experience the phenomena at both levels. A density exploration simulation was used in a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) to investigate the impact of the CAVE on preservice teachers' understanding of density. Three preservice teachers were interviewed before and after their CAVE experience on the concept of density. The data collected consisted of participants' recorded audio responses, written texts, and drawings made during the interviews. Thematic analysis was used to examine the raw data, and three major themes emerged regarding participants' understanding of the concept of density. The experience helped participants visualize water and oil molecules, recognize differences in molecular structures, explore the role of intermolecular forces in determining water density, and observe that air does not affect ice density at the microscopic scale. The study suggests that students can benefit from VR experiences such as those in the CAVE to explore density at macroscopic and microscopic levels.

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Author's biography Dr. Godfrey Walwema is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Physics at the Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities at Ball State University; Dr. Johannes Addido is an Assistant Professor of Elementary Education at Eastern New Mexico University; Samuel Katende is a Science Education Ph.D. candidate in the Curriculum & Instruction Department, University of Houston

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