Virtual Reality, Digital Literacy, and Ethics in the Age of the Metaverse

What is the future of digital literacy in a world where the virtual and physical will be equally real? With the advances in VR and AR, are we ready to deal with "fake realities" in our academic conversations and analyses? How should literacy be defined when actual human experience is no longer the touchstone for reality? Since VR hijacks our senses, how will we address the ethical issues and emotional impact of deeply realistic immersive environments? As VR and AR begin to transform the learning environment, we will face profound questions on digital literacy and ethical issues.

Outcomes: Explore how the growing use of VR will require new forms of digital literacy * Identify the expanding importance of questions of privacy, ethics, and cultural sensitivity issues posed by VR and AR * Articulate an emerging framework for digital literacy to support students in immersive learning experiences, where illusion is no less powerful than reality