Hands-on experiences can often provide better results when it comes to education, deeply embedding the knowledge and processes within the student. Some things will stick when reading and absorbing information tossed at a large group, but some subjects certainly require action. MEL Science embraces this ideal fully, providing a subscription service that includes 38 hands-on chemistry sets with a 3D microscope phone/tablet app to bolster the experience by showing what happens on a molecular level. It also is the first to include VR/AR implementation, further immersing their students in the practical project. Today, MEL Science announces that they’ve secured $2.5 million to take their education to the next level.
The MEL Science kit includes a smartphone macro lens, smartphone stand, syringes, a fuel stove, VR goggles, and other tools. It’s pretty neat to see a set of items that provides the essential things to experiment with chemistry while also tapping into the evolving digital culture that our children are growing up deeply embedded in. Kids and adults alike tend to have regular access to smartphones and tablets, so why not use these powerful devices to bolster the education process.
“First you touch the science physically with your hands, then you can look inside and see the processes at the molecular level,” says Vassili Philippov, who founded MEL Science in 2014, in a prepared statement. “This combination of practical training and virtual reality is the ideal form of learning. It helps you not just memorize but actually understand the essence of the event.”
Upload has previously reported on education initiatives involving virtual and augmented reality, including OpenSesame’s $9 million expansion of their e-Learning into VR and AR. Online language learning system Fluent Worlds is even planning the jump to VR. These types of programs are here to stay and potentially evolve as more investors recognize the huge potential in front of them.
