Enhancing undergraduate student communication skills through Immersive AR/VR and AI-Driven simulations using VirtualSpeech

Students enrolled in Science Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) degree programs follow a curriculum that emphasizes developing technical proficiency in a variety of areas. Opportunities for students to participate in public speaking settings may not happen often enough within their coursework for them to feel entirely comfortable when placed in those situations. An emerging field of research involves investigating the use of immersive artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to measure its effect on a student’s public speaking skills. Our pilot study provided students with the opportunity to interact with AR/VR headsets configured with VirtualSpeech software. The students completed a communication exercise with virtual avatars in the headset that presented dynamic real-world scenarios for student interaction. To assess communication competence, the researchers used an adapted version of the previously validated Self-Perceived Communication Competence (SPCC) scale. The self-report survey covers four communication contexts: public, meeting, group, and dyad. Students rate their competence in each scenario using a 5-point Likert-scale. The goal was to see if immersive technology can influence how confident students feel in a professional setting. This pilot study demonstrated that immersive simulation is a both a viable and promising intervention for improving public speaking confidence in higher education settings. Further, the technology and simulation suggest effectiveness in enhancing perceived communication competence, supporting experiential learning through realistic practice, increasing intrinsic motivation and enjoyment, benefiting first-generation students in professional communication scenarios when compared to non-first-generation students.