mARble – Augmented Reality in Medical Education

Abstract

The use of eLearning content to improve teaching and learning has a long-standing tradition in medical education. Nevertheless, "old fashioned" eLearning modules for medical subjects often lack a level of experience that is only possible with bedside teaching. On the other hand, bedside teaching may not always be a possibility, e.g. due to restrictions in time and place, since cases that allow the presentation of certain findings are not always available. Another aspect is that not all cases may be used in an appropriate manner for teaching purposes due to ethical constraints. For visually oriented subjects, Augmented Reality (AR) based applications can offer a way out of this dilemma since they make it possible to build almost life-like virtual cases that show all desired aspects and have the potential to significantly enhance the learning experience. Due to the ubiquitous availability of mobile phones and tablets and their ever-increasing computing power, it seems feasible to implement the concept of augmented reality on mobile devices. mARble, an Augmented Reality powered learning environment for mobile phones based this concept, will be presented in this paper. Currently, content for a basic course in legal medicine is available; a preliminary evaluation has been performed to evaluate the concept regarding its effect on the learning experience. First results will be presented.