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Use of Virtual Excursions
at Secondary Schools in Slovakia
Katarína Pribilová*, Viola Gazdíková** and Roman Horváth*
* Faculty of Education, Trnava University in Trnava/
Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Trnava, Slovakia
** Faculty of Education, Catholic University in Ružomberok/
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Ružomberok, Slovakia
katarina.pribilova@truni.sk, viola.gazdikova@ku.sk, roman.horvath@truni.sk
Abstract—Current situation in implementing real excursions
at secondary schools is limited by several factors. On one
hand, it is the content of the discipline and its assigned time
dotation that does not enable implementation of real
excursions because of reasons of time; on the other hand, it
regards economical limitations, for instance, which prevent
students from seeing real environment that would be related
to the educational content. Implementation of real
excursions is often time-consuming. For the purposes of the
future practice of the secondary school graduates it is
necessary so that they had opportunities to get acquainted
with real environment of their future profession, or
opportunities to get acquainted with real professional
environment that can influence their future profiling,
selection of further education (university education, etc.).
Based on the existence of limiting factors in implementation
of real excursions and on the need of excursions as a
stimulator for further education and work placement of
secondary school graduates there emerges the intention of
creation of interactive virtual excursions, which could be
used both in formal education as a didactic aid based on
new technologies and also in extracurricular activities.
I. INTRODUCTION
Departments of the Faculty of Education, TU in Trnava
and the Faculty of Education, CU in Ružomberok decided
to deal with the issue of virtual excursions through the
project KEGA 010TTU-4/2012 Creation and validation of
virtual excursions at secondary school. The project is
aimed at the development of education at secondary
schools with the focus on creation and application of
virtual excursions. The analysis of availability of real
excursions for secondary school disciplines is a part of the
project. The outcome of the project will be electronic
interactive excursions, which will serve as a new learning
tool based on utilisation of new technologies, especially in
secondary school education. Their use is also possible in
extracurricular activities such as interest groups and clubs
[1], [2, [3], [4].
II. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT
The aim of the project is to streamline education at
secondary schools with the emphasis on the possibility of
approaching such real objects and situation necessary for
Sponsor: KEGA 010TTU-4/2012: Tvorba a overovanie
využitia virtuálnych exkurzií na strednej škole
the content acquisition, which are not possible to be
observed in their natural environment because of various
reasons.
Based on utilisation of modern technological means and
computer technology the aim of the project is to create a
set of virtual excursions for secondary schools that can be
used in direct full-time education, as well as in the form of
e-learning or home assignments.
Partial aims of the project:
1. identification and analysis of real excursions for
the needs of secondary school education,
2. identification of limitations influencing the
implementation of excursions,
3. creation of virtual electronic interactive
excursions,
4. validation of the created excursions in practice.
III. VIRTUAL EXCURSIONS
In 2013 we were able to identify problem areas of
implementation of real excursions at secondary schools.
We carried out a survey whose aim was to find out what
the reality within general education at secondary schools
in the implementation of excursions is. The view of the
excursions was aimed only at numbers of carried out
excursions and possibilities of their implementation. We
focused on discovering didactic, technical and social
conditions within the implementation of excursions. 500
respondents from various types of grammar schools in
Bratislava, Trnava and Žilina region participated in the
survey. Students from different schools and different years
of study were asked about excursions concerning natural
sciences and language education, while each respondent
for each specific subject was from a different class.
Questions concerning natural sciences education were
answered by 218 students, language education involved
110 respondents. Within language education, more than
half of the respondents (57 %) stated that they have not
attended any excursions yet. Regarding natural sciences
subjects, 55 % of the respondents have not attended any
excursions throughout their secondary school studies. To
the preparation for an excursion: 47 % stated that they
attended a special preparation before each excursion. The
number of cases where no preparation was attended is
similar, 43 %, and almost 10 % stated that they attended
the preparation only sometimes.
According to the survey, little attention is devoted to
the preparation of students for an excursion. (Table 1 and
Graph 1) Didactic training is insufficient in this respect,
which consequently reduces the effect of the excursion on
professional knowledge of the students. Economic issues
are another factor that reduces the possibility of
implementation of an excursion in the natural
environment. It is striking that other forms of education
(where excursions belong) need to be partially financed
from the students’ own resources, while it is a part of
compulsory education. More than 60 % of excursions had
to be financed by the students themselves. (Table 2 and
Graph 2) Besides the need to cover the entrance fee, the
students had to share travel expenses, too. (Table 3 and
Graph 3)
Grammar school teachers also participated in the survey
and they expressed their opinion on the issue of
implementation of excursions and where they see the
biggest problem. They stated three groups of reasons:
reasons related to school (it is not possible to
implement more excursions in several subjects
because of the reason of time, disruption of the
schedule, financial demands related to the
distance of a school),
reasons related to students (disinterest, financial
requirements),
reasons related to the places visited
(unpreparedness of companies and factories for
the visits of students, unwillingness to let the
unauthorised enter their premises, inability to
admit a higher number of visitors).
Implementation of excursions into real environment is
thus limited because of time, economic, personal and
other reasons (reasons set by the companies) and that’s
why it is needed to look for ways how not to decrease the
quality of education and how to enable the interconnection
of theory and practice and provide development of
competences as declared in the educational program [5].
A fundamental structure of a virtual excursion was
designed in order to implement virtual excursions on the
basis of requirements that excursions should fulfil and at
TABLE 1: PREPARING FOR AN EXCURSION BY SUBJECT
Number % Number % Number % Σ
Biology 17 33 612 28 55 51
Physics 17 49 720 11 31 35
Geography 23 53 4 9 16 37 43
Chemistry 16 57 2 7 10 36 28
Informatics 9 43 210 10 48 21
Mathematics 20 51 0 0 19 49 39
Σ102 47 21 10 94 43 217
Subject
Have you taken part on training before the excursion?
Always
Sometimes
Never
Graph 1: Percentage of Answers to Questions in the Meaning as Follows: “Have you taken part on training before the excursion?”
Never
Always
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Never
Sometimes
Always
the same time, basic principles of the design of electronic
teaching materials were accepted.
Structure of a virtual excursion:
aim of the excursion,
incorporation into the system of education (the
content of education),
theoretical explanation,
virtual input,
interactive part,
professional and practical explanation,
interconnection with the content of education,
feedback,
summarisation,
action-stimulating elements,
evaluation (elements of feedback).
The aim of an excursion is based on curricular
requirements and is focused on fulfilment of education
standards. The requirements regarding the aim of an
excursion depend on the type of an excursion. The aim
follows desired outcomes, where variability is
presupposed – different outcomes are expected regarding
an excursion in a manufacturing enterprise, where the
student has the opportunity only to observe the course of
action; different outcomes are expected regarding an
excursion in foreign language, where the student travels
abroad and is forced to communicate in the foreign
language; and different outcomes are expected regarding
an excursion in natural sciences disciplines, where the aim
is to observe nature, etc. Incorporation into the system of
education presupposes feedback to the content of
education, which creates the content base of the
curriculum of the related subject. Theoretical explanation
is a structured theoretical input to the given excursion,
which is based on the necessary content. The core of an
excursion is created by a virtual input, which is amended
by videos. The content is regulated by navigation elements
and it contains feedback tools as well – various types of
tasks that detect feedback and understanding of the links
TABLE 2: SUMMARY OF PAYMENTS REQUIRED FROM STUDENTS’ OWN RESOURCES
Number % Number % Number % Σ
Biology 38 75 48918 51
Physics 26 74 13823 35
Geography 23 53 716 13 30 43
Chemistry 18 64 311 725 28
Informatics 8 38 419 943 21
Mathematics 21 54 0 0 18 46 39
Σ134 62 19 964 29 217
Subject
Have you had to pay admission to the excursion?
Always
Sometimes
Never
Graph 2: Percentage of Answers to Questions in the Meaning as Follows: “Have you had to pay admission to the excursion?”
Never
Always
0
20
40
60
80
Never
Sometimes
Always
between theoretical knowledge and information from the
excursion. Action-stimulating elements are not a
necessary part, but they represent a form of consolidation
of students’ knowledge. The results are presented at a
conference [6].
The authoring tool Articulate was chosen for creation
and processing of virtual excursions. At the same time, a
user’s guide (manual) to creating interactive materials in
the authoring tool Articulate was created [7]. The project
researchers processed electronic interactive virtual
excursions for selected subjects and content units.
Altogether, five virtual excursions were created – three for
the subject Chemistry (Wastewater Treatment Plant;
Bread in Chemistry; Hop, malting, brewing), one for the
Slovak Language and Literature (Štúr – Museum and
Memorial Apartment in Modra) and one for the subject
Computer Science (virtual excursion ESET and Google).
At present, validation of these excursions in educational
environment as a supporting study material within the
teaching-learning process or as a part of home assignment
is taking place. The validation presupposes evaluation of
the content of the interactive material in accordance with
the requirements of the curriculum of the related study
discipline as well as possibilities of utilisation of the
created electronic material for better acquisition and
consolidation of knowledge in the related field of
education.
IV. CONCLUSION
The contemporary situation in implementation of
excursions at grammar schools in Slovakia is worth
consideration. Students do not get to natural environment
related to education because of various reasons. The
analysis revealed three groups of limitations in
implementation of excursions:
limitations related to the natural environment
(companies, etc.),
limitations related to educational institution
(educational programs),
limitations related to parents and students
(economic limitations).
TABLE 3: SUMMARY OF REIMBURSEMENT OF TRAVEL FOR EXCURSION
Number % Number % Number % Σ
Biology 36 71 4 8 11 22 51
Physics 27 77 39514 35
Geography 28 65 512 10 23 43
Chemistry 19 68 27725 28
Informatics 9 43 210 10 48 21
Mathematics 21 54 0 0 18 46 39
Σ140 65 16 761 28 217
Subject
Have you had to pay fares on an excursion?
Always
Sometimes
Never
Graph 3: Percentage of Answers to Questions in the Meaning as Follows: “Have you had to pay fares on an excursion?”
Never
Always
0
20
40
60
80
Never
Sometimes
Always
Professional preparation before implementation of an
excursion is necessary. Time needed and necessary
content of individual disciplines are often the reason why
the field of excursions is neglected – their implementation
as well as the preparation. Informal education can increase
quality of education of the students. It is possible to
dismantle the problem areas in selected groups of
excursions through electronic excursions, which can be
processed in an engaging and interactive manner and their
utilisation does not need to be limited by time and
financial difficulties. It is supposed that through
incorporation of electronic virtual excursions and using
new technologies in various organisational forms of
education the secondary school education will be made
more attractive.
REFERENCES
[1] Gazdíková, Viola – Majherová, Janka: Prečo aj virtuálne exkurzie
v prírodovednom vzdelávaní. In Odborová didaktika –
interdisciplinárny dialóg. Ružomberok : 2013. ISBN 978-80-561-
0051-6.
[2] Gazdíková, Viola – Majherová, Janka – Palásthy, Hedviga:
Virtuálna exkurzia – možnosť alebo potreba? In Odborová
didaktika – interdisciplinárny dialóg 2012. Levoča 25th – 26th
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[3] Gazdíková, Viola: Školský vzdelávací program a realizácia
exkurzií. In Aktuálne trendy vo vyučovaní prírodných vied.
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ISBN 978-80-8082-541-6.
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[5] Gazdíková, Viola – Pribilová, Katarína – Horváth, Roman:
Postavenie exkurzií z informatiky v stredoškolskom vzdelávaní. In
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