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The concept of the metaverse has been defined in various ways since its inception in Neal Stephenson's novel (1992). The term “meta” in metaverse signifies transcendence or virtuality, while “verse” refers to a universe or world. In the context of education, the metaverse refers to a virtual reality space that can be accessed through digital technologies. It offers enhanced interactivity and immersion, allowing students to engage in learning activities and communicate synchronously with others. However, this term remains vague and encompasses diverse elements related to learning, teaching, 3D environments, and online educational technologies.
The use of the metaverse in education has rapidly evolved from games for entertainment purposes to serious games for educational purposes, providing both challenges and opportunities for teachers and learners. With the advancement of extended reality, including virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality, the metaverse has gained attention as an innovative technology with potential benefits for education. However, its implementation requires ethical codes, interdisciplinary cooperation, and adequate training to avoid posing a significant challenge for educators and learners. Nevertheless, there has been a lack of comprehensive exploration of these issues.
While some review studies (Table 1) have explored the evolution, publication trends, possibilities, limitations, anatomy education, and healthcare system in the field of the metaverse used in education, little is known about its effects on educational outcomes, interactions, and learning attitudes in mobile, blended, and situated learning environments. Therefore, it is crucial to conduct bibliographic analysis on the use of the metaverse in terms of these variables in the field of education.
Table 1. A comparison between previous review studies and the current research
| Publications | Highlights |
|
Tlili et al., 2022
| Evolution, publication trends, types, educational fields, and digital identity |
|
Kye et al., 2021
| Possibilities and limitations |
|
Iwanaga et al., 2022
| The metaverse in anatomy education |
|
Bhugaonkar et al., 2022
| The trend of the metaverse in the healthcare system |
| The current study | Bibliometric analyses |
Literature Review
With a growing number of information technologies used in education, researchers are holding a more intense interest in the metaverse. This section aims to propose research questions by reviewing previous studies on the use of the metaverse in education.