Mitsugi Adachi

This study examined the effectiveness of virtual reality (VR) content in elementary school physical education through a long jump unit for fourth-grade students. The purpose was to investigate whether VR-based learning enhances both motor skill development and learners' cognitive processes. Thirty-three fourth-grade students participated in a four-lesson long jump unit. They experienced first-person VR content designed to simulate the movements and sensations of the run-up, takeoff, and landing. Learning outcomes were evaluated through measurements of jump distance, observational assessments of movement performance, and semi-structured interviews focusing on changes in learners' cognition. The results showed that the average jump distance improved from 202 cm before the intervention to 217 cm after the unit. Improvements were observed particularly in the run-up, takeoff, and landing phases of the movement. Interview data indicated that students actively reflected on these movement phases throughout the learning process. Furthermore, differences were found in how students used the VR content according to their skill levels. Higher-skilled students tended to integrate the entire sequence of movements and compare their own performance with the VR experience, whereas lower-skilled students focused on individual movement phases when solving learning tasks. These findings suggest that VR content can effectively support both motor skill development and cognitive learning in elementary school physical education. However, improvements in aerial posture were limited, indicating that certain movement components may be less suitable for VR-based instruction. Future research should involve a larger sample, include a control group, and examine students from different grade levels to further explore the educational value of VR in physical education.