For anyone that has experienced Virtual Reality (VR), its power to engage is clear. A partnership between Ribston Hall High School and the NCSC Cyber Hub is enabling students at Ribston and schools throughout Gloucestershire to experience the power of VR for themselves. A 6^th form computing club activity set students the challenge to design and build a VR ‘rig’. The design requirement was a computer which would comfortably be able to run the latest VR hardware and software, look visually appealing and also enable students to see the physical components that make up a modern-day computer.

The final design decisions have been made and the winning design, as chosen by computer science teacher Mr Jones, is “a really balanced design, with cutting edge, but not bleeding edge technology that will have the ‘wow’ factor to look at. It prioritises good graphics performance supported by excellent processing power and memory. It has a visually impressive case which allows students to see the components clearly, without compromising safety and robustness.”

The next stage of the challenge will be for 6^th form students to work with external computer science experts to build the VR ‘rig’. The 6^th form students will have to investigate the safety aspects of building computer equipment and understand the risks, both to them, and the equipment. Once the build is complete, the VR ‘rig’ will be available for demonstrations, computer science lesson activities and computing clubs at Ribston and beyond in to the NCSC Cyber Hub.

This activity is one of many activities that Ribston is working on, in collaboration with the NCSC cyber hub. Twitter: @NCSC #cyberschoolshub