Enhancing AI-Guided VR Learning For Furniture Manufacturing

Abstract

Furniture manufacturing is offered as an elective subject in selected Malaysian secondary schools, but conventional classroom teaching faces limited access to equipment, safety risks, and a lack of real-time guidance for beginners. This study addresses challenges in learning furniture manufacturing skills by developing an innovative virtual reality (VR) application integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) for secondary school education. The system is developed based on the ADDIE model, emphasizing immersive learning experiences to support active learning. It incorporates a structured learning process in which users identify tools and machines, understand their functions, and apply their knowledge in simulated workshop environments. The system provides AI-driven feedback to assess performance, monitor progress, and deliver personalized recommendations, helping to create a safe and effective VR-based learning environment. Pilot testing with pre- and post-test evaluations was conducted involving 19 secondary school students to measure usability and skill improvement. The results indicate a 27.3% improvementin users’ understanding of furniture manufacturing processes, demonstrating the system’s effectiveness as a vocational training tool. The System Usability Scale yielded an average score of 94.7%, which falls within the ‘Excellent’ range. This application not only improves technical skills but also aligns with the National Occupational Skill Standard, making it a valuable educational resource for industry skill development. However, the findings are limited by the small sample size and the short duration of system exposure, and hence cannot be generalized to a wider population. Future work will involve a larger sample, a control-group comparison, and additional training modules.