Testimony of Maud Bernier, Pedagogical Manager at CFA iA

iA Intelligence Apprentice CFA presentation

An expert in work-study programs for over 40 years, L'iA is a school with 7 campuses in the Pays de la Loire region that trains 2,000 students a year exclusively through work-study programs in sales and marketing, customer relations and digital marketing. 

Maud Bernier

Maud Bernier, educational manager at CFA IA Intelligence Apprentie. We're talking about the installation of an immersive room (or CAVE, Cave Automatic Virtual Environment) within the iA Experience, an innovative space dedicated to apprenticeships, particularly in the retail sector. 

Why install an immersive CAVE?

The idea of installing this immersive room, or CAVE, was born out of our desire to modernize our teaching tools and align our training offer with new business practices. We have over 40 years' expertise in vocational training, and we wanted to offer our students a space right in the heart of the city, a real showcase for innovative commerce. The aim was to give our young people access to these new tools, not only to learn in a different way, but also to better prepare them for the realities of the job market, where immersive technologies and 3D are playing an increasingly important role.

How did you go about setting up the project?

The CAVE was set up in partnership with Ugla, a company specializing in the installation of these technologies. We were fortunate enough to be able to build the room according to the specific needs of the project, which facilitated the integration of the equipment. However, we did encounter a few technical constraints, notably in terms of distances, calibrations and projector settings to achieve a perfect result. This is very precise equipment, requiring specific adjustments. But thanks to a collaborative effort with our partners, we were able to meet the technical challenges and offer an optimal workspace.

After several weeks of use, have you achieved your goals?

We don't have much hindsight yet, as we made this tool available to students at the start of the 2024 academic year. However, after several weeks of use, I can say thatthe students are much more engaged and motivated in their learning, and we've seen a real transformation in the way they approach projects. Being able to visualize their work directly in 3D, in an immersive environment, enables them to better understand and apply the concepts. For us, as trainers, it's a huge gain in terms of pedagogical relevance.

What's in it for students and teachers?

For students:

1. Immersive learning: they can project themselves into a realistic 3D environment and see first-hand the impact of their merchandising decisions.
2. Enhanced engagement: the interactive and immersive nature of the room arouses great interest.
3. Concrete preparation for the realities of the job market: they work on realistic professional situations.

For teachers :

1. A powerful pedagogical tool: we now have the possibility of creating real-life situations that were not possible before.
2. More interactive teaching methods: we have adapted our methods to make our courses more participative and dynamic.
3. Better student follow-up: we can observe in real time how students evolve in this environment and adjust our teaching accordingly.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I'd say that this project has been a real success. Not only has it modernized our training offering, it has also revolutionized the way we teach. Students and teachers alike are benefiting from an innovative tool that significantly improves the quality of learning. Initial feedback has been very positive, and we look forward to continuing to exploit this potential in the years to come.

Thanks to Maud Bernier for her testimonial, please find the replay of our dedicated webinar here.