{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,24]],"date-time":"2026-03-24T15:53:20Z","timestamp":1774367600629,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":38,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,18]],"date-time":"2025-07-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1752796800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100018693","name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["101121134"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101121134"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100018693","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Western Norway University of Applied Sciences","award":["101121134"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101121134"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Computers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Emergency preparedness training in organizations frequently involves simple evacuation drills triggered by fire alarms, limiting the opportunities for broader skill development. Digital technologies, particularly virtual reality (VR), offer promising methods to enhance learning for handling incidents and evacuations. However, implementing VR-based training remains challenging due to unclear integration strategies within organizational practices and a lack of empirical evidence of VR\u2019s effectiveness. This paper explores how VR-based training tools can be implemented in schools to enhance emergency preparedness among students, teachers, and staff. Following a design science research process, data were collected from a questionnaire-based study involving 12 participants and an exploratory study with 13 participants. The questionnaire-based study investigates initial attitudes and willingness to adopt VR training, while the exploratory study assesses the VR prototype\u2019s usability, realism, and perceived effectiveness for emergency preparedness training. Despite a limited sample size and technical constraints of the early prototype, findings indicate strong student enthusiasm for gamified and immersive learning experiences. Teachers emphasized the need for technical and instructional support to regularly utilize VR training modules, while firefighters acknowledged the potential of VR tools, but also highlighted the critical importance of regular drills and professional validation. The relevance of the results of utilizing VR in this context is further discussed in terms of how it can be integrated into university curricula and aligned with other accessible digital preparedness tools.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/computers14070286","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,18]],"date-time":"2025-07-18T10:10:38Z","timestamp":1752833438000},"page":"286","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Implementing Virtual Reality for Fire Evacuation Preparedness at Schools"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Rashika Tasnim","family":"Keya","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, P.O. Box 7030, 5020 Bergen, Norway"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1149-8820","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ilona","family":"Heldal","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, P.O. Box 7030, 5020 Bergen, Norway"}]},{"given":"Daniel","family":"Patel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, P.O. Box 7030, 5020 Bergen, Norway"}]},{"given":"Pietro","family":"Murano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Oslo Metropolitan University, P.O. Box 4 St. Olavs Plass, 0130 Oslo, Norway"}]},{"given":"Cecilia Hammar","family":"Wijkmark","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, P.O. Box 7030, 5020 Bergen, Norway"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"17","DOI":"10.1016\/0376-6349(84)90026-9","article-title":"Is safety training worthwhile?","volume":"6","author":"Hale","year":"1984","journal-title":"J. Occup. Accid."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"104379","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijdrr.2024.104379","article-title":"The role of individual preparedness and behavioural training in natural hazards: A scoping review","volume":"105","author":"Fazeli","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Disaster Risk Reduct."},{"key":"ref_3","first-page":"320","article-title":"Physical activity in physical education: A dynamic approach to earthquake disaster mitigation in schools","volume":"65","author":"Muhyi","year":"2025","journal-title":"Retos Nuevas Tend. En Educ. 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