Abstract Extended reality digital storytelling (XRDST), which is based on virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies, is being increasingly applied in education. However, a literature-based search revealed that the current research focuses predominantly on specific assisted learning programs, with no systematic synthesis or analysis of the application status and effectiveness of XRDST in assisted learning empirical studies. This has resulted in a lack of clarity regarding the actual explanatory power and scope of the technology, hindering theoretical extensions and prospects in this field. To address this gap, a review and meta-analysis of XRDST-assisted learning was conducted to develop a systematic understanding of the field. The literature screening and coding process adhered to the PRISMA framework and strict inclusion and exclusion criteria, ultimately incorporating 42 empirical studies, 12 of which were used for meta-analysis. The content of the studies was then coded and analyzed. The literature analysis results indicate that research interest in XRDST-assisted learning has increased annually, with higher education populations and K-12 groups being the primary learners. Multimedia laboratories and school classrooms were the main learning environments, while pedagogy and medicine emerged as the most concentrated fields of study. The learning content focused primarily on declarative knowledge and analytical and problem-solving skills. In terms of implementation, the construction of virtual narrative scenarios was the key technological affordance, with head-mounted displays (HMDs) and program simulations serving as the main platforms supporting XRDST-assisted learning. The results of the meta-analysis revealed that the overall effect size of XRDST-assisted learning was 0.465, which is statistically significant. The effect size for K-12 learners (0.583) was greater than that for higher education learners (0.258). The learning effect size in multimedia laboratories (0.483) exceeded that in classrooms (0.348), while libraries and museums had the greatest effect size among learning environments (0.554). The field of cultural studies exhibited the greatest effect size (0.833). Declarative knowledge had a lower effect size (0.193), whereas analytical and problem-solving skills had a greater effect size (0.723). The effect size for constructing virtual narrative scenarios (0.538) was significant but lower than that for user-generated content (0.71). Among the device programs, HMDs had a weaker effect size (0.263) than that of desktop devices (0.639) and mobile devices (0.889). Future research in this field should explore pedagogical, technological, contextual, and methodological dimensions, with a particular focus on differentiated learners and the integration of artificial intelligence technologies.
He et al. (Sun,) studied this question.
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