SINGAPORE — Traumatized children and youth here will soon have the opportunity to befriend horses in a virtual world and benefit from the well-known equine therapy.
The Rotary Club of Singapore has partnered with animal-assisted learning center Equal Ark to offer equine-assisted learning through virtual reality (VR), the club announced Saturday, June 24.
Interacting with horses in virtual reality gives participants the opportunity to prepare for real-life interactions with large mammals, which can be frightening and triggering for traumatized children.
In a joint media release with Equal-Ark and another partner, telecommunications company StarHub, the club said the initiative is the first of its kind to incorporate VR into equine-assisted learning for children with intellectual disabilities. The club said it was the first time.
Equine-assisted learning is known to help children and young people, especially those with mental health problems, develop social and emotional skills such as self-confidence, resilience, and emotional control. increase.
Lionel Otsuka, technical director of the club, said, “By providing a virtual experience (before entering the actual program), we can give[children]confidence in how to handle horses.” rice field.
The club also partnered with Mind Palace, a company that provides VR services to people with dementia, to develop a prototype of the program.
Mind Palace developer Eugene Soh said today that he tried VR horses with his 6-year-old nephew and “loved” the experience.
Children’s homes benefiting from VR horse-assisted learning
About 70 children and adolescents aged 5 to 21 at Cheng Sulan Methodist Orphanage will benefit from virtual horse-assisted learning for the first time.
Over the next few months, Rotary clubs will work closely with children’s homes to tailor their VR programs, taking into account potential trigger points and safety measures to optimize the experience for children.
Through program coordination, the club and Mind Palace will also develop an Augmented Reality (AR) component that enhances real-life interactions with horses.
The club also partnered with StarHub to develop the Metaverse, where children and youth can participate in a horse virtual reality.
The VR and AR components serve as a complement to horse-assisted learning, which is widely used in the West as a form of psychotherapy for vulnerable children and adolescents.
“The purpose of equine assisted learning is to extend clients’ behavioral change from stables to their private lives,” said Sandra Leon, CEO of EqualArc.
“Horses are highly sensitive and non-judgmental animals, so we create an environment where our clients can safely navigate their way through the fight without feeling judged or interpreted by others.”
Dubbed “At Home with Horses,” the virtual reality program serves as an onboarding process for children before they have physical contact with real horses.
Under the guidance of a human trainer in a virtual world, children can stroke a horse’s mane and place a hand on its chest. You can even hear the horse’s heartbeat.
Children also learn safety precautions and get ready to interact with real horses.
By interacting with horses virtually in the presence of a trainer, children can safely interact with horses in a familiar indoor space.
Lo Khi Hong, director of the orphanage, said some children may be intimidated or inspired by animals, and the virtual simulation allows the facility to learn that horse-assisted learning is most effective. He said he could choose any child he thought was a target.
For those who have an affinity for animals, equine assisted therapy can help reduce stress levels, anxiety and trauma-induced symptoms.
“The calmness of horses is the calmness of a child,” Lo said. “Every time it has a calming effect on an upset or traumatized child, it is already providing some kind of recovery.”
