University of Minnesota professor revolutionises veterinary teaching with virtual reality and AI

Perle Zhitnitskiy, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota Swine Group, has been recognised with the Zoetis Distinguished Teaching Award for her innovative use of virtual reality and AI chatbots to enhance veterinary education and student preparedness.

Perle Zhitnitskiy, an associate professor in the University of Minnesota Swine Group, has received the Zoetis Distinguished Teaching Award, the College of Veterinary Medicine’s highest teaching honour. According to the university, the award is chosen each year by faculty and veterinary students.

Zhitnitskiy has spent five years bringing virtual reality into her Food and Fiber selective 1 course, using it to ease the logistics of taking large groups of third-year students to farms and to prepare them for what they will see on site. She says the approach can reduce first-visit anxiety and may also encourage students to consider species and careers they had not previously thought about.

Her next step is to introduce AI chatbots into upper-level teaching from this autumn. The aim is to let students rehearse difficult client conversations, including suspected animal cruelty, second opinions and being pressured to criticise a colleague, in a safe setting where they can make mistakes and try again.

Image Source: University of Minnesota