Virtual reality in sign language education: opportunities, challenges, and the road ahead

Sign language (SL) is an essential mode of communication for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) individuals. Its education remains limited by the lack of qualified instructors, insufficient early exposure, and the inadequacy of traditional teaching methods. Recent advances in Virtual Reality (VR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) offer promising new approaches to enhance sign language learning through immersive, interactive, and feedback-rich environments. This paper presents a systematic review of 55 peer-reviewed studies on VR-based sign language education, identifying and analyzing five core thematic areas: (1) gesture recognition and real-time feedback mechanisms; (2) interactive VR environments for communicative practice; (3) gamification for immersive and motivating learning experiences; (4) personalized and adaptive learning systems; and (5) accessibility and inclusivity for diverse DHH learners. The results reveal that AI-driven gesture recognition systems integrated with VR can provide real-time feedback, significantly improving learner engagement and performance. However, the analysis highlights critical challenges: hardware limitations, inconsistent accuracy in gesture recognition, and a lack of inclusive and adaptive design. This review contributes a comprehensive synthesis of technological and pedagogical innovations in the field, outlining current limitations and proposing actionable recommendations for developers and researchers. By bridging technical advancement with inclusive pedagogy, this review lays the foundation for next-generation VR systems that are equitable, effective, and accessible for sign language learners worldwide.