With virtual reality (VR) tools becoming increasingly prevalent in K-12 schools today, educators now possess the means to transport students to digitally simulated times and places without ever leaving the classroom. However, current application of this experiential technology is in its nascent stage and subsequent research is often limited to science- and engineering-related courses at the secondary level. Moreover, a notable gap exists in studies exploring the effects of storyliving in VR specifically for K-12 students with present research focusing on adult participants. Thus, this comprehensive research study investigated the impact of cinematic virtual reality (CVR) on seventh-grade students' empathic responses through the use of "The Displaced," a documentary film available in both two-dimensional (2D) and CVR formats featuring child refugees who are similar in age to the study participants. In the quantitative phase of this study, Vossen et al.'s Adolescent Measure of Empathy and Sympathy (AMES) was administered as a pretest to seventh-grade social studies students (n = 60) a week before viewing "The Displaced" in one of two available formats. Immediately after viewing the film, the AMES was re-administered as a posttest. Paired t tests were conducted to explore the changes in mean scores for the AMES subscale scores between participants viewing the film in CVR and 2D formats as well as the changes in mean subscales between male and female participants viewing the film in CVR. Gain scores were also calculated and analyzed through a two-way MANOVA to examine the possible interaction effect between film format and gender on AMES subscale scores. The subsequent mixed-methods portion of this study was comprised of two phases that explored the impact of cinematic virtual reality (CVR) on seventh-grade students (n = 66) in a school library. In the first phase, students completed an open-ended questionnaire immediately after viewing "The Displaced." The resulting qualitative data was categorized through open coding and later analyzed quantitatively through descriptive statistics and a chi-square test; these results aided in the selection of four students for semi-structured interviews and guided the creation of questions for both student and teacher interviews. The qualitative data collected from the interviews was analyzed to develop themes before being integrated and interpreted in conjunction with the data collected in the previous phase. Overall, this comprehensive study of storyliving in CVR revealed that students who experienced the film in CVR format reported heightened levels of immersion, agency, and presence, which led to increased engagement and comprehension. Additionally, the CVR format led to a greater increase in both cognitive and affective empathy scores, with male adolescent students demonstrating the most remarkable increases. Teachers' post-viewing observations of students corroborated these findings, recognizing the potential of CVR as an effective instructional tool and expressing their intentions to utilize it in future instruction. Ultimately, the open-ended responses from student and teacher participants provided insights that complemented and enriched the quantitative data, offering a nuanced understanding of the ways in which CVR not only positively influenced cognitive and affective empathies but also contributed to increased engagement, comprehension, and motivation to engage in prosocial behavior. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]