The deployment of exoskeletons offers a means to avert musculoskeletal disorders in the construction industry; however, adequate training, especially in equipping students to recognize ergonomic hazards and utilize these devices for construction activities, is still insufficient. Prior research has suggested virtual reality environments as a viable solution to enhance student learning, owing to their immersive and interactive features. Hence, this study investigated a virtual reality learning environment (ViRLE) for facilitating the identification of ergonomic risks and exoskeleton education in construction. The study assessed the effectiveness of the learning environment by examining the cognitive demands imposed on students during interactions with ViRLE. Twelve (12) participants were recruited to engage with ViRLE, which comprised three scenes: (1) construction site walkthrough, (2) ergonomic risks identification, and (3) exoskeleton training. Data was collected using the NASA Task Load Index alongside an eye tracker. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze the data. Subjectively, the findings indicate that the cognitive demand imposed on students across learning Scenes was generally moderate, with overall workload increasing slightly between Scenes. Objectively, mean fixation duration and fixation rate provided converging evidence. Specifically, the mean fixation duration, which reflects the depth of processing at each point of gaze, remained consistent across all Scenes. This suggests that students were able to maintain a consistent level of cognitive processing across different scenes. The study enhances construction education by demonstrating the moderate cognitive demand ViRLE imposes on construction students, which may guide educators in the development of learning environments.