Between virtual and real: exploring hybrid interaction and communication in virtual worlds
Affiliation
University of BedfordshireIssue Date
2016-03-01Subjects
virtual worldsOpenSim
higher education
hybrid virtual worlds
student engagement
interactions
immersive learning
interactive learning
H674 Virtual Reality Engineering
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In this paper we aim to explore the potential advantages of interactions on student engagement and provide guidance to educators who seek interactive and immersive learning experiences for their students through the use of hybrid virtual learning approaches. We define as hybrid virtual learning the educational model where students are co-present and interacting simultaneously both within a virtual world and the physical classroom receiving stimuli related to the learning material in the virtual world from both directions. In order to achieve our aim, we categorised interactions in various categories and observed the complex network of interactions which can be developed in a virtual world when groups of people are working together in order to achieve different goals. The findings suggest that students spontaneously tend to use the interaction channels only when it is deemed to be necessary.Citation
Christopoulos A, Conrad M, Shukla M (2016) 'Between virtual and real: exploring hybrid interaction and communication in virtual worlds', International Journal of Social Media and Interactive Learning Environments, 4 (1), pp.-.Publisher
Inderscience PublishersType
ArticleLanguage
enISSN
2050-3954EISSN
2050-3962ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1504/IJSMILE.2016.075038
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Implementing learning models in virtual worlds - from theory to (virtual) realityChristopoulos, Athanasios; Conrad, Marc; Shukla, Mitul; University of Bedfordshire (Scitepress, 2018-01-01)The main advantage of Desktop Virtual Reality is that it enables learners to interact with each other both in the physical classroom and in a 3D environment. Even though, no explicit theories or models have been developed to contextualise Virtual Learning, instructional designers have successfully employed the traditional approaches with positive results on learners’ motivation and engagement. However, there is very little we know when the question comes to the importance of examining and taxonomising the impact of interactions on motivation and engagement as a synergy of learners’ concurrent presence. To evaluate the potential of interactions holistically and not just unilaterally, a series of experiments were conducted in the context of our Hybrid Virtual Learning classes underpinned from the instructional designer’s decisions to increase the incentives for interactions. Learners’ thoughts and preconceptions about the use of virtual worlds as an educational tool were surveyed, whils t, their actions and interactions (in both environments) were observed during their practical sessions. The take away is that the higher the levels of interactivity are, the higher the chances to attract students’ attention and engagement with the process will be.