Field trips are particularly valued for their practical orientation, allowing students to interact with and immerse themselves in real-world settings (Krakowka, 2012; Larsen et al., 2016). As an educator in the built environment discipline, I frequently organise field trips to improve students’ observational skills and enhance their spatial awareness. In this blog post, I report my research on innovative teaching methods by adopting virtual field trips during the pandemic.

In the spring of 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic began, I quickly created a video showcasing the Central Business District (CBD) in Hong Kong to replace the physical field trips. However, I found that the video format did not provide the immersive learning experience I desired. Consequently, I began to develop virtual reality (VR) experiences to enhance student engagement. Three VR trails were created for real estate courses: VR A Walk in CBD, VR Peak Galleria and VR Central Market. I did an experimental study focusing on the VR Central Market project. Due to the fifth wave of pandemic, inflicted by Omicron in spring 2022, classes remained online, and students enrolled in my shopping mall courses (both undergraduate and postgraduate) were required to view the VR content from home.

The experimental study aimed to assess whether the VR learning experience could enhance students’ understanding of retail space development under the constraints of heritage preservation, and to gauge their perception of VR as a substitute for physical field trips. After viewing the VR content, students were asked to complete a survey. Out of 77 students enrolled in the two courses, we received 63 valid survey responses. The survey results were rather encouraging. Most respondents agreed that their knowledge had been enhanced through the VR tour, and nearly all participants concurred that the VR experience provided an immersive engagement that could not be achieved through PowerPoint slides. Besides, the students believed that VR was more of a complement to than a substitute for field trips. Subsequent discussions with students indicated that issues with VR included the feelings of dizziness while using the VR, confusion regarding directions, and a tendency to get lost in the virtual environment. Nevertheless, 90 per cent of the respondents expressed satisfaction with the VR learning experience. Positive comments highlighted the convenience and flexibility of being able to view the content at any time without needing to visit an actual site, as well as the ability to replay information tagged in the VR if they missed or forgot it. Overall, the VR experience was well received by the students.

‘90 per cent of participating students expressed satisfaction with the VR learning experience … [including] being able to view the content at any time without needing to visit an actual site, as well as the ability to replay information tagged in the VR if they missed or forgot it.’

Now that teaching has returned to normal, students are back on campus, and physical field trips can resume. This raises the question: Do we still need to develop VR trails? What about the VR trails that were previously developed? In the post-pandemic era, VR can still play a significant role in modern education. It can complement physical field trips, serve as pre-field trip teaching material in flipped teaching, or act as post-field trip material for revision. Additionally, VR can facilitate the internationalisation of the curriculum. Educators can collaborate internationally to help students understand the built environment of a remote city without the necessity of visiting the actual location.

Building on my experimental study, more work could be done to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of VR trails in teaching, especially in the post-pandemic era. However, doing pedagogical research can be challenging for educators focusing on teaching, as most resources are dedicated to enhancing teaching materials and developing new methods to improve teaching and learning. Two potential approaches to tackling this challenge are to collaborate with colleagues who share similar interests, and participating in writing retreats where I can focus on my writing within a focused and uninterrupted time and space.

In summary, this platform facilitates the exchange of ideas and fosters collaborative teaching and research projects. I welcome comments and suggestions from all disciplines regarding ideas for interdisciplinary pedagogical research.

References

Krakowka, A. R. (2012). Field trips as valuable learning experiences in geography courses. Journal of Geography, 111, 236–244. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221341.2012.707674

Larsen, C., Walsh, C., Almond, N., & Myers, C. (2016). The ‘real value’ of field trips in the early weeks of higher education: The student perspective. Educational Studies, 43(1): 110–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2016.1245604