Utilising a virtual courtroom to facilitate simulated court hearings to enhance the teaching and learning for law, policing and social work students

Kadry, Ahmed; Ryan, Francine; Knight, Jon-Paul and Hull, Simon (2024). Utilising a virtual courtroom to facilitate simulated court hearings to enhance the teaching and learning for law, policing and social work students. In: 16th International Conference on Education Technology and Computers, 19 Sep 2024, Porto, Portugal.

Abstract

There has been a great deal of excitement over the emergence and potential of new technologies to improve teaching and learning (McGovern et al 2020, Chiquet et al 2023). Technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and virtual worlds now feature as part of the conversation around the use of technology in education. Immersive technologies have the potential to offer a greater sense of reality and facilitate interactions with users beyond a 2D interface (Fiorentino et al 2020). Although there is growing research on virtual reality particularly around features and functions of VR there are significant gaps in the literature around the effectiveness of virtual reality in teaching and learning and the usability of systems (McGovern et al 2020, Fiorentino et al 2020). Academics at The Open University have designed and built a highly realistic immersive virtual court room (VCR) where users can explore and learn about the court system. In addition, the courtroom allows users to come together in the VCR to engage in mock hearings to support the practice and development of courtroom presentation and advocacy skills.

This research project brought together students from law, policing, and social work to engage in a series of simulated court hearings in the VCR. The aim of the study was to explore the benefits of the VCR for law, policing and social work students in collaborating in simulated court hearings, developing court room presentation skills and the potential of the VCR to enhance the learning of distance education students. Participants engaged in a series of five simulated court proceedings assuming different roles within the judicial process. Data was collected through observations of the simulated court hearings and interviews. This paper reports on the findings from the research that indicate there are benefits to students from the experiential nature of the VCR as a method for learning and skills development and simulated experiences can enhance knowledge and skills. The interdisciplinary approach provided students with a deeper understanding of the role of different professionals within the court process. It also highlighted some of the technical challenges around the use of virtual reality technology within teaching and learning. The presentation will discuss the methodology, key findings, and implications for integrating desktop virtual reality into teaching and learning.

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