The affordances of computer-based virtual reality (VR) make it a natural fit for role-play. Although role-play has been commonly used in VR-based learning environments, the discussion of design details and guidelines is limited. In this chapter, the authors present a design case and aim to share their experiences of designing role-play in OpenSimulator-supported VR during a three-year design project for providing teaching training to graduate teaching assistants in STEM disciplines. The design of role-play bridges the technical and pedagogical affordances of VR. The authors discuss the design details from several aspects, including the formulation of role-play, types of role-play, and implementation. The authors also report the success and constraints in implementing role-play. With this design case, the authors intent on sharing the knowledge about the design and practice of VR-based role-play.
TopIntroduction
Role-play describes the type of activity where learners take actions either as themselves or someone else to handle situations that are replications of real life (Mørch et al., 2015; Nestel & Tierney, 2007). In role-play, learners take on a specific identity and try to act, behave, and interact with other roles to fulfill the social expectations of this new identity in a simulated situation (Peng, 2008; Huang & Yeh, 2016). In this sense, role-play is also referred to as simulation, and researchers often use these two terms interchangeably to describe instructional activities of the same nature (e.g., Dalgarno, Gregory, Knox, & Reiners, 2016). As a pedagogical technique, role-play is used for skill acquisition, skill maintenance, and knowledge enhancement (Maier, 2002). The application of role-play is popular in many domains, including education, health care, business, military training, and so forth.
A promising platform that supports role-play is computer-based virtual reality (VR). Computer-based VR (hereafter VR) defines a computer-generated display that enables its users to develop a sense of being present in a simulated environment other than the actual physical environment they are in and to interact with that environment (Schroeder, 2008). VR is widely applied in education to encourage active participation while serving for teaching, learning, and training purposes (Dalgarno & Lee, 2010; Fowler, 2015; Taçgin, 2020). The immersive and interactive features make VR a natural fit for implementing role-play activities (Jamaludin, San Chee, & Ho, 2009). Many studies have integrated VR-based role-play as the instructional activity to provide teaching training and yielded positive findings (e.g., Cheong, 2010; Dalgarno et al., 2016). Yet, the details about designing such activities are lacking.
Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) are extensively involved in undergraduate education in STEM disciplines as they take on essential teaching responsibilities, such as leading lectures, laboratories, and recitations, and frequently interact with undergraduate students (Bitting, Teasdale, & Ryker, 2017). However, GTAs often face the challenges caused by the lack of teaching preparation and training (Mark et al., 2012; Luft, Kurdziel, Roehrig, & Turner, 2004). To address the needs of pedagogical and professional preparation, we designed and developed a Mixed-reality Integrated Learning Environment (MILE) project to provide teaching training for STEM GTAs. In this design case (Boling, 2010), we report our experience of designing role-play in VR, which is central to the training project. We discuss the design of a variety types of role-play, and the success and constraints during implementation. The chapter will shed light on the design and practice of role-play in VR.
Theoretical Foundation of Role-Play
The core learning theory underpinning role-play is experiential learning theory (Kolb, 1984). According to Kolb (1984), learning is “the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience” (p. 38). The learning experience should involve learning events that engage learners actively rather than passively (Clark, Threeton, & Ewing, 2010). Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning theory asserts that learning should be recognized as a process where knowledge is continuously obtained from the experiences of the learner.
To be specific, experiential learning theory suggests that complete learning experience should lead learners to go through a cycle with four learning modes (Kolb & Fry, 1975). Concrete experience and abstract conceptualization are two modes where learners can grasp experience. Reflective observation and active experimentation are stages for transforming experience. Such a learning process should be considered as a continuous cycle, and learners can begin at any one of the four modes (Kolb & Fry, 1975).