Skills in digital academic communication – between academic propaedeutics and media design expertise (Prof. Dr. Andrea Dreyer)

With the evolving digitalisation and interdisciplinary cooperation in research and teaching, academic communication requires new digital forms of reflection and mediation that go beyond the classic formats of text production. Artists and designers are moreover increasingly assuming a key role in interdisciplinary research projects, knowledge production and communication via digital and social media and platforms.

»To cater to this development, we are piloting alternative subject-specific module examination formats with art and design students at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, which go beyond academic propaedeutics to also encourage the development of skills in media design and impart knowledge of other disciplines through eTutorials,« says Prof. Dr. Andrea Dreyer of her funded project.

Immersive teaching, learning and exploration of virtual reality in virtual reality (Prof. Dr. Bernd Fröhlich)

The fellowship, which will run from 1 October 2022 until 31 December 2023, aims to help create a fully immersive teaching and learning module on virtual reality in virtual reality, which will in turn boost motivation among students and enable a better understanding of the knowledge imparted.

Suitable strategies, materials and examination formats will be developed during the funding period for a virtual reality course in virtual reality. Following a one-semester pilot phase, the format will be evaluated and revised, then offered as an immersive virtual reality module for teaching within the Department of Media Informatics from the 2023/24 winter semester.

»I have always had the vision of also teaching about virtual reality in virtual reality. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to implement this consistently until now due to organisational, technical and financial reasons. The framework conditions have now changed fundamentally, though, thanks to the increase in digital teaching in the past two years and the availability of powerful, inexpensive virtual reality software and hardware,« explains Prof. Dr. Bernd Fröhlich.

Experience and explore virtual reality knowledge in virtual reality

The fellowship means the idea can now be put into practice. On the one hand, it should be possible to experience the teaching and learning materials in the newly developed virtual reality module live in lectures and, on the other, to use these continuously in a social virtual world, independent of time and place, by means of a 3D recording. Students and teachers can then access the interactive virtual reality recordings and explore virtual reality learning content either on their own or together. Three-dimensional input and output devices that you wear on your head known as head-mounted displays make this possible. The teaching concept fits seamlessly into the vision of the metaverse in which interactive 3D worlds can be experienced synchronously by several users and are permanently online and constantly available. The regular use of virtual reality technologies in the lectures and tutorials of the planned immersive virtual reality module will boost students’ awareness of usability issues, technical limitations and potential applications. Prof. Dr. Bernd Fröhlich also expects increased motivation among students from the Department of Media Informatics compared to recorded online lectures.

The English-language module can then also be used at other Thuringian universities as well as nationally and internationally.

About the university teaching fellowships

With their university teaching fellowships, the Stifterverband and the Free State of Thuringia support innovations in university teaching with the aim of creating incentives for the development and exploration of digitally-supported teaching and examination formats. In Thuringia, a jury comprising subject representatives, university teachers and students awarded a total of eight fellowships.

For details of the application procedure and funding aims, see the Stifterverband website:
www.stifterverband.org/digital-lehrfellows-thueringen

In case of questions about the fellowships, please contact Prof. Dr. Andrea Dreyer from the Professorship for Art Education (andrea.dreyer@uni-weimar.de) or Prof. Dr. Bernd Fröhlich from the Professorship for Virtual Reality Systems (bernd.froehlich@uni-weimar.de).