A Study of the Student Experience in Video Conferences and Virtual Worlds as a Basis for Designing the Online Learning Experience

Abstract

The design of online learning environments has a fundamental and immediate impact on how students experience learning in these environments and particularly on the students’ satisfaction and learning engagement. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in students participating in online learning on a large scale and forcing educational institutions to adopt various communication and virtual teaching environments: this has provided an opportunity to study and compare different online learning environments. To understand the design performance of the currently available virtual learning environments, they should be considered and evaluated from the students’ point of view. Identifying their pros and cons gives designers a better idea of how to enhance the design of virtual learning environments and provide a positive educational experience for students. The two most broadly used types of virtual learning environments are video conferencing and virtual worlds. These two mediums provide different affordances for students to experience and interact with the learning materials as well as to interact with the instructor and other students. This paper reports on a study comparing the use of Zoom as an example of video conferencing and Gather.Town as an example of a virtual world in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is based on students’ responses to an online survey asking them to compare the two environments based on their experience in their courses. The participants were CS undergraduate students exposed to both environments and experiences with both platforms. A qualitative analysis of the data collected showed that students realized certain values from the affordances offered by the virtual world environment that facilitated collaborative learning with peers and instructors and made the learning experience more effective and engaging.