Teaching and learning during the pandemic has motivated us to look past the present zeitgeist and near total reliance on audio-visual collaboration software, and question what might come next. The restrictions placed on in-person teaching, learning and research are, in a sense, accelerating and re-structuring innovations in how we engage as educators, researchers and learners. The avant-garde just a few years ago, has become the mainstream.
Similarly, virtual reality and the potential for an emergent metaverse are today’s avant-garde opportunity. We believe that the environment and possibilities to use immersive emerging media as tools for teaching, learning and research are primed for such an experiment. The aim of this course is to explore the relationship between the virtual self and environment and to assess both as a space for learning and collaboration. The course is built around 3 principles. We believe these principles will help to encourage exploration and discovery in the area of emerging media, philosophy and theories and practices of presence.
