Interdisciplinary Collaboration through Designing 3D Simulation Case Studies

TL;DR

This paper presents a 3D virtual environment designed to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration in education and research, enabling faculty from multiple disciplines to create, share, and discuss simulated clinical scenarios efficiently.

Contribution

The study introduces a cost-effective, interactive 3D simulation platform with social networking features to enhance interdisciplinary research and curriculum development.

Findings

Successful implementation of a multi-disciplinary 3D simulation environment

Enhanced faculty collaboration and curriculum planning

Potential for scalable, interactive educational content

Abstract

Interdisciplinary collaboration is essential for the advance of research. As domain subjects become more and more specialized, researchers need to cross disciplines for insights from peers in other areas to have a broader and deeper understand of a topic at micro- and macro-levels. We developed a 3D virtual learning environment that served as a platform for faculty to plan curriculum, share educational beliefs, and conduct cross-discipline research for effective learning. Based upon the scripts designed by faculty from five disciplines, virtual doctors, nurses, or patients interact in a 3D virtual hospital. The teaching vignettes were then converted to video clips, allowing users to view, pause, replay, or comment on the videos individually or in groups. Unlike many existing platforms, we anticipated a value-added by adding a social networking capacity to this virtual environment. The focus of this paper is on the cost-efficiency and system design of the virtual learning environment.