VR Hackathon with Goethe Institute: Lessons Learned from Organizing a Transdisciplinary VR Hackathon

TL;DR

This paper reports on a transdisciplinary VR hackathon organized with Goethe Institute, highlighting lessons learned about team dynamics, design processes, and educational benefits in rapid prototyping of language learning VR applications.

Contribution

It provides novel insights and practical guidelines for organizing and preparing for content creation VR hackathons involving diverse disciplines.

Findings

Effective design thinking cycles for interdisciplinary VR projects

Educational benefits of transdisciplinary collaboration in VR

Recommendations for organizing and preparing VR hackathons

Abstract

In this article we report a case study of a Language Learning Bauhaus VR hackathon with Goethe Institute. It was organized as an educational and research project to tap into the dynamics of transdisciplinary teams challenged with a specific requirement. In our case, it was to build a Bauhaus-themed German Language Learning VR App. We constructed this experiment to simulate how representatives of different disciplines may work together towards a very specific purpose under time pressure. So, each participating team consisted of members of various expert-fields: software development (Unity or Unreal), design, psychology and linguistics. The results of this study cast light on the recommended cycle of design thinking and customer-centered design in VR. Especially in interdisciplinary rapid prototyping conditions, where stakeholders initially do not share competences. They also showcase educational benefits of working in transdisciplinary environments. This study, combined with our previous work on human factors in rapid software development and co-design, including hackathon dynamics, allowed us to formulate recommendations for organizing content creation VR hackathons for specific purposes. We also provide guidelines on how to prepare the participants to work in rapid prototyping VR environments and benefit from such experiences in the long term.